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Members of the Anthony family pose with an image of their many-greats-aunt Susan B. Anthony.

FX Studio Creates Youthful Image of Susan B. Anthony

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Diana Walczek works on the digitally created image of the young Susan B. Anthony.
ADAMS, Mass. — An image of women's rights leader Susan B. Anthony as a child was revealed at the home of her birth this past weekend.

Created by local digital artist Diana Walczak, the unveiling commemorates the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, often called the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, that gave women the right to vote. The constitutional amendment was certified on Aug. 26, 1920. (Tennessee was the 37th state to ratify the amendment on Aug. 18.)

Fourteen member of the Anthony family were present when the image was revealed at the Anthony Birthplace and Museum on East Road on Friday.

The image portrays Anthony at age 6 wearing the simple clothing of a Quaker child in 1826. She is standing in front of the hearth in the kitchen. Anthony spent her earliest years in the East Road dwelling her father built until the family moved to New York State.

The high-quality, digitally produced illustration was created by Walczak, co-owner of Synthespian Studios in Williamstown. The filmographers at Synthespian specialize in 3-D design and character animation and have produced a stereoscopic film for Radio City Music Hall's "Christmas Spectacular," ride films for Busch Gardens and Universal Studios, and groundbreaking special-effects for films such as "X-Men" and "Fantastic Four."  Its offices are in Hollywood and Williamstown.

The museum provided Walczak with the historical research for reference photos, Quaker clothing and styling to create the image.

"Photography was not developed at the time Susan was a child and lived here in this home," said Carol Crossed, president of the museum.  "The image of Susan standing in front of the kitchen hearth is so endearing. It brings to life this Anthony heritage."



The civil rights activist in 1896 at age 76.
The process of creating the image is the reverse of how a composite sketch artist uses the picture of a kidnapped child and "ages" image of how they may appear 15 years later.

"We were fortunate to find two frontal images of Susan's face, one at age 28 and one at age 32," said Walczak. "Both images show that her eye and eyebrow were higher on her right side than on her left and that her right mouth corner was higher than her left as well. We incorporated these features into our interpretation of a younger version of Susan B. Anthony's facial structure."

Walczak worked with 3-D digital artist Travis Pinnsonault, who built a digital database of the little girl based on Walczak's sketches. Travis went on to texture and light the entire scene and render the one image using the same computer-graphics processes Synthespian Studios uses in film and TV production. He then passed on the image with separate layers for Walczak to complete in Photoshop. She balanced the layers and painted new elements, such as hair, facial details, and the fire that casts a warm glow on the little girl.

"I tried to give the young Susan B. Anthony an innocent, yet curious and determined look," Walczak said. "I felt highly responsible to be as accurate as possible, deeply moved as our image gradually came to life, and truly honored to have had the opportunity to create a visualization of one of the world's most important historical figures."

The image is available to the viewing public beginning this past weekend. Regular museum hours of operation are Friday through Monday, 10 to 4.
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Structure Fire in Adams Closes Schools, Calls in Mutual Aid

Staff ReportsiBerkshires

Fire Chief John Pansecchi, in white, talks strategy on Wednesday. 

ADAMS, Mass. — At least eight fire companies responded to a Wednesday morning a structure fire in the old MacDermid Graphics building.

Firefighters and responders from Cheshire, Dalton, Hinsdale, Lanesborough, Lee, Savoy, North Adams, Pittsfield, Williamstown. Hinsdale also sent its rehab bus and Northern Berkshire EMS was on the scene with its rehab trailer. 

The fire was reported at about 7:30 a.m. and black smoke could be seen looming over the old mill building at 10 Harmony St. Harmony and Prospect streets were closed to traffic. 

The Adams Police Department posted on Facebook that Hoosac Valley Elementary School and Berkshire Arts and Technology Charter Public School classes were cancelled for Wednesday. The schools are located not far from the structure.

Their post also reads, "Children on the bus already for Hoosac Valley Elementary School will be brought to the middle school gym at Hoosac Valley High School."

"BArT was already in session and will be evacuating to the Adams Visitor Center."
 
Fire Chief John Pansecchi said firefighters are approaching the blaze by pouring water at it from every angle.
 
"We have a fire in the building, looks like we have a lot of fire in the building and we're trying to get to it," he said. "Places have already collapsed prior to the fire, place that have collapsed since the fire, so not a lot of activity inside the building."
 
The mill, the former W.R. Grace, is made up of a number two- and three-story structures covering about 236,749 square feet. The fire was located in a long building toward the back of the property that runs alongside the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail. The roof was fully engulfed in flames and collapsed in on itself around by 8 a.m.
 
Trucks from Williamstown were being situated in the Russell Field parking lot and firefighters were trying to find a location where they could attack the blaze from the trail. 
 
Pansecchi said the building is supposed to be vacant.
 
"I was working when the call came in," he said. "My guys did a great job getting set up putting some hose lines and being prepared and got some plans put together when I got here to extend that and that's what were looking at."
 
The cause of the blaze is unknown at this time but the state fire marshal was on the scene. 
 
Pansecchi said firefighters are providing observations from the outside and the North Adams drone has been deployed to determine the extent of the blaze. The buildings are large and unsafe in most cases to enter. 
 
"We're making good progress but we're not at a point I'd call it contained," he said. "There's already places that have caved in prior to this."
 
He's been joined by fire chiefs from the various departments, who have been aiding the attack from different fronts. 
 
"It's a really big help [having them] because you've got so much going on fighting a fire you don't think of the other things," the Adams chief said. "They start making suggestions."
 
Some of the structures on the complex date to 1881, when Renfrew Manufacturing built to produce jacquard textiles. It was the last asset of the company, and its machines and inventory were stripped out in 1927. 
 
The mill's had various owners and periods of vacancy over the last century, but was probably best known as W.R. Grace, a specialty chemical company that bought it as part of the acquisition of Dewey & Almy Chemical in the mid-1950s. 
 
MacDermid took it over in 1999 but closed the plant three years later, putting 86 people out of work. 
 
The property has been vacant since and was purchased by 10 Harmony Street LLC for $53,500 in 2019, according the online assessor's records. Principal of the LLC is listed as John D. Duquette Jr.
 
Staff writers and photographers Breanna Steele, Jack Guerino, Tammy Daniels and Marty Alvarez contributed to this article.

 

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