This week, Jared Bowen takes us through the public art on the Rose Kennedy Greenway and reviews this summer’s virtual concerts from the Boston Landmarks Orchestra.
Art on the Rose Kennedy Greenway, the Greenway Conservancy is presenting new public artworks by Catalina Delgado-Trunk and Yinka Shonibare
While most museums have just begun reopening their doors to the public, the Rose Kennedy Greenway in Boston is one of the few places that has been able to present new art throughout the summer. Towering above Rings Fountain on the Greenway is “Global Connections: Mesoamerican Myths, the Domestication of Nourishment, and its Distribution” by Mexican-American master folk artist Catalina Delgado-Trunk. The work features depictions of pre-Columbian myths in Delgado-Trunk’s signature “papel picado,” or cut paper style. Also featured is “Wind Sculpture (SG) V” by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare. His sculpture’s batik patterns — traditionally regarded as African despite its origins in Indonesian fabric — represent centuries of globalization and cross-cultural exchange between Africa and the world.
“You can actually teach history, and culture, through something that seems very kind of fleeting or quite playful,” says Shonibare. “You can start with something that's magical and playful on the surface, but then you can move on to actually being able to teach history, identity.”
Virtual Concerts from Boston Landmarks Orchestra, streaming for free on the Boston Landmarks Orchestra website
While the Boston Landmarks Orchestra is unable to perform at the Hatch Shell this summer, the organization is still bringing three free, virtual concerts to the public via livestreams on its website. Two of the concerts, “Simple Gifts” and “Dances and Delights” are already available online. The third concert in the series, “She’s The First,” will be livestreamed Aug. 18 to commemorate the centennial of the 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote. The concert will feature work from exclusively female composers, with special guest Grace Kelly performing her original song, “She’s The First.” Each concert is performed by a pared down, socially distanced orchestra led by Music Director Christopher Wilkins.
“We've been performing with an orchestra of about 18, socially distanced, wearing masks … those who can't are really wrapped in plexiglass,” says Wilson. “It's worked out really beautifully, and we've done some things we never would have thought to do otherwise.”
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