November News

It felt like it would never cool down….but finally it feels like we are into Fall / Winter! With a month to go before the Holiday season is properly upon us (I refuse to acknowledge the Christmas windows in Hamilton!) we have a few things going on this month, and even more next month as we round out yet another year.

This Thursday evening, the four main category Charman Prize winners will be hosting a slideshow of their works. Soup  & sandwiches will be available so come out and support out local artists. Doors open at 5:30pm for a 6pm start.

Next weekend, in recognition of their 90th anniversary, the Bermuda Garden Club will open their show called Art in Bloom   – floral interpretations of selected works from the Charman Prize. The exhibit will only be on display until November 16th so be sure to come by before the flowers start to wilt!!

Two other dates to make in your calendar for November are the annual One Stop Shopping event on the 19th and Super Saturday on the 26th. Both great community events – one will help you get started on your Christmas shopping early, and BUY BERMUDA! from local crafters and artists, and the other will keep your kids busy and entertained! This month is featuring crafts from some popular kiddie movies like Toy Story and Finding Nemo.

See – as usual, lots going on around here – come in and see us!!

Checking in….

This week at the museum we are gearing up for our first ever Chili Cook Off! An education fundraiser, all monies from this event will go towards providing bursaries for camp next summer to families who cannot afford it. We already have over 12 entrants, and with local chef Fred Ming lined up as one of the judges the competition is getting fired up! Come on down and support us this Friday night – hey, at least you won’t have to cook!

Next week we’re showing Andrew Stevenson’s “Where the Whales Sings” documentary and selling advance copies of his new book “Whale Song”, so if you haven’t seen it yet you should come on down. We’ll be serving soup and sandwiches too – dinner and a movie…what a great way to spend a Thursday evening?!

Super Saturday is coming up on October 29th from 10am – 2pm, and of course this month we’re doing Halloween themed crafts…lots of spooky and fun activities for the kids, so come on down, dress up if you want and have some Halloween fun!

There is so much going on around here as you can see….and this is just in the next two weeks!!! Join our blog, encourage friends to join too and stay in touch with us on Facebook.

Lennon in Bermuda

We are thrilled to be able to announce that next summer, The Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art is going to be taking part in something very special. A John Lennon Tribute will be held in Bermuda in June, in commemoration of his Double Fantasy album – most of which was written while on a holiday to Bermuda and was his last album released before he was murdered three weeks after its release.

Masterworks will unveil a Double Fantasy inspired sculpture next summer, and to learn more about this exciting event watch this video on YouTube:

*Please note – Tom Butterfield is the Founder & Creative Director of the museum and not the Curator, and the official name of the museum is The Masteworks Museum of Bermuda Art and NOT the Masterworks Gallery as it’s referred to in the video. 

Super Saturday this weekend

It’s back!! Our end of month FREE art activities for kids of all ages (Dads, that means you too!)….

Kindly sponsored by Montpelier Re, Super Saturday is a wonderful event for the whole community. Come to the museum with your kids and have some fun. A different theme each month, and our wonderful teacher Robyn and her volunteers always come up with lots of fun activities. This weekend we’re turning the Botanical Gardens in a tropical Rainforest! Come and make monkeys, snakes, a Toucan Headband and more….

Activities on offer from 10am – 2pm and the museum is FREE too. You can even stay for lunch at Homer’s Cafe – they have a special kids menu of chicken nuggets, pizza and potato wedges as well as their usual fresh sandwiches, salads and paninis.

Rainforest themed Super Saturday

Artist in Residence Opening Exhibit this Friday

Kathleena will open her exhibit this Friday and we’re excited to see what fresh perspective she’s going to bring. As a graffiti artist who loves nature, most of her pieces will focus on the natural beauty she encountered while here. Doors open at 5:30pm and the exhibit will be on display until Sept. 26th.

Kathleena will also be hosting a graffiti workshop this weekend on Saturday, Sept. 17th from 1-4pm. It’s open for kids 12+ and they will come to the museum and learn some techniques and plan the mural for the bus stop they will paint. Call 236-2950 to reserve a spot – an opportunity not to be missed!

2011 Charman Prize

In front of a packed house on Friday night, John Charman announced the winner of the 2011 Charman Prize as Andrew Stevenson with his documentary film “Where the Whales Sing”.

The story behind Andrew’s film is remarkable; three years ago he embarked on what seemed like an interesting and challenging project – to film the North Atlantic humpback whales underwater in the middle of their mid-ocean migratory crossings. The humpback whales have since become an overriding passion, and with his daughter Elsa he takes us on their journey of discovery. This award winning film (Best Emerging Underwater Filmmaker – BLUE Ocean Film Festival 2010) is the first time a documentary film has been chosen as a winner in the Charman Prize, and the decision was a unanimous one by the judging panel. One of the judge’s comments summed up why they chose this as the winner: “This film is an incredible achievement! Not only in its message, but more importantly in it’s relevance to Bermuda’s past, present and future. Sensitively presented, beautifully filmed and edited, it is engaging, charming, informative, AND gorgeously composed”. If you haven’t had a chance to see it yet, you must get hold of a copy! We will be doing screenings at the museum at future dates (stay tuned to our website) and also sell the DVDs for $20.

Other winners included:

Distinctive and Convincing Style – Gavin Djata Smith, “Bermuda Through the Eyes of the Young, Black Male”

Use of Material – David Mitchell, “Bermuda Cedar Chest on Stand”

Design and Composition – Graham Foster, “Return to Rainbow Country”

Source of Inspiration – Jacqueline Alma, “Janel with Cedar”

12 honorable-mention prizes of $100 were also awarded to the artists that embodied strong elements of each of the four criteria:

Distinctive and Convincing Style – Lloyd Webbe, Nick Minugh, Robert Bassett

Use of Material – April Dawn Branco, Vaughan Evans, Geralyn Counsell

Design and Composition – Sharon Wilson, Scott Hill, Libby Cook-Toppan

Source of Inspiration – Scott Stallard, Althea Overbey, Jonah Jones

Comments from those who have seen the show have been overwhelmingly positive, with praise for the abundance of local talent on the island, although there have been some questions of a movie being chosen as the winner. Let us know your thoughts – art is meant to promote discussion so share your views, we’d love to hear them!!

New Artist in Residence Kathleena Howie Garcia

Kathleena hails from Bronx, New York where she makes multi-disciplinary artwork in painting, grafitti art, murals, digital art, and photography.  Kathleena is originally from Canada and is married with two daughters.

Read more about Kathleena on www.ladykfever.com

Kathleena says, “My vision for my work in Bermuda is to combine my love of working with nature as my inspiration with my artistic style.  My artistic style is made up of by many things; One being my graffiti/urban exploration of painting styles and use of unconventional materials in a traditional way, My documentary photography of nature and the movement of people, places or things.
I am interested in being emerged in the beauty of Bermuda, the nature as well as the people and from there creating a body of work that celebrates all aspects of the islands.”

Kathleen will be holding a slideshow and lecture on her works on Thursday, July 14th at 6:00pm.  Doors open 5:30pm.
FREE mbrs / $5 non-mbrs

Summer has officially started at Masterworks!

Summer camp started on Monday and it’s wonderful to have the museum and grounds filled with young children learning about art, getting covered in paint and having FUN! The Rick Faries Gallery is also filled with an exhibit of student art work until July 15th and is a wonderful display of colour, imagination and creativity.

Did you also know that we’ve partnered with the Department of Tourism and are offering FREE ENTRY ON TUESDAYS….so if you haven’t seen Floral Lane yet then it’s a perfect excuse to come on down to the Botanical Gardens and check it out.

Workshops at Masterworks

Well for those of you who attended Jana’s opening last week, you know what a talented artist she is! Jana’s time in Bermuda is running short, but she will be holding an afternoon & evening of workshops next week, June 28th for anyone interested in picking up some new skills or even trying something new.

1:30 – 3:30pm Basic Drawing

4-6pm Plein Air Painting

6:30-8:30pm Water Solubles

Basic supplies will be provided but please bring anything extra you wish to use. Cost is $45 members / $45 non-members per class.

Now, if drawing and painting isn’t your thing, then maybe you’d like to have a go at some flower arranging? Those creative gals at East End Flower Alley will be holding one of their Flowerpeutic Workshops at the museum on Monday, June 27th from 6:30-9pm. Take a stroll down Floral Lane and gather some inspiration for your arrangement. Space is limited to 12 spots, and the cost is $75 which includes wine and canapes and the flowers for your arrangement. Call 297-2929 to book a spot.

One day until Jana’s Opening

By now hopefully you’ve seen some of the fantastic images of current Artist in Residence Jana Matusz up on Facebook? We’ve had a sneak peak of her works and can honestly say that they are beautiful. Jana has so captured Bermuda’s charm and light and we highly recommend that you take the time to either come to the opening on Friday, June 17th or else come in again before her show comes down on June 29th.