Provincetown , the tiny, glamorous speck of land at the tip of Cape Cod has seen its fair share of change over the years.  Some people still wrongly believe that it was discovered by the Brits when they sailed into port on the Mayflower in 1620 to declare that this was now theirs.   Actually, they soon realised they didn’t like the place at all and so they got back on board and a few hours later landed in Plymouth the other side of the Bay  But anyway they were hardly the first people who thought of Provincetown as home, as the Wampanoag, and the Nauset , sometimes referred to as the Cape Cod Indians, had inhabited the region for over 12,000 years, and their history is deeply intertwined with the land.

Fast forward to the mid-19th century, specifically the 1850s, the Portuguese began arriving in Provincetown in significant numbers, primarily drawn to the area by the growing fishing industry.  By the 1880s, they constituted roughly one-third of the town’s population, and by the early 20th century, Portuguese fishermen had become a major force in Provincetown’s fishing industry. 

They were followed by artists when, in 1889,  Charles W. Hawthorne opened his Cape Cod School of Painting and Artists were quickly drawn to the area’s wind-swept dunes and enchanted by the Town’s wharves and sailing ships. By World War I, Provincetown’s reputation as an art colony was well established, with painters, playwrights, and poets embracing the Town’s bohemian lifestyle. Among the famous inhabitants were the writer Norman Mailer, the playwrights Eugene O’Neill and Tennessee Williams,  and the abstract expressionist Hans Hofmann, who also opened a summer school in Town.

He told Queerguru that much  of his  work is based in Provincetown—a place that, for him, is more than just a setting. It’s a space where queerness, memory, and myth come together. In his paintings, he seeks to capture moments that are both specific and universal—a place where the human figure meets the natural world. The landscapes themselves act as both setting and metaphor—fragile, resilient, shifting yet rooted. Through this tension, he hopes his art resonates emotionally with others.

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Neil Korpinen didn’t  have to travel far to arrive here in Provincetown as his family has  grown cranberries in South Caver, Mass for 100 years ( a gay man would never exaggerate ? ) He actually studied painting and drawing locally at FAWC, PAAM, The Hawthorne Barn and Castle Hill…… 4 of the best artists centers in Provincetown.  His new Show at the Commons in Provincetown  that opens tonight is titled The Summer of ’24 – Figures and Places 

He told QUEERGURU. “At the end of last summer I began a group of paintings that seemed tinged with nostalgia. In this current era of chaos and disbelief the theme has taken on an additional meaning. Though the setting is at the beach the subdued palette lends a tonal, atmospheric quality to the landscape. Lone figures are mostly looking away, remembering the good carefree times of the past summer and perhaps years gone by. The Summer of ’42 movie is a good coming of age story but The Summer of ’24 is about looking back.”

 

 

 

THE SUMMER OF ‘24 – FIGURES AND PLACES BY NEIL KORPINEN until Monday, July 7, 2025  The Commons 46 Bradford Street Provincetown,