Soothing with silk

“Imitating Symmetry” (silk), by Boston artist Evan Rosenberg, in his show “Mantra,’’ at Galatea Fine Art, Boston, through July 31.

He tells the gallery:

"My work utilizes silk as a medium to capture, interpret and cope with the chaotic and uncontrollable realities of the world around me. My interest in this material was born out of my research at a biotech startup, which uses silk protein to stabilize vaccines. Intrigued by the possibilities of silk as a material for art, I began exploring its properties and limitations by weaving it into three-dimensional spaces.

“The work I do is grounded in repetition and meditation. As I create, I am driven deeply into self-reflection and meditation. I use the work to disconnect from my thoughts and impulses and guide me into a flow state.’’

Nonotuck Silk Co. advertisement for Corticelli silk showing the stages of silk production.

Nonotuck Silk Company (1832-1930 in various incarnations) produced silk thread at a mill in Haydenville, Mass. It was established as the North Hampton Silk Company and operated for years by members of a utopian society active in abolitionism. The company later acquired the Corticelli Silk Mills, in Leeds, Mass., and became the Corticelli Silk Co.

Clean unto generations

{“Stick the remnant of each bar of soap onto the next bar.} Theoretically, some of the atoms will remain in the bar until my very last shower. When I’m gone, my son can continue to use the bar as I have…and thus shall my zealous frugality be passed down from generation to generation as long as my descendants shall lather up.’’

From The Tightwad Gazette, founded in Leeds, Maine

Monument Hill in Leeds, Maine. There’s a Civil War monument barely visible here, left center.