Category: Exhibits

Edward Gorey “Sinister Cozy”

Posted on by Clint Johnson

A Talk with the Director of the Edward Gorey House, Gregory Hischak

On Tuesday, October 22nd, we welcome Gregory Hischak, the Director of the Edward Gorey House and Museum to speak on Gorey’s achievements and his wonderfully amusing oddities. The presentation will run from 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM in the reading room in front of the fireplace. He will be giving a presentation of Gorey’s natural creepy and hilarious artwork in his books, theater sets, and many other mediums.

Terrible things unfold in an Edward Gorey Book—children are swept out to sea, abducted by murderous insects, fall into unsavory company, or get carried off by giant birds. Sometimes they die of boredom. Edward writes, and draws, about everyday life and, for reasons that will likely come up in this presentation, his books are a delight and extremely funny. Mostly. Gorey’s work as a book artist, an illustrator, and designer is frequently categorized as Whimsically Macabre, though we prefer the term “Sinister Cozy”. His work looks a hundred and thirty years older than it is yet he consistently remains thirty years ahead of us at all times.

Please come join us on this spooky evening with “Sinister Cozy”. Registration is required.

Register here!

Hope to see you soon!

Upper Cape Camera Club

Posted on by Jessica O'Connor

Falmouth Public Library Exhibit and Sale

The Upper Cape Camera Club’s (UCCC) annual Falmouth Public Library Exhibit and Sale will be held from Tuesday, July 2nd through Wednesday, July 31st during regular library hours in the Adult Collections Room.  The 44 photographs will feature Cape Cod sunrises and sunsets, wildflowers, and other members’ favorites from 27 photographers.

Exhibit Reception

An exhibit reception will be held on Wednesday, July 17th from 4pm-6pm in the Adult Collections Room. Refreshments will be provided with the opportunity to talk with the photographers.

About UCCC

From beginners to professionals, the UCCC welcomes all interested in photography.  The Club’s mission is to provide photographers at all levels an opportunity to develop skills and share their work in a supportive environment. For more information about UCCC, go to https://www.uccameraclub.com. The UCCC is a member of the New England Camera Club Council and of the Photographic Society of America.

World Language Materials in the Young Adult Room

Posted on by Clint Johnson

A diverse library for a diverse community.

Falmouth is a much more diverse area than meets the eye. Different economic situations, learning and mental differences, ethnic differences, and much more are often overlooked. Unfortunately, many of the overlooked persons of the community are the ones that also face economic problems. Some of these groups do not know what services the library brings to the community and providing a welcoming and safe environment

Literature and other activities bring people together. Places like the library strives to provide ALL their patrons with the materials they need. In the Young Adult room we have begun to expand a world language collection. These additions can improve mental health, social acceptance, quality of education, and communication.

So far we have books in Brazilian Portuguese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Ukrainian. This collection will expand as our community expands! We will be purchasing more materials in the languages we have already begun to touch on and more like Haitian Creole, Mandarin, Japanese, and French. Some will include both English and the world language for immediate and reviewed translations (like the Shakespeare plenty of us read to make sense of his use of the English language!)

Spanish

Now two people who seem so different have read the same book and a connection is made. Also, literature is not the only way to bridge the gap. Video games, table top games, watching anime with subtitles, and arts and crafts.

The similarities start to trump the differences and show the kiddos how beautiful they each are. The library is an excellent safe place for these connections to begin and grow. We very much look forward to our growing collection and reaching every patron we can in the community.

 

Some titles just in:

-Harry Potter in both Brazilian Portuguese and Ukrainian

-I Survived Series (both graphic and text)

-Dogman Series

-The Alchemist

 

 

 

Postcards from Falmouth: Falmouth Schools

Posted on by Clint Johnson

Rites of passage, secret passages, iconic teachers. Let Jim Kalperis and Otis Porter take you on a tour through the history of Falmouth’s schools, from tiny Lawrence Academy to the much newer facilities of Falmouth High School. In conversation with Barbara Kanellopoulos, they recount staff and student stories, and the many transitions that shaped Falmouth’s public school system.

Former faculty member Jim Kalperis remembers that one of those transitions, from the old Lawrence High School to its successor on Lakeview Avenue, was accomplished with a bit of student legwork. “The students all assembled in the old high school,” he says, “and whatever they could bring and carry by hand, they all marched from that school over to the new Lawrence School.” Library staff and visitors now park where the old building stood, and the high school has moved on again – not once but twice.

Watch the oral history recording here.

Explore the postcard collection here.

Postcards from Falmouth: Falmouth Heights

Posted on by Clint Johnson

Before it hosted iconic hotels and streams of summer visitors, Falmouth Heights was the remote edge of town. Join Valerie Harding to learn about its deliberate transformation into a summer resort at the hands of the Falmouth Heights Land and Wharf Company – and of her own memories of off season life in the Heights, which might not have been picture-perfect, but provided its own kind of fun.


“In the winter when those hotels were closed up, as kids you’d run across the veranda and it looked very ghostly inside,” she said in conversation with interviewer Troy Clarkson. “With the table still set up, you know, with salt and pepper still on the table […] there was not a light on in any house down there.”

Watch the oral history recording here.

Explore the postcard collection here.

Postcards from Falmouth is a local history project of Falmouth Public Library, funded by a LSTA grant and administered by the MBLC.

YT link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2pv64p5EnA

Postcards from Falmouth

Posted on by Clint Johnson

The traditions, stories, and hard work of Cape Verdean immigrants are deeply embedded in Falmouth’s history. Join Barbara Burgo, co-founder and Board member of the Cape Cod Cape Verdean Museum and Cultural Center, as she discusses ongoing efforts to preserve that history, and to foster the connections between Cape Verde and Cape Cod.

She emphasizes that those connections stretch simultaneously across the Atlantic, and across time.  The Museum and Cultural Center, which occupies the historic Emerald farmhouse in East Falmouth, was created to embody that fact. “If you went there to see so many of the valuable resources and gifts our folks have been giving to America for over 200 years […],” she says, “you would realize that we are so much more than cranberry pickers.”

Watch the oral history recording here.

Explore the postcard collection here.

Wish You Were Here: Postcards from the Past Digital Exhibit

Posted on by Library User

In 2023 Calliope Poetry for Community extended an invitation to the public to immerse themselves in the images and messages carefully preserved within the Falmouth Public Library’s collection of postcards. These postcards, dating back to the early 1900s, offer us glimpses into the town’s history, portraying the various villages of Falmouth in bygone eras.

They serve as our very own time machines, transporting us to the past and allowing us to reconnect with the individuals who penned those messages long ago. With each card comes a unique story, a reflection of a moment frozen in time, complete with the personalities, quirks, and humor of the people who once called Falmouth home.

The heart of this project, Wish You Were Here: Postcards from the Past, lies in the ability of our literary and visual artists to draw inspiration from these postcards, breathing new life into their stories. They have taken on the incredible task of not only reflecting on but also reimagining the images and messages contained within these postcards. In doing so, they have created a bridge between the past and present, enabling us to witness the fascinating contrast between the Falmouth of yesteryears and the Falmouth we know today. Explore our digital version of this exhibit today, or make sure to make an appointment to see it at the Cultural Center at Museums on the Green through May 10, 2024.

August Art: Inspired by Shakespeare

Posted on by Library User

We called, and you answered! Community responses to the 2023 Falmouth Reads Art Challenge are now available for viewing in the Adult Room at the library on the Art Walk.

Members of the public (and some library staff!) chose a famous phrase by Shakespeare to interpret in two-dimensional artwork; media include fabric, pen and ink, collage, and paint!

If you’re belatedly inspired by gazing on these works of art, create your own and drop it off in the Administrative Office! The art will remain on display through August.

July Art Exhibit: Cape Cod Beach Scenes

Posted on by Library User

During the month of July, the Falmouth Public Library will feature photographers from the Upper Cape Camera Club in a special juried print exhibition of 32 photographs of scenes from many of Cape Cod’s beaches.

Earlier this year the club had a print competition which focused on photographs of Cape Cod beaches. This show includes photographs from that competition and other beach scenes from around the cape.  Club members whose photographs are included in this summer’s exhibition are Greg Anderson, Phillip Beach, William Brydon, George Dalin, Frank Fernino, Barbara Hecker, Molly Johnston, Jen Kano, Michael Klehm, Carol Knox, Jeannine Lavoie, Kevin Ledwell, Charles Mazzone, Peter Partridge, Jay Phyfer, Laura Puopolo, Claudine Reilly, Phil Richardson, and Milt Williamson.

The Juror for this exhibit is Laura M. Reckford.  Laura is the executive director of the Falmouth Art Center. She was a longtime reporter and editor at the Enterprise newspapers, in addition to working as a writer and editor in magazines and radio. Laura says about the show: “These Cape Cod beach images, by Upper Cape Camera Club members, are a reflection of the skill of the members in capturing creative and compelling images. Since they also show our beaches in various seasons and times of day, with crowds of people or just a lone beachgoer, they are a wonderful reminder of how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place.”

Ms. Reckford selected one Best in Show, awarded to Jen Kano for her photograph “Corridor to the Beach”.  She also selected four honorable mentions which were awarded to Phillip Beach for “Digging the Last Rays of Sunshine at Old Silver”, to Charles Mazzone for “Rock Harbor Breakwater – Cape Cod”, to Claudine Reilly for “Chappy in Black and White” and to Milt Williamson for “Beach Fence”.

Additionally, as they have done in previous years, the library staff and the library trustees chose their favorite photograph for an award; this year the award went to Frank Fernino for “Chapoquoit Beach – Feb. 2015”. 

The show will be on view during library hours for the month of July in the library’s “Art Walk”, located on the main floor beyond the stacks.

March Art: Paths of Discovery

Posted on by Library User
It’s March and the Falmouth Public Library has a new abstract art exhibit!  Stop by the Adult Collection room between Wednesday, March 1st and Friday, March 31st to view Paths of Discovery: A Show of Paintings by Ron Zweig.
 
“As someone who has spent most of his life traveling the earth, I have found that the same sense of discovery can be found in the practice of art as well. When initiating any form of visual abstraction, the inspiration for what follows often flows from the first image and then moves on to the next, intertwining at times, in a dance of self-generating ideas.”