The library welcomes Ilse Plume, a local illustrator of children’s books, to the T. Ross Kelly Family Gallery for an exhibit that will last the entire month of May. Plume’s delicate illustrations practically leap off the page, showing both her deftness with bold and bright colors, and her skill with capturing motion and rhythm. And her little frog subjects will charm any viewer, child or adult.

Plume herself says that illustration is “a journey that takes you to many places—and sometimes creates adventures along the way—and often leads to surprising, unexpected results. The main thing is to continue to dream and to explore your artistic visions and to work hard.”

The opening for this exhibition will be held on Sunday, May 3rd, in the gallery.

Yes They Can!

Although largely excluded from employment at the Watertown Arsenal in times of peace, in times of war, women became crucial to almost every aspect of operations.  In a series of photographs selected by Alan R. Earls, author of the Arcadia Publishing photo-history book, Watertown Arsenal, the lives and times of the Women of Watertown Arsenal come alive.  “Although the government photographers are anonymous, many of the images are reminiscent of those crafted by famed photographer Lewis W. Hines,” said Earls. Those photos capture the hard work and occasional triumphs of daily life in an industrial setting traditionally dominated by men.

The event will run through the month of November at the Watertown Free Public Library.

Come join in celebrating the joys of everyday life with photographer Joanne Shapiro, who’s photography exhibit, “Extraordinary Ordinary: The Magic of Everyday Life” will be on display in the gallery throughout the month of October. You are invited to attend the opening reception for this exhibit on Sunday, October 5th, 2 pm – 4 pm.

Joanne first discovered photography while in grade school when she acquired her first camera, a turquoise blue 620-film box camera. Many years and cameras later, her love for photography continues to grow. Working many years with a 4 x 5 view camera and a traditional black and white darkroom, Joanne currently photographs with a DSLR camera and she prints her own photographs using a digital darkroom.

This month, we are welcoming local artist, Julie Nordstrom, to the T. Ross Kelly Family Gallery. Part of a unique American tradition, Nordstrom paints screens of all shapes and sizes, decorating them landscapes or floral imagery. In this way, Nordstrom creates art and beauty out of something boringly functional, and adds a whimsical, decorative touch to a house’s exterior.

While art has not been my primary vocation, I became fascinated with painted screens in 2006 while traveling in Baltimore. Painted screens date back to the 1930’s and you can still see many of these original screens in windows of East Baltimore. The painted screens I saw were scenes of cottages in rural, pastoral settings, of woodlands and ponds filled with birds. As I further investigated this art form I noticed that the variety and type of painted screens that filled windows and doors were limited only by the artist’s and homeowner’s imagination. I decided this was an endeavor I wanted to pursue and I have fallen in love with painting screens.

It is my hope that by exhibiting my work in the Watertown Library I will help to keep this traditional form of American art alive. When you see the exhibit I think you will be fascinated by the fact that the artwork is almost invisible on the inside, thus your view of the outside is unobstructed. The exterior painting does make it more difficult to see inside the window.

-Julie Nordstrom, Watertown MA

Images of China: the New, the Old, and the Disappearing

Anne Harrington A native of Arlington, MA, and a graduate of Regis College and the Universities of Maryland and Virginia, Anne (at far right) developed a serious interest in photography beginning in 1997.

During the two years that she taught English at Shanghai University in Shanghai, China (2002-2004), Anne photographed people, places, and life in and around Shanghai. She also had the opportunity to travel and photograph beyond Shanghai. Her trips, frequently on her own, included Hong Kong, Beijing, Xi’an, Guilin, Lijiang, and other less well-known locations. Anne photographed what she saw from the perspective of an expatriate teacher living and working in China. One theme that emerged in her photographs was the impact of a “rising China” on daily life in Shanghai and the disappearing “old” China. Some of these images are featured in her current exhibit at Watertown Library.

Digital Slide Presentation: Sunday, February 24, 2008

Anne continues to photograph and exhibit and looks forward to her next trip to Asia.

Ben Kerman writes, “I am a 21 year resident of Watertown, Massachusetts, and have been an Emergency Physician at Mount Auburn, Boston City, and Carney Hospitals. I am the father of three adopted children, now teenagers, and hope I will survive their adolescence. I was an amateur pilot, still am an avid tennis player, and love poetry.|

I feel that I was born to travel the world and become attached to places like people. I inherited an artist’s soul from my mother and wanderlust from my father. Photography is something I’ve had an affinity for since getting my first camera as a young boy. Only in the past five years have I come to realize taking pictures is a way to express feelings and convey my love of the world around me.

Born in Denmark, I was raised in the Boston area and New Mexico, lived in Paris, Mexico City, Seattle, San Francisco and a few other places for different periods of time growing up. At age 12, I spent a summer riding horses and camping in what was back then (1968) the wilderness of the Colorado Rocky Mountains and fell in love with all things alpine. As an Emergency Physician, I have worked for Native American tribes in Alaska, Idaho, and Western Washington State and once again fell in love with the damp green spectacular country of the Pacific Northwest. I have set foot in every state of the union but Arkansas and North Dakota (go figure).

I have visited Iceland, Ethiopia, New Zealand, and Australia. Life has presented me with many blessings, for which I am deeply grateful. Through photography, I am able to share these blessings with others. If my luck holds out, I’ve got many more people and places to visit and photos to take.”

Join us for the exhibit reception on Sunday, January 6th from 3 to 5 PM.

Visit his wesite at: www.loveofplacephotography.com