A series of entries designed to capture the ongoing adventures of NINA! See how we came to be where we are today, and follow along as we enter the new century of social media!

Page: 52

More Progress at 1 imlay

1 Imlay Street
09/24/2014

Some shots of the interior at 1 Imlay, showing more progress on the restoration.



You can't say we didn't try

09/19/2014

A view of lanterns in the windows at 207 Garden Street.



Illumination Night In Sigourney Square Park

9/19/2014

Working with the Asylum Hill Neighborhood Association and the Friends of Sigourney Square Park, we staged a modern version of "Illumination Night," a late 19th century tradition in Sigourney Square Park that involved paper lanterns strung about the park and on surrounding houses.  Back then, they got to use candles in their lanterns, while we made do with florescent flashlights and tin foil.

 
We estimate that around 125 people attended the event.  Attendees had a good time watching great performances by Sankofa Kuumba and Hartford's Proud Drill, Dance & Drum Corp and then listening to great music performed by Ron Pitz & Friends.  Funding for the musical performances for this event was generously provided by the Evelyn W. Preston Memorial Trust Fund.  The Hartford Public Works Department helped with the set-up, dispatching a bucket truck and crew to help string the lights across the interior of the park, and we had the supportive presence of the Hartford Police Department and our Community Service Officer, Chris Chanaca.
 
That's the official description.  As for the real description, well, things could've gone a little better!  For the most part, though, the event went well, and everyone had fun, but we definitely learned a few things.  We got our first hint of things to come this morning, as we transported the lanterns from our office to the park.  It was absolutely the right idea to assemble them all well ahead of time and in the controlled interior environment of our office, but we didn't think far enough ahead to realize that all of those lanterns might night fit so well in a car!  Made for some interesting photos at least.
 
And what did we learn?  First, it wouldn't have been nearly as bright in the park 100 years ago:  streetlights, porch lights, spot lights, traffic lights all proliferate in and around the park, and really we should have factored all of these lights into our plans.  Our LEDs, environmentally sound as they are, were simply overwhelmed by all of the ambient light.  Second, we set the performers up along the edge of the park in order to reach the municipal power outlets, but that also meant that the performers were right along Sigourney Street, a very busy and noisy thoroughfare through the neighborhood.  And last, many of the attendees claimed the lanterns as souvenirs, which we hadn't anticipated.  We are glad they liked them so much -- but we had been thinking that we would re-use them.
 
We may try this again at some point in the future, after we recover from this experience, but it's going to come down to whether we can find a lighting system that's really, really bright and that's sufficiently cost effective that we won't take a big hit if the lights then walk away.
 
Additional photos here by Bernie Michel.
 
 


Ready or not, here they come

09/18/2014

With the help of some very speedy volunteers, we got our lanterns assembled today.  We'll have more volunteers tomorrow who will help us string them up in the park.



A guide to assembling lanterns for illumination Night

09/17/2014

For future reference as well as for a look behind the scenes -- based on our test run and our rehearsal, we decided that we first needed a bigger and brighter light and second that the addition of some aluminum foil inside the lantern would brighten the interior of the lantern and prevent the light from dispersing out of it.  It's a long shot, but this show will go on!



A Peek Inside the Cathedral of Saint Joseph

09/17/2014

Today we got to go inside the Cathedral of Saint Joseph -- we had a tour led by Mark Saur, an Asylum Hill resident and parishioner at St. Joe's for over 30 years.



Getting On toward the roof!

54 Huntington Street
09/16/2014

Framing for the third floor -- or "second and a half" floor, or the attic -- is underway, and with it the gables are plainly visible.  These were designed to follow the gables at 181 Collins Street (which we still say was designed by George Keller, but that's for another day), and we think we've succeeded.  Photos here include shots of the exterior, shots from the top floor, and shots from the interior, where the rooms are framed and the floor plan can now be followed.



Kitchen Going in & Other work at 1 Imlay

1 Imlay Street
09/10/2014

The kitchen has started to go in at 1 Imlay Street, and along with it we are working on some of the other finishing touches, primarily flooring.  The tile has been installed in the bathrooms, the hardword floors are being sanded, and the new main staircase is ready for its new stain.



More to the second floor

54 Huntington Street
09/04/2014

Onward and upward!



On to the second floor

54 Huntington Street
08/29/2014

One week in, and we're humming along.



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