The Art Collection of CASAS
by Steve Desroches
In a town like Provincetown, where art is created every day and has been for over 100 years, it is no surprise that art is everywhere. And yet, sometimes it is surprising that indeed art is everywhere in Provincetown. Upon entering the Carrie A. Seaman Animal Shelter (CASAS) on the bucolic and tucked away Sandy Hill Lane, a chorus of meows fills the air. There’s a litter of six kittens that are relatively new arrivals who are so cute as to melt even the coldest of hearts. An older cat named Sonia lounges in the sun, giving a great big stretch, before going back to the serious task of napping. And there’s a shy one named Felix, curled in a ball inside the hole of a carpeted cat scratch tower, peeking out and then quickly tucking his head back inside.
All in all, CASAS is a typical cat shelter, albeit one that—thanks to continual community support and the hard work of an all-volunteer staff—has resources many other shelters envy. But this being Provincetown, there is of course something very unique about CASAS: the sheer amount of art work that covers the walls. And not just a piece or two, but so much that the shelter resembles a well-stocked gallery or museum. “Wait until you see the staircase,” says Anita Butler, co-vice president of the CASAS’ Board of Directors. It is impressive assortment of art, and not just lining the stairs, but throughout CASAS. And as one might suspect the most common subject of all the work is feline in nature.
“People have been so generous to us over the years it’s amazing,” says Butler, whose husband Dave is the treasurer and sits at a long table working away at his laptop. “We have something in every room.”
While there are framed posters and a few mass-manufactured, cat-inspired decorations, the vast majority are original works. The list of artists whose works grace the walls includes Trevor Mikula, Darren Showers, Nicoletta Poli, Towanda de Nagy, Sheila Benzer, Polly Cote, Connie Black, Elizabeth White, Peter Hutchinson, as well as prints featuring images by Edward Gorey and Andy Warhol. There are a few historical artifacts as well, like a poster advertising a fundraiser at Town Hall in the 1970s emceed by famed female impersonator Arthur Blake and fellow drag performer Lynne Carter, piano bar legend Ava Williams, the Crown & Anchor Dancing and Singing Ensemble, and Wayland Flowers. Peppered throughout are small paw prints with a name underneath representing a past resident who has passed. And in perhaps the most prominent position in CASAS is a portrait of Carrie A. Seaman herself, still watching over the care of animals.
Seaman was a Boston lawyer who moved to Provincetown with her husband Joseph, opening a private law practice on the Cape tip. In 1971, she helped create the Provincetown Animal Shelter, and upon her death at the age of 84 in 1989, provisions in her will provided a significant amount of money for the shelter, which was then named in her honor. A no-kill shelter, CASAS provides care for homeless or abandoned cats in Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet, and Eastham. While laws and the culture around domesticated animals have changed for the better, and there are fewer stray animals thanks to better care and an increase in spaying and neutering pets, situations still do arise showing the need for institutions like CASAS. A pet owner may pass away, hoarding situations can at times result in the need to remove numerous cats from a home, a pet owner may be overwhelmed or have underestimated their ability to care for a pet, and there are still occasional feral cat populations on Cape Cod. CASAS also offers homes to cats owned by responsible and capable caretakers who are displaced due to the housing crisis, where they volunteer in return.
And then there are the cats who are unadoptable, but certainly not unlovable, of which there are three at the moment. They will live out their lives at CASAS. There’s Sonia, the napping cat, who is older and has some health issues. There’s Ollie, who loves to rest on a window sill in the office, but is super grumpy and doesn’t much like other people or cats, for that matter. And then there’s Tyler Perry, who is old and arthritic and only has one eye, which he lost to glaucoma. He’s so named as he originally came from a historic population of feral cats near Perry’s Farm in Truro. Every cat that comes from there has Perry in its name, like the now deceased Perry Mason and Perry Como.
More kittens are soon to arrive at CASAS, and there’s not only room, but several quarantine spaces for them to go to get better should they be sick and won’t be a threat to their shelter mates (paid for by a donation from the late Napi Van Dereck). The art work makes CASAS a more enjoyable place for the volunteers, many of whom spend time there to not only feed and care for animals, but to keep the cats company in what is a very homey and cozy environment, making it a healthy and uplifting place for humans and felines alike. Provincetown’s love for animals is well known, and on September 26 the town will celebrate Pet Appreciation Day, an event created by CASAS. And of course, the care for animals is also evident in the community donating financial support and volunteer hours to make sure CASAS thrives in the future. Based on the hum of purrs in CASAS, all is well.
“We often say that we want to come back as CASAS cats,” says Butler. “They are so loved and cared for. This is a happy place to be.”
Pet Appreciation Day is Saturday, September 26 and begins at St. Mary of the Harbor, 517 Commercial Street with the Blessing of the Animals at 2:30 p.m. followed by the Pet Parade at 3 p.m. going down Commercial Street ending at the Boatslip, 161 Commercial Street, followed by a special Pet Tea Dance from 4 to 6 p.m. ($10 cover charge) where there will be a pet costume contest. For more information on Pet Appreciation Day and CASAS visit casasanimalshelter.org or call 508.487.4243.
