Arts & Minds
Celebrating the creative and sometimes quirky culture of the Outer Cape.
Browse all Arts & Minds stories below or dive into a topic:
Arts Briefs
Arts Briefs for July 24, 2025 through July 31, 2025
A Treasure Trove of Queer History When historian Alice Friedman learned about Max Ewing — a musician, visual artist, photographer, and habitué of queer nightlife New York City in the […]
MYSTICISM
Altered States
Donald Saaf travels to Mexico to paint worlds both real and imagined
The paintings by Donald Saaf now on view at Rice Polak Gallery in Provincetown depict a man watering a garden, a couple seated at a kitchen table, a woman selling […]
ELEMENTAL ART
An Ode to Nature
Ginny Zanger’s botanical monotype paintings yield beauty and mystery
In a bright, high-ceilinged studio at the end of a dirt road in Truro, artist Ginny Zanger stands at a bench, working on her latest print. She’s surrounded by fresh-picked […]
‘CUMBIA IS LOVE’
The Heartbeat of Colombia
Yeison Landero, grandson of a master folk musician, keeps the legacy alive
Yeison Landero says he had “a beautiful childhood” in the green mountains of San Jacinto, Bolívar, in northern Colombia. Famous musicians came to his house: accordion players Alfredo Gutiérrez, Lizandro […]
DRAG DESK
Joey Arias Sings in the Key of Life
The chanteuse brings a lifetime of heart and soul to the stage
It’s nearly impossible to describe a Joey Arias performance to someone who hasn’t seen one. It’s not just a show. It’s an experience: seductive, surreal, unfiltered, and always authentic. It’s […]
A CASE OF YOU
Paul Lisicky Loves Joni Mitchell
In a singer’s magic and mourning, a writer finds a bond
When Paul Lisicky happened upon the online video of Joni Mitchell singing at the 2022 Newport Folk Festival, he watched through tears of amazement and gratitude. That’s probably not so […]
THE STROLL
Provincetown, Friday Night
Seen and heard on the weekly gallery stroll
Rice Polak Gallery (430 Commercial St.) Greg Durio and Fred Klinker, from The Woodlands, Texas, are making their way down Commercial Street on Friday evening for the weekly gallery stroll. […]
Arts Briefs
Arts Briefs for July 17, 2025 through July 24, 2025
Happy Birthday, Mary Oliver To celebrate what would have been the late poet Mary Oliver’s 90th birthday this fall, the Truro Meeting House (3 First Parish Lane) will hold a […]
PATHWAYS
Carmen Cicero Tells Tales
In his drawings and watercolors, the subconscious rises to the surface
Drawing is a personal art. There’s often not much more than a line of ink or graphite dividing an artist’s idea from the artwork. It is both direct and exploratory. […]
BOOKS
The Liberty and Luck Behind the Jewish Golden Age
David Denby’s 'Eminent Jews' is a romp through postwar American culture
Betty Friedan worked so hard she forgot to pee. Norman Mailer was married twice in four days. The only way to get Leonard Bernstein out of bed was to play […]
ARTS FUNDING
Pushing Against the Tide of Cutbacks
Arts organizations tighten belts and turn to private and state sources
Provincetown artist Laura Shabott, playwright Patrick Riviere, and the executive director of the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival were relieved to learn that they had been selected for grants from […]
GUTS
A Photographer Follows the Sea
At his new gallery in Orleans, David Hills shows a rare view of a watery world
Before David Hills began following fishermen, he rarely saw the sea. Born in Iowa City, Iowa, Hills grew up in Houston, where his father, Kent, was a physicist working on […]
ARTISTS
A Rebel Reinvented
An exhibition at PAAM examines the early works of Shirley Gorelick
Walking into the Shirley Gorelick exhibition at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, one is “knocked out with color,” as exhibition curator and PAAM CEO Christine McCarthy puts it. Many […]
DRAG DESK
Varla Jean Merman Just Wants to Make You Laugh
After three decades in the drag business, Jeffery Roberson is still learning new tricks
The day after the debut of his new summer show at the Crown & Anchor last month, Jeffery Roberson — the beating heart of Provincetown drag, better known as Varla Jean […]
