Lecture: Public Art in Portsmouth

by Portsmouth Historical Society | Jul 1, 2025

Public Art in Portsmouth Lecture on July 29

Did you know there are FOUR pieces of public art by Cabot Lyford in Portsmouth? Join us and learn more!

About the Presenters

Chris Dwyer

M. Christine “Chris” Dwyer is co-owner and Senior Vice President of RMC Research, a national education consulting firm based in Portsmouth since 1985 where she has specialized in literacy, early childhood policy and school improvement as well as research in arts and culture. She served seven terms on the Portsmouth City Council, where she played key roles in major civic projects: co-chairing the Middle School renovation, leading the Prescott Park master plan, and fundraising for the African Burying Ground. Chris has been a prominent advocate and leader in arts and culture—founding chair of Art‑Speak, chair of the NH State Council on the Arts, Board president of the Currier Museum of Art and the Portsmouth Music Hall. She currently co-chairs Portsmouth’s Public Art Review Committee.

Ernie Greenslade

Ernestine “Ernie” Greenslade is co-chair of the Portsmouth Public Art Review Committee (PARC), which was established in 2023 to champion high-quality public art for the city and advise on public art-related topics. Always a lover of art, Ernie became involved with public art after retiring three years ago from her career in community college marketing and public relations. As chair of the PNH400 Legacy Committee, Ernie and her small committee provided leadership for the creation of a maritime-themed sculpture garden in Bohenko Gateway Park, which was unveiled as part of the 2023 anniversary celebration. A resident of Portsmouth since 1984, Ernie loves her city and can’t imagine living anywhere else. She has served on the Prescott Park Board of Directors and as chair of the Portsmouth Public Library Board of Trustees.

Gerry Ward

Gerald W. R. Ward, PhD, is the curator of the Portsmouth Historical Society and editor of the Portsmouth Marine Society Press. He is also the Katharine Lane Weems Senior Curator of American Decorative Arts and Sculpture Emeritus at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and has contributed to many publications on American art and material culture as an author or editor. He is currently a Visiting Lecturer at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston and is serving his seventh term as a State Representative in New Hampshire.

Cabot Lyford: Winds of Change

by Portsmouth Historical Society | Aug 16, 2024 | Exhibitions

Finishing Touches Exhibition, accessories throughout the ages

April 1–November 2, 2025

In 2025, Portsmouth Historical Society will present “Winds of Change,” a retrospective of the work of Cabot Lyford (1925–2016). Lyford’s experimental approach to different materials and his advocacy of environmental and political issues through his art will resonate with viewers as much now as it did in the 20th century.

Exhibition Events • Contemporary Currents • Lyford Catalogue

Creativity & Experimentation

While best known for his works in granite, Lyford explored such varied media as watercolor and gouache, slate, wood, aluminum, bronze, acrylic, and laminated and fiber glass and plywood, as well as varying his style from abstract to realist to surrealist. Our programs and workshops will encourage all to embrace the unexpected and turn “mistakes” into new avenues of creativity.

Black and Red, 1973. Painted wood. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford

Trifecta. Cast aluminum and bronze rod on granite base. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Birds of a Feather, 1995. Maple. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Jonah and the Whale, 1958. Watercolor on paper. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Reminiscence, 1978. Laminated wood. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Leviathan. Black granite. Collection of Phillips Exeter Academy.

Winter Pines, 1969. Watercolor on paper. Courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Remembrance or Thanks, Exxon, 1990. Black granite. Collection of Maine Audubon.

Proposal for the Vietnam War Memorial, ca. 1980. Cardboard and other materials. Image courtesy of the Estate of Cabot Lyford.

Advocacy Through Art

Lyford dared to confront complex and difficult issues with his sculpture and always tried to advocate as well as create. Art impacts the way we view complex issues like war and ecology. This exhibition will illustrate the profound impact that public art can have on a community, a region, and a country.

Exhibition Events

Young Artists Contest
Accepting Submissions through May 31

Stylized, granite statue of a woman leaning forward holding a child against a blue sky. Text reads: Cabot Lyford: Winds of Change Curator Tours. First Fridays at 12 & 5:30 pm. free

Curator Tours
Every First Friday
12:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Collaboration with New Hampshire Art Association

We are proud to announce we our continued collaboration with NHAA and artists across New Hampshire. This fall, we will open a call for art that will fill our balcony gallery with a contemporary response to “Winds of Change.”

Stylized, granite statue of a woman leaning forward holding a child against a blue sky. Cabot Lyford Catalogue

Get your copy

Exhibition Catalogue

Take home this exhibition catalogue, which brings together a wide array of public and private works made by this prolific New England artist.

This catalogue includes a treasure trove of documents and photographs preserved by Lyford’s family and places Lyford’s art into the context of public sculpture in Portsmouth. Included are some eighty illustrated examples of his finest work that provide the first rounded look at Cabot Lyford.

Thank you to our sponsors

Dan Brown Giving Fund

Doug Nelson, Sunpointe Investments

Bob Thoresen, in memory of Sue Thoresen