Sculptor & Photographer: CAM Green Exhibit Celebrates Walker Hancock and Michael Lafferty

For many, the chance to see inside the studio of an artist of international acclaim is unimaginable. Portrait of a Sculptor: Walker Hancock & Michael Lafferty features photographs inside the Gloucester studio of renowned sculptor Walker Hancock (1901-1998) and select sculptures by Hancock.

 

The exhibit, which is free and open to the public, will be on view at the Cape Ann Museum’s CAM Green campus on Poplar Street in Gloucester from January 11 through March 30.

Through intimate photographs taken between 1978 and 1996, Lafferty captures the themes of national importance, process and legacy. The images provide a glimpse of Hancock’s refuge, the place where he drew inspiration for his work.

“The inaugural exhibition at CAM Green for 2025 will invite visitors to experience Hancock’s studio as insiders and eyewitnesses to his creative process,” says Oliver Barker, director of Cape Ann Museum. “Thanks to the generosity of Hancock’s family and other individuals, the Museum is presenting a dynamic new group of Hancock’s works, including a recently gifted model of Abraham Lincoln, which Hancock was commissioned to create in 1978 for the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.”

Hancock’s physical studio, built of Cape Ann granite and set deep in the woods in the Lanesville area of Gloucester, are inseparable. Today, Hancock’s studio remains much as it was decades ago. The trees and shrubs have grown, but the roughness of the land is the same. Through his photographs, Lafferty allows the viewer to step back in time, to look over the artist’s shoulder, to see where the magic took place.

“My interest in photography piqued when I bought my first ‘real’ camera in 1967, while stationed in Saigon in the Air Force during the war,” says Lafferty. “Over the next five years, I saw the countries I visited in a completely different vision through the lens of that camera.”

Lafferty moved to Gloucester when he was stationed in Boston as a pilot for Eastern Airlines. He soon discovered that the community was perfect for creative spirits. Once retired, he started spending more time behind the camera. He met Walker and Saima Hancock at St. Mary’s Church in Rockport and soon learned that Hancock had designed the Air Medal for the government in 1942, a medal he had been awarded several times during the war.

When Lafferty asked Hancock about it, he invited him to his studio. From that time on, he was welcomed to visit and photograph Hancock’s artistic process as his projects progressed from concept to completion.

Portrait of a Sculptor: Walker Hancock & Michael Lafferty will feature 28 of Lafferty’s photographs along with 19 of Hancock’s works, including plasters, bronzes and a piece in fiberglass. The exhibition is made possible thanks to Lafferty’s generous donation of over 580 negatives to the museum that document his visits to Hancock’s studio over almost two decades.

 

The full suite of images, which have been scanned as part of the museum’s ongoing commitment to ensure that its collections are accessible globally, and can be viewed here.

Experiential programs to support this exhibit

Relevant programming is being offered in conjunction with the exhibit. On Jan. 25 and Feb. 1, visitors can witness sculpture conservation demonstrations in action from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. when conservators, Robert Shure and Lisa Benson, from Skylight Studios will be conserving Hancock’s plaster maquette of Abraham Lincoln within the exhibition. On Feb. 6 at 2 p.m., Cape Ann Museum will host a gallery talk with photographer Michael Lafferty. Space is limited and reservations are required.

Free family programming will be offered at the CAM Studio, located at the Carlson Education Center on the CAM Green campus. These sessions will be held on Saturday mornings for young visitors and their families to learn about sculpture in the CAM Collection and the work of Walker Hancock and Michael Lafferty. During the programs led by a CAM Educator, families are invited to enjoy art-making activities, take a Scavenger Hunt into the gallery, and walk the CAM Green property to see the Historic Houses and the Contemporary Art Wetu.

CAM Green offers free general admission, with time-ticketed vehicle reservations recommended. Learn more at Portrait of a Sculptor: Walker Hancock & Michael Lafferty.