Lifestyle

Capturing landscapes and landmarks: Annual Crane Estate show offers a chance to budding artists

By Steve Landwehr
STAFF WRITER
Published: November 6, 2009

IPSWICH — The annual Crane Estate Art Show and Sale is a pretty nice venue for any artist. The halls of the stately Crane mansion are an idyllic setting on a sunny day, with views of the ocean on the horizon.

This year, for the first time, some younger artists will have the benefit of that setting. Among the 78 painters, sculptors and other artists whose works are on display are the offerings of 12 high-school students. Their work, just like that of the older artists, will be available for sale.

Who knows? Maybe you'll end up with something that will be worth a lot more than you pay for it, 30 years from now.

"We wanted to shake things up a bit," said Trina Schell, special program manager for The Trustees of Reservations, owners of the Crane Estate.

The focus for now is on encouraging young artists to create something, but Schell said the hope is that eventually there might be some kind of a mentoring program between older and younger artists.

Six students each from Ipswich High School and Waring School in Beverly will be exhibiting in the show, which is free and open to all.

Schell said an art teacher at Ipswich High School encouraged students to create something for the show and then selected the six whose work will be on display. At Waring School, the art teacher made the show part of the class curriculum, and Schell made the selections.

"The kids seemed to enjoy the chance," Schell said, and some are planning to attend tonight's artists' reception.

The theme artists had to work with this year was preserving landscapes and landmarks, but Schell said they were not confined to properties owned by the trustees.

All of the work of the older artists is juried, and each artist can display two works.

A painting by Ipswich student Sarah McCarron does feature a landscape that is also a landmark, Appleton Farms.

Schell said about 1,000 turn out for the show every year over the course of the three days. Attendance is especially good if the weather is nice and people can walk the grounds of the estate while they're there.

"I'm pleased with the forecast," Schell said. The prediction is for sunny skies tomorrow and Sunday, with temperatures in the 50s.