August 6, 2021 — Near the far end of Gloucester’s boulevard, a stretch of waterfront road that wraps around the city’s western harbor, stands a bronze statue. A woman, her feet braced against the wind, hoists a baby in her left arm and rests her right hand on the back of a young boy. She gazes seaward, watching, it seems, for the return of a fishing boat carrying her husband, her father, her brother.
The statue, the Fishermen’s Wives Memorial, does not draw the same attention as the iconic Man at the Wheel a few minutes’ walk to the east. But for Lyn Burke, the statue is at least as important as its more famous counterpart.
“These are strong women who have been holding up the community for hundreds of years,” says Burke, the founder of LuminArtz, a Gloucester-based nonprofit the produces light-based art installations.
So Burke decided her organization should do something to highlight the memorial—and everything it stands for—as the piece celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. The result of this inspiration was an immersive light and audio installation that takes place on August 5, the date the statue was first unveiled.
The installation bathed the memorial in a marine blue light and illuminated the granite paving stones around the statue, which are inscribed with names and messages from the donors who helped fund the project. The voices of local women telling their stories or struggle and success were broadcast intermixed with an original soundtrack composed by percussion artist Maria Finkelmeier.
Burke recalls the vision she had: “It will be immersive. Visitors will want to sit and listen to the voices.”