Exhibits, galleries, theater and more: Seacoast arts and culture news
Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra “Family Matinees” Chamber Series returns Sept. 30
PORTSMOUTH — The Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra’s (PSO) “Family Matinees” chamber music series returns Saturday, Sept. 30, at 3 p.m. with “Carnival of the Animals” performed by the PSO Principal Winds at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Portsmouth, N.H.
“The ‘Family Matinees’ series is part of the PSO’s ongoing mission to encourage the audiences and musicians of today and tomorrow,” said Aubrie Dionne, PSO Outreach Director. “The chamber music repertoire is widely varied and is the perfect way for music lovers of all ages to experience classical music.”
The Sept. 30 concert will take audiences on a whimsical musical journey as the enchanting melodies of Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals” come to life in this captivating performance. PSO Principal Winds is comprised of Aubrie Dionne, flute; Sarah Krebs, oboe; John Ferraro, clarinet; Melissa Grady, bassoon; and Orlando Pandolfi, horn. The quintet will be joined by a young musician from the area.
Subsequent concerts in the “Family Matinees” series include “Masterpiece Transcriptions for Brass Quintet,” on Nov. 11; “Bach’s Toccata and More!” on Jan. 27; and “Fables in Harmony: A Musical Journey with the Tortoise and the Hare” on April 27. All concerts take place at 3 p.m. at St. John’s Episcopal Church at 101 Chapel St., in Portsmouth, N.H. Each performance will feature members of the Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra and will include a special guest performance by a youth string musician from the area.
There is a $15 suggested at-the-door donation per family. Concerts are free for PSO season subscribers. For full program details visit www.portsmouthsymphony.org.
The Fabulous Find awards $11,116 Grant to Kittery Art Association
KITTERY, Maine — The Kittery Art Association members and board learned that KAA would be the recipient of a generous check from The Fabulous Find, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with a resale shop located at 139 State Road in Kittery, Maine. Three organizations—the Piscataqua Youth Sailing Association, the Isles of Shoals Historic and Research Association, and the Kittery Art Association -- were each presented with a check for $11,116.84, reflecting the remarkable proceeds from sales made at The Fabulous Find during the month of June.
The money presented to the KAA will be put to good use, in support of local artists and event and instructional programming. All thanks to the board at The Fabulous Find and their dedicated volunteers.
The New Hampshire Art Association presents ‘Threads and Where They Lead’
PORTSMOUTH – The New Hampshire Art Association announced the opening of “Threads and Where They Lead,” on Aug. 31 at the State St Gallery. Drawing inspiration from children’s string games found in cultures throughout the globe, Michelle Peterson delves into this age-old tradition to uncover universal underlying threads in our psyches. The exhibition is a collection of paintings and photography that illustrate the interconnectedness of everyday life and the metaphysical architecture that shapes our shared narratives.
Peterson is a multidisciplinary artist who exhibited extensively. Her prior exhibitions include the Atlantic Gallery in NYC, Collar Works in Troy N.Y., the Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts in Providence R.I. and many more. In this body of work, she uses images like stones and birds to represent larger ideas like the self and the soul based on Carl Jung’s understanding of archetypes and symbols. Jung famously said, “The stone was a ‘little world’ of man himself,” and Peterson draws on this theme by depicting string in patterns and shapes that reference Jung’s archetypes.
“By using symbols such as a water bottle, stones, birds, and hands interspersed and oriented around visible and invisible strings, I begin to map a personal psychogeography,” she says. Through her body of work, Peterson aims to highlight the larger patterns and narratives that shape our existence, our stories and our connections to one another.
Her exhibition will be held in the East Gallery of the Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery from Aug. 31 to Oct. 1. The NHAA is hosting a reception on Friday, Sept. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m. as part of the Art Around Town First Friday art walk in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery at 136 State St., in Portsmouth. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. Visit www.nhartassociation.org or call 603-431-4230 for more information.
‘Joseph C. A. Wingate: Stratham’s Link to 19th Century China’ a presentation by John Wingate Seavey
STRATHAM — On Monday, Sept. 11, at 7 p.m. the Stratham Historical Society and Wiggin Memorial Library will jointly host “Joseph C. A. Wingate: Stratham’s Link to 19th Century China”, a presentation by his third great nephew John Wingate Seavey. John Seavey was born in Exeter, raised in Hampton and educated at Bates College, the University of Arizona and Harvard. He spent over three decades at the University of New Hampshire first as Assistant and finishing as the Everett Sacket Endowed Professor in the College of Health & Human Services. He was the Founding Director of the UNH graduate program in Public Health. He retired in 2012 as Professor Emeritus.
Following a 6:30 p.m. meeting of the Stratham Historical Society, the program will be held at the Town Municipal Center, Meeting Room A, 10 Bunker Hill Avenue, Stratham. Free and open to the public.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Exhibits, galleries, theater and more: Seacoast arts and culture news
