Click on this photo to see it in the KHS photo note cards/prints gallery.Please join me on Sunday, October 4, 2009 between 2-4 pm at the Opening Reception for the MAA Annual Open Photography and Sculpture Show.  The show runs October 3-25, 2009 at the King Hooper Mansion at 8 Hooper Street in Marblehead, Mass.  See my Light House photo on display.  It's printed with archival ink on archival rag paper which has a deckled edge.  Browse the work of select photographers exhibited within one of Marblehead's historic properties.

Don’t miss the next two weekends of free outdoor and cultural activities in Essex County as part of the 2009 Trails and Sails experience. Visit their extensive website to plan your itinerary. You might want to consider the Cox Reservation Walk in Essex or the Guide’s Favorite’s at Beauport, the Sleeper-McCann House in Gloucester. Perhaps you’d like to climb aboard a Yankee Whale Watch in Gloucester or a pontoon boat to go Cruising the Essex River. Join the Ipswich Maritime Walking Tour to stroll the Historic South Green and the shores of the Ipswich River. Visit the Italian and Rose formal gardens at Maudslay State Park as part of the Newburyport Tour + Tea in Formal Gardens. Partake in a Chestnut Street Stroll among its sea captain houses or Lunch Hour at the Gedney House c. 1665 in Salem. Check the Trails and Sails website for dates and times. Enjoy some of New England’s treasures north of Boston. 

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Happy Fourth! I’ll be celebrating at the Marblehead Festival of Arts. It runs through Sunday, July 5. Highlights include: live music at Crocker Park; an Artisan’s Marketplace outside Abbot Hall (c. 1870s) Saturday, July 4, 10 am-5 pm and Sunday, July 5, 10 am-4 pm; a Model Boat Building workshop (for kids accompanied by adults) outside Abbot Hall Saturday, July 4, 11 am-2 pm followed by the Festival Regatta on Redd’s Pond at 3 pm; and the Photography exhibit at Old Town House (c. 1727) as well as the Crafts exhibit at Abbot Hall. There are plenty of other attractions to consider which are described on the festival website. Give it a look.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

With yesterday’s opening of the Salem Farmers’ Market, Salem Main Streets has revived a Salem, Massachusetts tradition, dating back to 1634. The Old Town Hall in Derby Square, behind Artists Row, was formerly known as the Market House.  It is the site of both the original and the new market, which encircles the stately 1816 Federal Style building (credited in part to both Charles Bulfinch and Samuel McIntire). The historic venue in downtown Salem is an ideal showcase for local food and handiworks, all within walking distance of Essex and Front Street retail and cultural attractions.

The launch of the event drew a bustling crowd eager to enjoy community fare and the first sunshine in days. Live acoustic music by Qwill and the duo of Emily Russo and Will Faust added a festive air. I overheard one proud Salem participant say to his companion, “Look at this! Eat our dust Marblehead.” There’s nothing like a little, friendly, town rivalry.

The Clark Farm stand was especially popular. Folks lined up in droves for heirloom tomatoes, baskets of strawberries, and bundles of lettuce, among other produce. If your taste leans more toward the sea than the farm, there was something there for you too: fresh seafood from A & J Lobsters and Rowand's Fisheries. Hand made soaps, scarves, and pottery added some artistry to the scene.

Don’t worry if you missed the opening day, the event will be held every Thursday from 4-7 p.m. through October 29, 2009. It’s a great and apt asset for Salem. Drop in on the Salem Arts Association gallery, the Peabody Essex Museum, and Cinema Salem gallery en route.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

My "Art of a Barn"A few years ago I went to my first Art in the Barn in Essex, Mass. on a gorgeous June afternoon and was enthralled. I asked my husband if he wanted to go back to the barns the next weekend too. That’s when I learned, to my dismay, that it’s an annual fundraising event. As much as I would like to spend many weekends each summer at the Greenbelt’s exquisite Cox Reservation, browsing inspirational art within venerable structures perched above salt marshes, I (and you) must make do with only one weekend per year. This summer’s event wrapped up yesterday. So why mention it now? Well it’s not too late to share some of the featured artists with you, even if you weren’t able to attend.

I spotted Carolyn Kerr’s porcelain dinnerware from Neptune Designz last year, and couldn’t resist it this year. I snapped up a colorful tray, convincing myself that my friend needs it, knowing full well that I wanted it for myself. Black & white photography by Ben Staples and Dorothy Kerper Monnelly, each of Ipswich, took my breath away. The rich, tonal range of their work captures the stunning beauty of uniquely New England landscapes. Look for the photography of Dorothy Kerper Monnelly in Between Land and Sea, The Great Marsh. It’s exquisite. Dazzlingly colorful, fiber collages by Claudine Lesk reminded me of The Quilts of Gee’s Bend in miniature. After a quick visit to Lesk’s website, I learned that she too makes stunning quilts. Whimsical, outdoor, steel sculptures by Chris Williams were also noteworthy.

Who knows what would have caught your eye, so next June be sure to look for Art in the Barn 2010. Maybe if enough folks express interest, the Essex County Greenbelt Association would consider a fall Art in the Barn. It’s probably worth asking.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast