"Sand Dunes, Seals and Solitude" Artists' Reception

Sand Dunes, Seals, and Solitude: Impressions of the Lower Cape, a showcase of art and writing by Falmouth High School AP English and AP and Advanced Art students, is on display at Falmouth Museums on the Green Cultural Center through April 10. The community is invited to an artists’ reception on Thursday, February 12 from 5 – 7 PM. The Cultural Center is located at 55 Palmer Avenue. To schedule an appointment for viewing, call 508-548-4857.

Funded entirely by Falmouth Education Foundation (FEF), the collaborative project enabled 42 FHS art students to travel with their teacher, Jane Baker, to High Head Beach in Provincetown, joined by AP English teacher Lauren Kenny and her students. They were accompanied by Dr. Becky Gast and Dr. Andrea Bogomolni from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Lisa Sette and Owen Nichols from the Center for Coastal Studies.

“Falmouth students are often unacquainted with the Outer Cape, which has been a center for artists and writers for decades,” said Jane Baker, who was awarded the FEF grant.

The students spent a few hours working on site and taking photographs of the seals to be used in the subsequent creative process. The scientists then gave a lecture on the beach about seal biology and habitat, in addition to related issues such as sharks, fishermen, and tourism.

Throughout the fall and winter, the students created additional landscapes, oversized seal charcoals, paper from beach seaweed, and Haibun, a Japanese literary form, to encapsulate the experience. Additionally, they have been working on an oversized seal sculpture made from commercial fish netting with plans to enter it in this year’s Provincetown Green Arts festival. Museums on the Green will host a lecture by participating scientists about the seals of High Head Beach on Tuesday, March 24 at 7 PM with details to follow.