Virginia Lee Burton Birthday Party at Cape Ann Museum
The Cape Ann Museum is holding a birthday party in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios (1909-2009) on Saturday, August 29 from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. This program is free and open to the public.
Families will enjoy art activities in the Education Room from 10:00 a.m. until noon. Aris Demetrios will read his favorite story, Choo Choo, and other special guests will also read their Burton favorites. At noon, birthday cake and light refreshments will be served. A screening of the film Virginia Lee Burton, A Sense of Place by Christine Lundberg and Rawn Fulton will begin at 1:00 p.m. To RSVP for this special event, please call 978-283-0455, x11.
Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios is recognized as one of the most significant children’s book author-illustrators of the 20th century. Her now classic books, including Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (1939) and the Caldecott Award-winning The Little House (1942), are still in print and currently being embraced by a third generation of early readers. In 1941, Burton established the Folly Cove Designers, a textile collective on Cape Ann. Based on Burton’s theories of design, these textiles were heralded as setting a new direction in American design and were recognized nationally and internationally.
Funding for this program was made possible through a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, which promotes excellence, access, education and diversity in the arts, humanities and interpretive sciences, in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and to contribute to the economic vitality of our communities.
The Cape Ann Museum is located at 27 Pleasant Street in Gloucester. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Sundays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Museum is closed during the month of February, on Mondays, and on major holidays. Admission is $8.00 adults, $6.00 Cape Ann residents, seniors and students. Children under 12 and Museum members are free. The Museum is wheelchair accessible. For more information please call: (978) 283-0455. Additional information can be found online at www.capeannmuseum.org