For the Joy & Inspiration of Art

On June 23, 2018, a group of WWHP members enjoyed their annual trip by traveling north to the Fitchburg Art Museum, one of the most beloved treasured cultural institutions in New England.  More importantly for members of the WWHP, FAM claims as its founder ELEANOR AUGUSTA NORCROSS, a native daughter of Fitchburg, an accomplished artist of interior scenes of decorative art found in the Louvre in Paris. It was Eleanor’s wish to make those scenes available to people in town unable to travel. Those works were in her home and then placed in an art center which eventually became the Fitchburg Art Museum. All of Eleanor’s treasures fill several galleries, and we learned that much of her work was influenced by the famous artist Mary Cassatt.

After viewing works in several of the galleries, we wandered into a fabulous on-going exhibit GLOBAL AFRICA , a colorful display of African Art and Culture. The exhibit embraces three themes: Music, Masks and Masquerades. It was particularly meaningful to those of us who had seen the movie BLACK PANTHER in which masks and weapons represent ancient traditions. We had a wonderful opportunity to get a detailed explanation of the DISCOVER ANCIENT EGYPT exhibit on loan from the MFA. Always popular to anyone visiting here is the regional exhibition of featured local artists.  We enjoyed this exhibit as it offered an opportunity to see budding artists in the making.

It was a nice experience and an even nicer experience to learn that this North County Museum is a finalist for the National Medal for Museum and Library Services to their communities and that there is a documentary available entitled MASTERPIECE IN A MILL TOWN directed by Emily V. Driscoll.  Finally, I encourage everyone “for the joy and inspiration of art” to make the trip north to visit what one woman’s love of art has produced — a legacy of art and culture.