Food is such a great entryway to any country or ethnic group that I sometimes joke about saving the airfare and simply strolling the streets of a local Guatemalan neighborhood for baked goods in the morning. Or wandering through Asian markets for an afternoon vacation and lunch. Ethnic enclaves all over New England are teeming […]
Great art requires talent and tenacity, but also time and space: time to learn and perfect, and to pass on knowledge; space to bloom and grow, think and rethink. At the turn of the 20th century, a talented and well-trained silversmith named Arthur J. Stone opened a workshop in South Gardner, Massachusetts. Nestled among rolling […]
Lindsay Mac is proof that when you have a song in your heart, you just can’t help but sing it. Trained as a cellist from an early age, she turned her back on the conservatories to walk the path of the singer-songwriter. But where most would trade in their classical instrument for a six-string, Lindsay […]
This May, an extraordinary traveling art exhibit will begin its six-month celebration of Lake Champlain, the lake that Samuel de Champlain first explored 400 years ago. The exhibit–39 pieces of art, most of them paintings–was created by contemporary artists living and working in Vermont. I had the good fortune of seeing the collection come together […]
This wedding story is for anyone getting married. It begins decades ago with two teenage high school student-athletes.
Yankee classic from June 2001 The faint scent of sheep manure drifts up into this otherwise spotless kitchen in Northborough, Massachusetts. Pulling on well-worn brown duck coveralls, Mark Fidrych is on his way to the barn, where one of his ewes is about to give birth. On the island counter, beside a bottle of Gatorade, […]
For a taste of something new, visit these summer ethnic food festivals in New England. Call ahead or check Web sites for the latest information on schedules and possible admission fees. La Kermesse Franco-Americaine St. Louis Field, jct. West & Prospect Sts. Biddeford, ME 207-282-2894, 207-468-3921 www.lakermessefestival.com The largest Franco-American festival in New England highlights […]
Yankee Classic from January/February 2005 It is early evening, and in the basement of Saint Joseph the Worker Roman Catholic Church on Maquan Street in Hanson, Massachusetts, a small group of people sits around a table, discussing their cancers. Phyllis, a fragile-looking woman in her forties, is a newcomer to the group. Her lymphoma has […]
Portsmouth is the artsy black sheep of New Hampshire. A tiny seaside enclave dotted with galleries and cafes, it doesn’t really fit the rugged alpine character of the rest of the Granite State. Both hip and historic, it’s an ideal getaway spot for anyone in search of a low-key weekend to indulge his or her […]
As it celebrates its 40th anniversary, the Westport Arts Center in Connecticut invited artist Eric Aho to organize an exhibition focused on a sense of place. Aho, who lives in Vermont, decided to tighten the focus to visual ideas about a place both universal and particular – home. In HOME (through June 1) Aho has […]
Ten years ago during our annual summer vacation in Round Pond, Maine, our daughters, 12 and 14, ran down to the little harbor at low tide to roll around in the mud. On a lobster pier above them, diners observed with delight, applauding the reckless abandon of these two teenagers whose laughter echoed across the […]
The vast majority of artists are never able to make a living from their art, and the fate of even those who do is typically to slip into obscurity after death. If they were any good at all, their work may enjoy a second life on the antique and auction market 50, 75, 100 years […]
