Boston Flora

Tag: Commonwealth Avenue Mall

  • Tuesday, October 18, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – Hike Boston: Commonwealth Avenue Mall

    Hike Boston is a week-day day-time hiking series where we invite you to join us for a walk in one of Boston’s parks or urban wilds.

    Boston Park Rangers, Urban Wilds staff, and Parks employees will provide formal and informal discussions or tours during the hikes. Some hikes may be more focused on taking a walk in the park, while others may be more informational.

    This event is an interpretive program – a tour led by a Boston Park Ranger. Meet at the corner of Commonwealth Avenue and Arlington Street. For more information visit www.boston.gov

  • Commonwealth Avenue Mall Memorial Tree Sponsorship Opportunity

    Commonwealth Avenue Mall Memorial Tree Sponsorship Opportunity

    For the past few years The Friends of the Public Garden has been able to declare the Commonwealth Avenue Mall “fully planted”. We like to think that the good health and survival rate of our Mall trees is due to the expert scientifically based care and attention being paid to them by the Mall arborist, Norm Helie. Since Norm has come on and introduced better and better arboreal practices we have lost fewer and fewer trees each year. In the last two years we have not lost one old elm to Dutch elm disease! This year we will be removing two trees that are not quite yet dead but in serious decline. Both of these spaces are in the Clarendon to Dartmouth block of the Mall. The replacements will be planted this spring.  The cost of sponsorship which includes a plaque is $5,000. If you are interested in one of these locations please contact Margaret Pokorny, Chairman, Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee for complete details. Mpok384@gmail.com.

  • Tuesday, December 17, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm – Master Plan Meeting – Kenmore Section of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall

    Interested groups, including the The Charlesgate Alliance, have scheduled the final meeting to discuss the Master Plan for the redevelopment of the Kenmore section of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall. The public is invited to participate in a presentation of the preferred design which incorporates many of the suggestions put forward at the first two meetings. Input is needed on several critical questions.  Date: Tuesday December 17th Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Location 565 Commonwealth Ave: Boston Kenmore Classroom Building – Room 106

  • Thursday, November 15, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – 2018 Friends of the Public Garden Members Reception

    The Reception is full, but contact Rachel Hangley below for membership information. Marie Law Adams and Dan Adams, founders of Landing Studio, will be discussing their vision and design for Charlesgate Park and sharing the community-led plan to revitalize this long-neglected area. Reclaiming the lost segment of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall at the intersection of three historic park spaces; the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, the Fens, and the Esplanade, their innovative plan will create new multi-modal connections to reconnect the park systems of Boston.

    Landing Studio is an architecture and urban design practice. Their work is focused on the design of industrial and infrastructural systems in cities through shared-use landscapes, buildings, light installations, festivals, exhibitions, tours, and industry/community operations agreements. Additionally, Dan is the Director of the School of Architecture at Northeastern University, and Marie is a Lecturer in Urban Design at MIT.

    The event takes place Thursday, November 15 from 6:30 – 8:30 at The Omni Parker House, 60 School Street, Boston. Contact Rachel Hangley at the Friends if you’d like to inquire about your Membership status: 617-723-8144 or email: rachel@friendsofthepublicgarden.org. Not a Member yet or need to Renew? You can join today. Click on https://friendsofthepublicgarden.org/2018/10/09/november-15th-2018-members-reception-2018/ to join or renew your membership.

  • Sunday, October 28, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – 15th Anniversary Celebration of the Boston Women’s Memorial

    Sunday, October 28, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – 15th Anniversary Celebration of the Boston Women’s Memorial

    This October marks the 15th anniversary of the Boston Women’s Memorial, commemorating the lives of Phillis Wheatley, Abigail Adams, and Lucy Stone.

    Dedicated in 2003, the Boston Women’s Memorial is the newest sculpture on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, donated with funds raised by the Boston Women’s Commission. Initially proposed to address Boston’s under-representation of women in public statues, the effort began in 1992 when Mayor Thomas M. Menino reserved the Fairfield-Gloucester block as the site for a memorial honoring women. The commission worked for ten years to select the subjects, choose the artist, raise the money, and oversee construction and installation of the memorial. The bronze figures, by New York artist Meredith Bergmann, are at ground level, not on top of pedestals. The women are shown in casual poses, writing and thinking.

    The three women honored share a Boston connection, a place in national history, and a passion for social justice. Abigail Adams (1744-1818) was the wife of the second president of the United States and mother of the sixth, whose letters established her as a strong voice for women’s advancement. Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784), a slave brought from Africa to Boston, became a literary prodigy whose poems were the first book published in America by an African writer. Lucy Stone (1818-1893) was an ardent abolitionist and suffragist, a renowned orator, and a leading figure in the struggle for women’s rights, inspiring Susan B. Anthony and others.

    The Boston Women’s Heritage Trail will be celebrating the 15th Anniversary of the memorial on October 28th, from 1:00-3:00pm on the Fairfield-Gloucester block of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall. This is a free event, touching on the history of Boston’s signature female-focused memorial, and the significance of its subjects.

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  • Thursday, July 26, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Liz Glynn: Open House

    Join NOW + THERE, along with the City of Boston’s Public Art Fund and the Paula Cooper Gallery on July 26 from 5:30 – 7:30 for the public celebration of Liz Glynn: Open House, at Kenmore Mall on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, near Kenmore MBTA Bus Station, close to 499 Commonwealth Avenue. Refreshments will be provided by Island Creek Oyster Bar and Eastern Standard. Logistical support and water provided by Cornwall’s, Hotel Commonwealth, and Boston University. Rsvp to NOW + THERE at http://www.nowandthere.org/openhousecelebration?mc_cid=4360ef39db&mc_eid=1b30ed92a6

    At the turn of the 20th century, New England’s wealthy elite gathered in opulent private salons and ballrooms in Boston to define their social status. These gathering spaces were the seat of power, privilege, and politics in the city. In contrast was a growing movement to create more democratic gathering spaces through the development of public parks. The founding and incorporation of parks like Boston Common (established 1660; park status 1850), and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall (dedicated in 1888 as a promenade for public enjoyment), were milestones in American urban planning, representing an early effort — still on-going today — to grant democratic access to public space. The artist will be in attendance.

    Open House, an installation created by Los Angeles-based, Boston-born artist Liz Glynn, is organized for the Commonwealth Avenue Mall by Now + There. Originally commissioned by the Public Art Fund in cooperation with the artist and Paula Cooper Gallery, Open House was first presented at Doris C. Freedman Plaza in Central Park, New York (see below). This new installment of Open House transforms the Commonwealth Avenue Mall West into an open air ruin of a ballroom. In this work the artist highlights class distinctions and the dynamics between public and private space and beckons you to take a seat and linger. Bringing this work to Boston during a time of rapid development, we are sparking a dialogue about economic inequality and supporting Glynn’s desire to incite future action. Glynn’s lavish Louis XIV sofas, chairs, and footstools evoke these extravagant late nineteenth century interiors, but with a twist — these objects feature sculpted additions and are cast in concrete, a utilitarian material more commonly seen in modern architecture. With this revision, the artist invites the public to enjoy a previously exclusive interior space that is now open and accessible to all.

    The work highlights historic class distinctions and references the architecture and interior design of New York’s William C. Whitney ballroom, a magnificent, now demolished, interior designed by Gilded Age architect Stanford White, the architect of the Boston Hotel Buckminster and numerous Commonwealth Avenue mansions.

    This fully-functioning furniture will offer residents and visitors alike a place of respite and reflection while also evoking the history of leisure in Kenmore Square and the often-manipulated wetlands of Charlesgate.

  • Thursday, May 17, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm – Commonwealth Avenue: Boston’s Grand Boulevard

    On Thursday, May 17, beginning at 6 pm at the George Washington Statue in the Public Garden, corner of Arlington Street and Commonwealth Avenue, take a walk through the heart of Victorian Boston on this Boston by Foot tour of Commonwealth Avenue. Boston’s grand boulevard, Commonwealth Avenue, provides an enduringly popular stroll. The tour parallels the 19th century filling and development of the Back Bay from its origin at Arlington Street down the seven blocks along the tree-lined, grassy Mall. See how careful effort over 150 years has preserved the “grandness” of the Avenue. General Admission $15 (Boston by Foot members $5). Register at http://www.bostonbyfoot.org/tours/Commonwealth_Avenue

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  • Tuesday, April 10, 10:00 am – Commonwealth Avenue Mall, Today and Tomorrow

    Tuesday, April 10, 10:00 am – Commonwealth Avenue Mall, Today and Tomorrow

    The April meeting of the Garden Club of the Back Bay will take place Tuesday, April 10 at 10:00 am at The College Club, 44 Commonwealth Avenue in Boston. GCBB past president Margaret Pokorny will speak on the single most important horticultural feature in Back Bay, and perhaps Boston: The Commonwealth Avenue Mall. See old pictures, plans, and learn of the conditions which affect growth. Learn about the original designs and tree plantings, and what has been done to preserve and support the Mall’s health and character.

    Margaret is a landscape designer focusing on urban parks and greenspace. Currently she is chair of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall Committee and serves on the boards of the Friends of the Public Garden, The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay, the Esplanade Association, and The Garden Club of the Back Bay. Recently she has been involved in the new group, The Charlesgate Alliance.  GCBB members may rsvp to jolinda.taylor@gmail.com. If you are interested in staying for the optional lunch following the meeting ($25), visit https://bostonflora.com/shop/

  • From The Archives: Passive Parks

    As early as 1982, Garden Club of the Back Bay members were discussing the misuse of the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.  The complaints mostly revolved around ball and frisbee playing by college students.  A suggestion for interpretive plaques was considered, to explain how the Mall, designed as a “passive park” should and should not be used.  It’s always a fine line, but soon signs were installed asking visitors to keep dogs on leashes only, to use trash barrels, to refrain from skateboarding, rollerskating, or pursuing active sports on the grass, etc.   Still, as good weather returns to Boston, we see exuberant young people rejoicing in the beauty of the neighborhood – just try to keep off the grass!

  • Thursday, December 1, 8:00 pm – Commonwealth Avenue Mall Tree Lighting

    The Commonwealth Avenue Mall Lighting will take place at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 1st, at the Foot of Commonwealth Avenue (at the Public Garden). The trees along the mall will be lit after a festive gathering with the Taj Hotel Boston, friends, and neighbors. The Mall again will be illuminated with elegant lights made possible thanks to community support and private donations raised by the Committee to Light Commonwealth Avenue Mall. Photo from www.weekendpick.com.