Stopping by Woods on a Chilly (and Bright) Evening!

"Azorean Magic Bamboo" by Frank Amaral and

Frank Dwyer (photo by Alexander Nesbitt)

We at Newport Seen would typically be hard-pressed to come up with ideas that would inspire locals to venture into the woods on a Saturday night in the middle of a particularly bleak winter – especially the night following a major rainstorm! But as we struggled to find parking among the lines of cars bordering Rogers High School and witnessed what appeared to be a mass pilgrimage trekking along the dark road towards Ballard Park, our curiosity was piqued.

We remembered to wear boots, but forgot flashlights; some folks used their cell phones to light the way (oh, the joys of technology!), or their dogs to guide them. As we drew closer to the park’s entrance, we realized that flashlights were ultimately unnecessary, because a path lined with small candles in paper bags was leading around a corner and lighting the way to… where?

Studio art lanterns by

St. Michael's Country Day School students

We had arrived at the Friends of Ballard Park’s 6th Annual Illuminated Gardens: yet another brilliant brainchild creation from Executive Director Colleen McGrath. We met up with Colleen, who was happy to help us navigate the muddy areas and point out themed light displays created by individuals and organizations including the Boys & Girls Club of Newport County, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, and St. Michael’s Country Day School, whose stick, twine, and ribbon-crafted lanterns were ephemeral and ghostly, like beautiful haunted birdcages.
As we turned the corner along the path of candles, it was obvious that we had just entered into another world entirely: a colored fairyland tucked away where no one would expect to find it. The crowds of people suddenly made sense – this was something special.

"Holding" by Rose Escobar with "Chinatown" behind

Light displays danced around the perimeter of the park and the quarry walls, which glowed reddish-pink around a spotlighted image in the shape of an orange butterfly. Red-orange hanging lanterns glowed up to the top of a large tree. Tiki torches, meant to mark a hazard area around where a small pond had formed from the previous day’s monsoon, instead created the effect of a mysterious lake, serving as its own lovely centerpiece arrangement. A bamboo forest, lit from beneath by multicolored spotlights, drew children like moths as they discovered that clapping their hands above the lights caused them to change colors like magic (again, the magic of technology!). In another part of the field, Kate Dana and Alexander Nesbitt had designed and constructed a “sea shanty” cityscape out of cardboard, and one could imagine miniature people going about their evening rituals inside the little glowing windows. An electric-blue waterfall “flowed” down another quarry wall, complete with large tropical fish beside it.

Colleen credited Frank Amaral and Frank Dwyer for their huge efforts in setting up the event: board member Amaral constructed the 20-30 bamboo stalks to create the “Azorean Magic Bamboo” grove, and Dwyer, who owns Stagecraft Sound & Lighting, added the color-changing lights. A smaller light forest display was conceived by RISD student Falon Mihalic, and fellow RISD student Judit Kollo painted some glowing “bug-lights” for the event. Other displays were designed/created by Rose Escobar and the Coen family.

As we wandered the grounds, Newport Seen said hello to Newport City Councilwoman Naomi Neville, Alden Tucker and Lane DuPont, Frank Dwyer and wife Wendy, and Dominique Alfandre, just to name a few! We later learned that over 900 people made their way to see the lights – again, we think this is no small feat, especially on a muddy night in the middle of a grizzly new England Winter!

-- Amanda M. Grosvenor

To learn more about Ballard Park, visit: www.ballardpark.org

To purchase a high-res print of an image, contact
Linda (a) NewportSeen.com All images copyrighted

by Newport Seen or Alexander Nesbitt