Home is where the art is in West Acton installation
The half-mile Art Loop features the work of more than 100 local artists whose pieces appear on weatherproof decals.
Look down.
If you don’t, you might walk right past, or over, a huge harlequin flower beetle, as well as an otter, owl, monkey, cat, and heron — and a giant red lobster that’s hanging out, literally, over the door of a seafood store.
An array of animal images — plus depictions of flowers, food, woodland scenes, and other colorful subjects — is the work of more than 100 local artists of all ages whose pieces appear on weatherproof decals, forming a half-mile walkable installation in West Acton that will remain in place through October.
The Art Loop was organized by the West Acton Junction Cultural District Committee and coordinated by Anne-Catherine Mauk. Inspired by similar installations in nearby towns, the project “highlights the creativity and talent” of the local community, says Mauk.
There are 130 images of paintings, drawings, photographs, fiber art, and handmade objects. Spaced throughout the installation are decals on which QR codes appear so that viewers can access information about the artists.
A sense of place
Among the images is “Wild West Acton,” created by illustrator, printmaker, and high school art teacher Jamie Palmer Keating. It’s rendered in the jewel tones of native plants. The animals depicted, including deer and a heron in flight, “are ones I’ve spotted right in my yard,” she says.
All of the drawing’s elements come together “in a circular format symbolic of unity and wholeness, to frame a place I feel lucky to call home,” Keating adds.
Providing summer-weary walkers with a reminder of cold weather is “Welcome to Walden in Winter,” from a painting done by Edward Feather, a photographer, artist, and actor. During the pandemic, Feather’s cooped-up family escaped their home for some fresh air and came upon a joyful scene at Walden Pond: people skating, walking, ice fishing, and cross-country skiing.
Feather captured the “essence of the scene” in a painting that measures 2 feet by 4 feet. In the foreground is a running figure that represents one of Feather’s two children, Azalea, and behind her is his partner, Susan.
The joy of living here
Painter Laurie Engdahl created a watercolor titled “Cairns on Stone,” inspired by the little landmarks that her son constructed while hiking around Walden Pond. She says much of her work is “hyperlocal” and reflects “my joy of living in this community.”
Engdahl calls painting “a form of meditation and self-care during these troubled times.” She leads workshops at the Acton non-profit group Art for All.
One decal offering a distant scene is a photograph of the Marshall Point Light Station in Maine, inviting the viewer to stroll down the wooden walkway to the structure — and the sea beyond. It reflects West Acton photographer Brian Burt’s love of that seacoast area and his fascination with lighthouses. Burt has authored two published poetry collections, and his poems have been shared on the Poetry Phone.
The idea, expressed by Henry David Thoreau, that “it’s not what you look at that matters; it’s what you see,” inspires Burt to “slow down and be choosy about what I pay attention to,” he says. “It’s a way of empowering myself in a world in which many things I have no control over are constantly vying for my attention.”
‘Fragile beauty’
Maggie Stanley, who has been “making art my whole life,” has a “thing for nasturtiums,” she says. Her acrylic painting, “Facing the Sun,” was inspired by one of the Acton community gardens and features vivid orange and yellow blooms woven among vibrant green leaves.
Stanley hopes her images, three of which are included in the installation, “will bring joy and a resolution to appreciate the miracle of (sometimes fragile) beauty whenever it is present.”
One of the youngest artists whose work is on the Loop is 7-year-old Emerson “Eme” de Lench, whose cheerful drawing is titled “Sunflower Fingerprint.” Eme is the granddaughter of Brooke de Lench of Acton.
Eme, whose name was inspired by her mother’s having been a Ralph Waldo Emerson scholar at Stanford University, loves drawing, her grandmother says. She adds that artistic talent seems to run in the family. Eme’s uncle, Taylor de Lench, is a Acton Academy graduate who recently retired from a career in cinematography after winning eight Emmys.
Business owners along the Loop welcome the sidewalk installation. Says Jen McGonigle, owner of Joy Street Life + Home, “Projects like the Art Loop highlight what makes West Acton a special place to live, work, and visit.”
