Clothing offers clues to the past
Archaeological Society presents guest speaker
The Peterborough Chapter of the Ontario Archaeological Society’s first public presentation of the fall season takes place Tuesday, Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. at Gzowski College, Trent University, Room
GCS 111. Dr. Catherine Mathias will speak on Using Changes in Costumes to Understand Changes in Culture.
“Objects which become popular as a costume component can serve as markers for changes in culture,” says Mathias. “My presentation will demonstrate the value of one such marker, the bootspur of the 17th century. Examples are taken from an archaeological site in Ferryland Newfoundland.”
Mathias is an art historian who has worked in art conservation studying and conserving material culture from Red Bay, Labrador; Ferryland, Newfoundland; Qatar; Afghanistan; a 200 BC site in Italy; and most recently, Mosul, Iraq. She was also responsible for the conservation of much of the West Coast aboriginal objects, now in the History Museum in Ottawa.
This presentation is part of the Peterborough Chapter’s monthly Public Speakers Series, conducted with the support of the City of Peterborough and the Trent University
Archaeological Centre. Members of the public are invited. There is no charge. Light refreshments are served. For further information contact the chapter secretary, Dirk Verhulst, at dverhulst@cogeco.ca.
Learning in Leisure
The fall program of Learning in Leisure begins tomorrow and runs Tuesdays from 9:15 until noon until Nov. 20 at Northminster United Church, 300 Sunset Blvd. Two guest speakers are featured each week, at 9:30 and 10:50 a.m., with a coffee and cookie break between. Please arrive by 9 a.m. to register and lug-amug for the break.
Speakers for the fall session include:
Sept. 18: Bruce Gravel (Humour is All Around Us); Dave Ellis (Kawartha Wildlife Photographer).
Sept. 25: Susan Sorrenti (My Experience with SARS); Sister Joan Driscoll (My Journey to South Sudan: A Life Changing Experience).
Oct. 2: Bill Lockington (Campbell River); Mary Beth Walsh (It’s Time to Stop Whispering about Memory Loss).
Oct. 9: Merrill Graham (Telecare); Brenda Steed (A Taste of Maple).
Oct. 16: Cliff Weaver (R.P. and Me.R.P. Equals Retinitis Pigmentosa (Heredity Eye Disease)); Steve Guthrie (60th Anniversary of CHEX Television).
Oct. 23: Michael Peterman (The Delicious Mirth of James McCarroll, Canada’s Last Poet and Humourist); Lydia Dotto (Protecting the Endangered Piping Plover).
Oct. 30: Sarah Cook (How Will You Know Alzheimer’s?); Lydia Dotto (Big Birds - Cranes and Herons).
Nov. 6: Sandy McCracken (Celebrating 100th Anniversary of Vimy); Olivia Vandersanden (Stories from the Kawartha Wildlife Centre).
Nov. 13: Megan Boyles (Locavorest: Latest Way to Acquire the Freshest Foods); Ted Morin (The Lighter Side of War).
Nov. 20: Peter Malkovsky speaks at both sessions (Our Strange World Events; China’s Three Taboos).
The cost is $25 for the 10-week session or a daily fee of $5. For further information visit learninginleisure.com.
Artsweek
Artsweek 2018 happens at venues throughout the downtown and other areas of the city, including Northcrest Ward, from Sept. 21 to 30. The 10-day festival of the arts includes music, visual arts, writing, theatre, dance, media arts and performance of all kinds “in unexpected places”.
“This is a great event for everyone, its all free and is such a fabulous chance to showcase the incredible talent in our city,” says Su Ditta, executive director, Electric City Culture Council and executive producer, Artsweek 2018.
The Wailing will be performed Sunday at Riverview Park and Zoo from 6 until 6:30 p.m. This outdoor performance of sound and dance features five 12-foot long, hand-crafted whales made from reclaimed and recycled plastic in the studio of Laurel Paluck. It welcomes the audience into a ceremony honouring the whale and mourning the harm caused by over consumption of plastic and human pollution.
The presentation features the work of artistic director Laurel Paluck, composer Kathleen Adamson, and chorus lead Julia Fennbee. The choir and dancers bring the piece to life.
For further Artsweek events in Northcrest Ward, check next week’s column. For a complete list of all Artsweek events throughout the city visit artsweekptbo.com.