On First Friday, July 1, 2016 from 5 – 8 pm, Carver Hill Gallery, 338 Main Street in Rockland, Maine, will open a street level solo exhibition featuring long time gallery artist Dianne Schelble. The exhibit is titled “Market Day at Chase’s Daily” and will show the paintings Schelble has been working on for two years. The work was inspired by the bounty of local farmers Penny and Addison Chase, their daughters Phoebe and Meg, as well as Meg’s partner, Freddy Lafage, from their family farm in Freedom. If the name Freedom Farmers hadn’t been taken already by a medical marijuana delivery service in California, it might be appropriate here. Our favorite quote on their website is, “For us, the big picture is a matrix of social and environmental concerns underlined by a cussed pursuit of quality in everything we do”. Chase’s Daily, which opened exactly 16 years before this opening date, is now a thriving bakery, produce market, and restaurant. It is a favorite in Maine, and folks looking for fresh come from near and far to meet, greet, eat and buy produce and flowers. It is a hub in the community, and Dianne Schelble loves Chase’s Daily. Her face lights up when she speaks of it.
The light that filters through Chase’s large Main Street windows illuminates the space with a golden glow, making the colors of the flowers and crispy harvest go POP. Bringing in the produce is an exciting event to see, and if you’re hungry, be prepared to fill the back of your car. After many years of looking forward to this parade of color, and marveling at its beauty, Dianne decided to paint a series of works based on it. She loves light…..and color…..and people. Not to mention gardens, food, and sharing meals. Oh, and art.
Arriving in the state long before Maine’s population grew to where it is today, and not too different from the urban escapee homesteaders a generation ahead of her, Dianne and her husband Paul built a light filled home in rural Liberty, Maine, where she raised four children. She is a modest person who is constantly creating – she cooks as well as she paints and her space is filled with plants, beautiful works of art and other handmade items. Her early career included a successful run in illustration and architectural renderings, but her true love remains painting.
Dianne received her BA from the University Of Michigan School Of Art. She has been painting for over 40 years. Much of her career was spent painting in watercolor, and she attributes much of her development to Hudson River Valley Art Workshops faculty member and painter Skip Lawrence, with whom she has studied for nearly 16 years. Her paintings are vibrant works with generously applied paint, creating a unique look in watercolor and gouache resembling, from afar, a palette knife technique. But for this series, she switched gears and started painting on panels after inheriting a hoard of high quality acrylics. The resulting paintings really resonated with her, and she didn’t have to separate the viewer from the surface with glass – which she never really liked to do. The appearance of the paintings are consistent with her works on paper – energetic and bold with intriguing light.
In her words, “The best artistic expressions arise out of a desire to relate to the feelings that one has for a person, object or situation. This group of paintings is an expression of my wonderment and fascination with the truly spectacular daily presentation of produce by the Chase family and workers of Chase’s Daily Restaurant in Belfast, Maine. My husband Paul and I are gardeners and yet we never even remotely achieve the quality of their produce. After many years of standing around waiting for the truck, and watching in awe as tubs and boxes of their successes are set about the room, I decided to see if I could capture some of my feelings and observations in paint. Through this process I discovered that presenting the people and their enthusiasm was just as important to these paintings as the beauty and abundance of the produce itself. Showing people enjoying this beauty with friends and neighbors was the perfect way to present this bounty. Hopefully I have accomplished that.”
“Market Day at Chase’s Daily” runs through Monday, August 1, 2016.
For More Information:
http://www.carverhillgallery.com
338 Main Street
Rockland, Maine 04841
(207)594-7745
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