The Mother of The Gunnery

In the fall/winter 2022 issue of the Bulletin (page 67), we shared an excerpt from The Biography of Frederick Gunn, the 2022 reprinting of The Master of The Gunnery. Through the recollections of James P. Platt, Class of 1868, we glimpsed Abigail Gunn in her role as “Mother of The Gunnery.” From Platt’s descriptions, we learned that on winter evenings, Mrs. Gunn read to students “from ‘Oliver Twist’ and other good books.” She served them heaping plates of pancakes in the dining room, and “invented the ‘double-decker’ bed” for economy of space in the dorm rooms.

When the alumni were planning this Memorial Volume to honor Mr. Gunn, they intentionally chose to feature Mrs. Gunn’s portrait as the frontispiece to Platt’s chapter, The Home-Life.

“That is where she was Queen,” Henry W.B. Howard, Class of 1865, wrote in a letter to William Hamilton Gibson, Class of 1866, who led the Committee on the Memorial Volume and served as the book’s editor and illustrator. Howard wanted Mrs. Gunn to be seen as more than “only” a wife. “Her domain,” he wrote, “was distinct.”

In personality, she was the perfect counterpart to Mr. Gunn. As Platt tells us, the school “was a home, in which the father was firm, but just and loving withal; at times stern and severe, but never failing to unite with his sternness a clearly defined purpose to help the culprit on toward higher things; again the righteous judge, but judging with a countenance from which shone kindly sympathy and fatherly companionship — add also that in Mrs. Gunn was largely developed the character of mediator; that her evenness of temper and unfailing sunshine of good-will and serenity were ever prominent, always acting as a check upon any tendency in Mr. Gunn’s nature toward gloom and despondency — add again that the environment of the school was fortunately such that it very materially assisted Mr. and Mrs. Gunn in their endeavors, and it is no longer a mystery that so many boys have added their luster to The Gunnery by clean and honest living when they have passed beyond its portals.“

“... It was characteristic of both Mr. and Mrs. Gunn that by far the most inconvenient and unpleasant part of the house should have been taken for their own use.”

“These uncomfortable quarters were the highway from the sitting-room to the ‘tower’ beyond. Here was the center of the circle; here the point from which radiated all the influences that upheld the family government and lent to it so large a measure of success; here we gathered for the highest social joys; here we dragged ourselves for examination, and for merited punishment when we were offenders.”

“If a boy were ill and unable to attend to his duties, the tower was turned into a hospital, and sitting there in the sunshine, under Mrs. Gunn’s motherly care and tender nursing, he half forgot his aches and pains, or was nearly content to undergo them for the happy sense of being coddled and cared for which followed in their train.”

“Here, too, were given and enjoyed those cozy Sunday evening lunches to which at one time or another each boy was admitted.

“A particularly bright and lovely spring day, or one of those rich mellow mornings only found in New England October, would call to mind the expected walk, and a family meeting would settle upon its propriety. Mrs. Gunn, with the small boys and the luncheon stowed away in the large carriage, followed the nearest highway to the place of destination, while the rest of us, with ‘Pater’ Gunn in the lead, trudged away over the fields and through the woods, coming upon many a fair scene never before discovered, and reaching finally some vantage ground from which the bold outlines of the Judean hills unfolded before our vision.”

“There was one window in the house looking toward the west, and almost against its panes a large apricot-tree lowered its branches. Mr. Gunn had a habit of hanging bits of chicken-bones upon the twigs for the birds that twittered about the house. The birds soon came to recognize the bounty of their friend, and all day long the chickadees and sparrows chirped and fluttered without fear among the branches. At the time of nest-building, Mrs. Gunn would cut up stocking-yarn into short lengths and hang them upon the tree, and the little birds with a chirp of thankfulness seized upon them to furnish the homes they were providing for their mates.”

Head Over Heels A Musical Celebration of Life and Love

Students in The Frederick Gunn School Theatre Program lit up the stage in Head Over Heels: The Musical, presented February 23, 24, and 25 in the Tisch Family Auditorium of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center.

Kent Burnham, Director of Theatre

Arts, called Head Over Heels a “wild, joyful, head-bopping, toetapping, and poignant celebration of life and love.” Students played to a full house each night, and the musical brought the audience to their feet, as they joined the cast, singing and dancing in the aisles during the final curtain call.

Conceived by Jeff Whitty, who wrote the original book adapted by James Magruder, the musical is based on “The Arcadia,” written at the end of the 16th century by Sir Philip Sidney, and features music and lyrics by The Go-Go’s.

“A 16th-century romance with music from The Go-Go’s, the all-female power band of the 1980s, might sound like a crazy idea — and it is! But it works and allows the character and audience to explore the themes of inclusion, acceptance and love,” said Burnham, who directed the play, working with Sarah Fay, Music Director, and Kelsey Brush, Choreographer. “The script, written in iambic pentameter, suggests a Shakespeare play, and beautifully communicates the diversity of gender, the need to change with the times, and the power of self-discovery.”

Ensembles Combine to Create Memorable Holiday Concert

In December, the Gunn Music Program presented Somewhere in My Memory: Music for the Holiday Season, featuring students in String Ensemble, Vocal Ensemble, Jazz Band, and special guests in the Tisch Family Auditorium of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. This year’s holiday concert was notable in that, for the first time in recent Gunn history, two performance dates were offered so that family, friends and the community could attend. This also was the first time in recent history that the school arranged a collaborative performance with students from a local middle school. Gunn musicians and vocalists were joined by the Washington

Montessori Middle School Chorus and their director, Kate Zimmerman, to perform the song Somewhere in My Memory, composed by John Williams for the original score of Home Alone, a film about family and American Christmas traditions.

The diverse and eclectic repertoire for the concert included a beloved Israeli folk song, a traditional Hanukkah song for Jazz Band, music from Beethoven, Vince Guaraldi, and Mel Torme, songs from How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Disney’s Frozen, and holiday classics.

If you missed the concert, you can watch a video produced by Ulrich Vilbois P’23 on the school website at: frederickgunn.org/arts/music.

2023 CMEA Northern Region and All-State Music Festivals

Six students in the Gunn Music Program were selected to perform at the Connecticut Music Educator Association’s (CMEA) Northern Region Music Festival in January at New Britain High School. The festival ensembles included a regional concert band, orchestra, mixed choir and jazz ensemble. Congratulations to: Anya Zigmont ’26 (viola), Audrey Richards ’23 (soprano voice), Stella Zhu ’25 (alto voice), Colin Hall ’24 (bass voice), Will Dyer ’23 (bass voice), and Joshua Ly ’23 (mallets).

Five of these musicians went on to audition for the CMEA All-State Music Festival, and two were selected to perform in Hartford, March 31 - April 2. Congratulations to Stella Zhu ’25 (alto voice), who was selected to the All-State Treble Choir, and Joshua Ly ’23 (mallets), who performed with the All-State Band.

Decorated Artists

Students Win Gold And Silver Key Awards

Four student-artists were selected to represent The Frederick Gunn School in January at the annual Connecticut Regional Scholastic Art Awards, the largest juried student art exhibition in the state. In addition to having their work exhibited at the Donald and Linda Silpe Gallery at the University of Hartford, the students brought home a total of eight awards in four separate categories.

Yoyo Zhang ’24 was awarded a Gold Key in Photography for “Alone at Home,” and a Silver Key in Photography for “Fictional Life.” (See the 2022 fall/winter Bulletin, page 44.)

Lucy Sanchez ’23 was awarded a Gold Key in the Jewelry category for her work, “Permanent Sunflower,” and an Honorable Mention Award in Jewelry for “The Dragonfly at Rest.”

Jenny Shen ’23 was awarded a Silver Key in Mixed Media for “Exploring,” and an Honorable Mention Award in Mixed Media for “Ocean Bottom.”

Joanna Jin ’24 was awarded two Honorable Mention awards in Painting for her work, “Sinking” and “Morning Path.”

As Gold Key recipients, Zhang and Sanchez were automatically considered for national scholastic art awards, which were announced this spring.

Students congratulated Lucy Sanchez ’23 on winning “Best in Show” at the Kent Art Association’s annual Student Art Show in February. She wore a pair of earrings she designed to the reception.

Sanchez won a Gold Key Award for her “Permanent Sunflower” bracelet (top left) and an Honorable Mention Award for her necklace, “The Dragonfly at Rest” (center) in the Connecticut Regional Scholastic Art show.

Jewelry artist wins best in show

In February, 31 students in the Technique & Artistry co-curricular program, as well as the Introduction to Printmaking and Digital Photography classes at Gunn, had their original artwork featured in the Kent Art Association’s 31st Student Art Show. Among all of the students who participated from eight area schools, Lucy Sanchez ’23 brought home the prize for “Best in Show.” She was honored with The Connie Horton Award of Excellence, named in honor of a beloved KAA past president and lifelong art teacher Connie Horton.

Sanchez is from Amenia, New York, and said she started making jewelry at summer camp when she was 11 years old, and enrolled in metalworking and jewelry-making classes with Julie Czerenda, director and educator at ART Experience in New Milford, Connecticut.

“I was a really creative kid. I did a lot of art,” said Sanchez, who found something satisfying about the tangible nature of metalwork, and the process of designing and creating a wearable piece of art. When she sees a piece of jewelry that she admires, she thinks about the fact that someone put thought into every clasp and every fastening, how the components would work together and who would wear the finished piece. “It’s not different from the fashion industry.”

Her prize-winning dragonfly necklace was designed around a stone that a classmate gave her over the summer. “I really liked the color of the stone and it reminded me of a dragonfly. I designed it around that,” she said, acknowledging, “I made a lot of mistakes, but I like that. It’s interesting to figure it out. After I made that first sketch, I was obsessed with it.”

She often works with a wire-wrapping technique exemplified by the sunflower bracelet exhibited at both the Kent Art Association and Connecticut Scholastic Art shows. “I made the bezel for my stone out of braided soldered wire. It’s all sterling silver,” she said, estimating that she worked for about eight hours a day over three days to finish that piece. “It is time consuming.”

Prior to the start of Winter Term, Sanchez and Maggie Perrella ’23 discovered over lunch one day that they both enjoyed making jewelry. They approached Visual Arts Chair Andrew Richards P’20 ’23 and asked if they could focus on jewelry-making as part of the Technique & Artistry co-curricular program. Students in the program typically work on drawing, painting, photography, graphic design or ceramics. Sanchez and Perrella became the first students to incorporate jewelry. During the term, Sanchez spent time making sketches and playing with stones and designed a pair of dangling earrings in sterling silver and mirrored glass. She wore them to the opening reception at Kent Art Association.

Highlanders responded enthusiastically to renovations in the Ogden D. Miller Memorial Athletic Center, which were completed well before the start of basketball season. The Upper Gym has a brand-new look, and a new court. The rebranding extends to spaces on the lower level, including the Athletic Training Office.