The Highland Park Library at 31 North Fifth Avenue is a hub of recreational and cultural excitement during this holiday season. The public is invited to a Spook Handy Folk Concert and reception on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2 p.m. In addition, Mayu Burr, an artist specializing in Japanese Saimitsu painting will have an exhibit at the Library through the month of December in the meeting room and the main hall display. A reception will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday Dec. 4. For more information about these events go to www.hpplnj.org or call the library at 732-572-2750.
Spook Handy’s Tales From The Road lifts the spirit. The popular performer tells stories in his songs about his travels through the byways of America.
His music blends blues, 60s and 70s pop, Appalachian strains, and blue grass while telling the stories of people he has met along the way.
His debut CD, Freedom Is Your Destiny, was named a top 10 album of the year by The East Coast Rocker. He has released four CDs and his latest, Whatcha Gonna Do reached number 12 on the Folk Radio Charts. Pete Seeger sings a number of Spook’s original songs. The concert and reception sponsored by the Friends of the Library.
Mayu Burr is renowned for her ability to capture and enhance the minute details of the world around her, including tiny creatures. At the other end of the spectrum from the French Impressionist School, Mayu is the foremost proponent of the School of Extreme Selective Détaillé, known as E.S.D. Art or (Saimitsu) in Japan. The extreme precision of her rendering evokes the masterpieces of Jean-Baptiste Édouard Detaille (1848 – 1912). She sees and draws what the impartial camera lens misses. Ms. Burr’s pieces also highlight her skills at pencil drawing, watercolor, origami and Chinese calligraphy.