DESTINATION: MAINE
The Summer of Joy issue conveys the importance of finding joy and making connections through art. Summer is a time of adventure, of spending more time by the water, on the water, and appreciating watercolors. It’s a time for turning off the GPS and seeing where the road takes you. Where better to wander than on Maine’s curving roads and lanes, where a spontaneous turn can lead you to charming inlets and neighborhoods full of galleries, cafés and miles of gorgeous peninsula views. Where a weekend in one of the state’s bustling city centers will leave you exhilarated by a packed calendar of art, music and performances. Whether hugging the coastline or venturing deep upstate, Maine makes every moment wondrous.
We’re focusing on summer yet Maine is a four-season destination. Its hospitality, cuisine, relaxed vibe, and arts and culture scene thrive all year-round. Summer’s fleeting, Maine’s appeal is not.
The Zillman Art Museum-University of Maine—Bangor
The Zillman Art Museum-University of Maine is a collecting institution that focuses on exhibiting and collecting modern and contemporary art. The museum hosts a diverse roster of exhibitions changing every four months in its eleven galleries. On view through August 24, Living Here Feels Like I Am In My Homeland, Finland features paintings and works on paper from Finnish-born artist Vaino Kola. Young Curators: Human, Nature, also on view through August 24, presents a selection of work curated by the Museum’s 2024 Young Curators, a program allowing high school students to engage in museum curation. The Museum’s permanent collection includes over 4,000 works of art created primarily from 1920 to the present. In addition, the Zillman Art Museum offers events, workshops, education programs and more. The Museum’s presence in downtown Bangor places it at the center of the city’s blooming art scene.
Mathias Fine Art—Boothbay
Mathias Fine Art in Trevett, in the town of Boothbay, is known for offering collectible contemporary art. This year’s summer exhibition entitled Relief presents an exploration of the meaning of relief as both an art term and as a word meaning a release from discomfort or distress. Different forms of relief elements are to be found in the displayed images and sculptures. New England and New York artists have explored different materials from clay and granite to steel, wood, paper and glass for this exciting group show. This diverse exhibition of high relief, low relief, relief prints, relief carvings, molded paper, examples of 3-D printing and collages is a scavenger hunt where new discoveries lead to surprises and pleasurable insights. Mathias Fine Art is located on Barter’s Island, the site of one of the few remaining draw bridges in the state and where visitors can explore two Boothbay Region Land Trust preserves.
Cynthia Winings Gallery—Blue Hill
Located in the scenic coastal town of Blue Hill, Cynthia Winings Gallery is a true haven for art lovers. This artist-owned gallery is a vibrant testament to creativity and inspiration, offering a serene space where artistic expression flourishes. The gallery’s June through July exhibition, BE STILL FOR A MOMENT, co-curated with Avy Claire, presents painting and sculpture by a diverse group of artists, including Avy Claire, Jonathan Mess, Stuart Shils, Ian Trask and Lari Washburn. This exhibition explores the ineffable in non-objective abstraction, inviting viewers to engage with a visual language that encourages personal interpretation. In the Project Space, M P Landis offers thought-provoking artworks that captivate and intrigue. Additionally, the gallery features the remarkable talents of Nina Jerome, Jerry Rose, Diane Bowie Zaitlin, Patricia Wheeler, and Cynthia Winings, each bringing their unique style to the 2024 summer exhi-
Relief
An exploration on paper, wood, clay and mixed media
WHO:
Bartsch, Bettinson, Callas, Culver, Keller, Marohn, Prien Schultze, Shiber & others
WHEN: June 26–September 29, 2024
WHERE:
Aperto Fine Art—Bridgton
Aperto Fine Art opened its doors in May 2022 in the iconic green building across from Shorey Park. The gallery showcases artists who push the edges, whose art soothes, challenges, questions, comforts, and demands attention.
Aperto engages artists who can and do offer the unfamiliar. Aperto hosts over a dozen new installations and events each year, including incredible musical guests, fine wines and hors d’oeuvres, camaraderie and conversation.
bitions. Cynthia Winings Gallery inspires and challenges the viewer while touching the human spirit in profound ways. Its carefully curated exhibitions create a welcoming atmosphere, inviting visitors to explore and immerse themselves in a world of artistic brilliance.
Aperto holds a live auction each year in late June, conducted by a knowledgeable fine art auctioneer in addition to several benefits, events and a season finale juried show inviting all artists. The gallery draws from long standing networks of sought-after artists with diverse techniques and subject matters, continuously exploring and broadening their reach. You’ll find yourself stepping into a surprising and engaging environment each time you visit.
Turtle Gallery—Deer Isle
Since its beginning in 1982, Turtle Gallery has offered a unique selection of fine art, craft, and sculpture by regional makers, many of whom have studied or taught at the nearby Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. The Gallery resides in an 1876 two-story barn and outdoor sculpture garden. It’s an intriguing window into the incredible Maine art scene. This season explores the trove of artist educators that have been represented by the gallery over the years stemming from long-time connections with the universities and crafts schools in Maine and New England. Works on Paper in July highlights printmakers Karl Schrag and Siri Beckman, as well as assemblages by Margaret Rizzio and Ron Crusan, abstract prints and paintings by William Holst, and new drawings and prints by Elena Kubler. In August, painters who live and work in Maine including Mary Barnes, Sheep Jones, Galen Davis, Paul Trowbridge, and Adele Ursone
Monhegan Museum of Art & History
Monhegan Island
will fill the walls with scenes and abstractions considering the local landscape as well as the greater forces that affect and change it.
The Monhegan Museum of Art & History is located in the historic Monhegan Island Light Station, eleven miles off Maine’s coast. The Monhegan Lightkeeper’s House contains exhibits about the island’s history, art, and nature, while the Assistant Keeper’s House holds a gallery that features exhibitions from the museum’s art collection. Additionally, the Rockwell Kent/James Fitzgerald Historic Artists’ Home and Studio displays a collection of works by James Fitzgerald. The Museum’s summer exhibition, A Common Bond: Women Artists of Monhegan Island, features the remarkable legacy of the Women Artists of Monhegan Island (WAMI), founded in 1990. The exhibition will feature sixteen long-term members of WAMI, offering a glimpse into the diverse artistic expressions that flourished within the group. The accompanying catalogue
will include reproductions of artworks by all former members, providing a comprehensive overview of WAMI’s impact on the artistic landscape. Notable initial participants include Sylvia Alberts, Nancy Thompson Brown, Ruth Boynton, Elena Jahn, and Frances Kornbluth. The exhibition is on view through September 30, showcasing the artistic contributions of this influential group over nearly three decades.
Center for Maine Contemporary Art Rockland
Located in downtown Rockland, the Center for Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA) creates opportunities for new developments in contemporary art through exceptional exhibitions and education programs that communicate the transformative power of art. CMCA’s 2024 summer season features three thought-provoking exhibitions. A resident of North Haven, artist Donald Moffett has his first solo exhibi-
tion in Maine in CMCA’s Main Gallery, delving into the intersection of art and environmental crises. 2023 Ellis-Beauregard Foundation Fellow and multidisciplinary artist Arnold J. Kemp is also featured with a solo exhibition in the Bruce Brown Gallery, offering a poignant reflection on artistic research, ethics, and self-exploration. Maine-based artists Bronlyn Jones and Robert Bauer team up for an exhibition featuring a collection of intimate works. Carla Weeks’ expansive mural On This Island, painted in her signature style of architectural landscape elements, continues into the summer in CMCA’s Marilyn Moss Rockefeller Lobby, along with accompanying works inspired by her home on Arrowsic Island.
Colby College Museum of Art—Waterville
Located on the campus of Colby College, the Colby College Museum of Art inspires connections between art and people through
distinctive exhibitions, programs, publications, and an outstanding collection that emphasizes American and contemporary art. Founded in 1959, the Museum consists of five wings, nearly 10,000 works of art, and more than 38,000 square feet of exhibition space. This summer, see painter Martha Diamond’s work in Martha Diamond: Deep Time, on view from July 13 to October 13. Enjoy a touch of the surreal in Alive & Kicking: Fantastic Installations by Thomas Lanigan-Schmidt, Catalina Schliebener Muñoz, and Gladys Nilsson, on view through November 11. With a more historical slant, Eastman Johnson and Maine, on view through December 8, highlights the works of this Maine native and iconic nineteenth century American painter. With these exhibits and more, special events and educational programs, Colby College Museum of Art is a must-see stop in the Maine art scene.
Maine Art Gallery—Wiscasset
Maine Art Gallery is housed in an 1807 National Historic Register building in a neighborhood just off Route 1. The Gallery’s season features six exciting exhibits of local and regional contemporary art on six-week rotations. Paint It! Wiscasset, a plein air exhibition, and Drawn to Maine, a contemporary drawing and printmaking exhibition, are both on view through July 21. The annual members show Made in Maine is on view from July 25 to September 9, featuring art from current Maine artists offered at varied pricing. In the fall, Nocturne will be on view from September 12 to October 20. In addition to these shows, Maine Art Gallery also hosts monthly Artwalk evenings, classes, artist talks, and opening receptions with live music and food on the first Saturday of each exhibit.
