While visitors to Cape Ann were still enjoying many summer-like days, the Greater Cape Ann Tourism Council turned its attention to fall, looking ahead to events, activities and other happenings in the coming months.
Atop the list was Cape Ann Plein Air, the annual outdoor painting competition that attracts artists and art lovers from across the US – and from our own Cape Ann communities. CAPA is now the 5th largest competition of its kind in the US!
CAPA Executive Director Susan Gould-Coviello and Board President Mike Storella joined our meeting as special guests to share insights into plans for the 2022 program, which runs from October 1-9. We learned about the Gala on Saturday, October 8, and a Gala Gallery on October 9, and the full week of activities leading up to the finale: demos, dinners, and even something for kids. Several Council members are involved in CAPA in some way, hosting artists or planning their own events like the demos at Hammond Castle and Castle Hill on the Crane Estate, Cape Ann Museum’s Hopper Tour, an Artist Reception at the Beauport Hotel, and a dinner at the Emerson Inn, We agreed CAPA has become an important milestone on the visitor calendar, and given the plans for 2022, this is even more true this year. The group talked with Mike and Susan about ways to extend CAPA into other parts of the year – we look forward to those discussions.
We talked about other plans for the fall – which we’ll cover in our next meeting – and looked back on the success of summer activities, including the Waterfront Festival, summer Block Parties and Culture Splash nights, the Schooner Festival, and the inaugural Blackburn Brewfest.
We touched on other seasons as well, with a reminder about the return of Winter Lights, hopes to expand the Winter Birding Season activities into the spring, and the Gloucester 400 plans that will extend throughout next year. We plan to cover all of these topics – and look back on CAPA 2022 and other fall happenings – in our next meeting, scheduled for October 21. The Council meets monthly, on the third Friday of each month at the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce offices. Please email me at tsapienza@gmail.com if you’d like to join us or if you have any questions about our focus on supporting Cape Ann’s visitor-based economy by making our community a great place to visit.
Tony Sapienza
Co-owner, Blue Shutters Beachside Inn
Chair, Tourism Council
