'Seagull Cinderella' is returning to New Bedford. Do you remember the controversy?
NEW BEDFORD — When “Seagull Cinderella” premiered in 2016, she ruffled lots of feathers in the Whaling City but ultimately got people from far and wide talking about her and highlighting the city’s Seaport Art Walk.
For the art walk’s 10-year anniversary, the controversial bird will return to her original spot with a new outfit.
“I think it's a nice addition to the Seaport Art Walk. I think it draws a lot of attention and comments. And I think it gets people talking,” said artist Donna Dodson, whose other sculpture, "Moby Dick,” has remained permanently on the art walk since 2015.
“I think it’s gratifying to have people delve into the meaning of your work and engage with it.”
This artwork is intended as a commentary on how women are represented in art. It features a hybrid of a seagull and a woman, representing a grandmother-like figure that is a non-stereotypical representation of women in public art.
“Seagull Cinderella is as common as the birds we see at the beach. Yet she is uncommon, like Marilla in Anne of Green Gables, corseted and bound by the sweet virtues of her character,” Dodson said.
“She was created as the answer to the question, what type of bird would Cinderella be?”
The viral drama around Seagull Cinderella
According to a previous Standard-Times article, debate about the sculpture’s propriety and how it reflected on New Bedford and more made headlines across the nation and in the United Kingdom’s Daily Mail tabloid after local Ray Concannon began a petition seeking to have it removed.
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The detailed petition stated, "[It's] ridiculous and makes our city look like a joke. With New Bedford's rich history, we do not want visitors' lasting impressions to be [this]. What a waste. It needs to go. Remove it, or replace it with something beautiful."
“It was a little stressful as an artist to have your work get misinterpreted like that,” Dodson remembered.
Jessica Bregoli, creator of the Seaport Art Walk, said even though the petition originally received a few hundred signatures, there was also a huge amount of support from the community defending the seagull.
Seagull Cinderella stickers
As a response, she and artist Eric Johnson created silhouette stickers of the Seagull Cinderella outline for people to color in themselves or change her into characters like Wonder Woman and Al Capone.
“There were thousands of variations of Seagull Cinderella,” she said, adding that decal versions were printed and sold, and all of the money was donated to women at St. Luke's who were dealing with breast cancer.
“There was overwhelming support for it. It was very heartwarming,” Dodson added.
The eight-foot sculpture has been stationed in Dodson’s backyard in Maynard, Massachusetts. It has traveled to other waterside locales, including Provincetown, Brooklyn, and the shores of Lake Michigan.
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Cinderella Seagull welcomed back with parade
When it returned home from the art walk, the town had a welcome back parade and town officials made it “Seagull Cinderella” day.
“She really was the one that put us on the map,” Bregoli said. “It will be fun to have her come back to celebrate our 10th anniversary. I would really hope that people embrace it and find joy and within the piece, rather than it being looked at as a negative thing,” Bregoli added.
Celebrating 10 years of the Seaport Art Walk
Opening July 13, through the end of October 2023, the Seaport Art Walk invites attendees to engage with artworks positioned both outdoors along the waterfront and, new this year, indoors at Groundwork located in the Quest Center at 1213 Purchase St.
During AHA! New Bedford on Thursday, July 13, a special opening tour of the outdoor exhibit with the artists will take place at 6:30 p.m., beginning at Buzzards Bay Coalition, 114 Front St. The indoor portion of the Seaport Art Walk featured at Groundwork opens with an artist’s reception on Saturday, July 15 from 5 to 7 p.m. with music and refreshments.
This year, Bregoli will also have a piece in the art walk titled “Emily's Bouquet,” an intricate floral arrangement that pays homage to the beauty and transience of nature - and honors the person who helped spark Bregoli’s imagination along the waterfront.
Additional pieces include Brooke Mullins Doherty’s “Vibrant Passage,” Mandy Fraser’s “Secret City Whale Pod,” Alana Berman-Gnivecki’s “Up Above and Down Below,” Andrew Hamilton Reiss and Heather Cronin’s “What You Sea,” Ed McAloon’s “Driven to Abstraction,” Alana Berman-Gnivecki’s “Up Above and Down Below,” and Eric Lintala’s “Memories Carried On A Wing, Homage to The Wampanoag Nation.”
“It’s just so exciting to be celebrating ten years. I didn’t think it would ever happen and now it’s here. It’s just so amazing,” Bregoli said.
Standard-Times staff writer Seth Chitwood can be reached at schitwood@s-t.com. Follow him on twitter:@ChitwoodReports. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: 'Seagull Cinderella' returns to celebrate Seaport Art Walk 10th year
