CRAFT Gallery opens “Table Matters” on Friday, July 7. The show is dedicated to work created for utilitarian use in the presentation of food and also as non-utilitarian objects of artistic value, beauty and fantasy. The two featured artists share their artistic views on this subject in non-utilitarian ways.
Artist/sculptor Jacques Vesery’s work is nature-based, concerned with harmony, balance and form. His teapots ad spoons, hand carved in exotic woods, colored and gilded, become precious objects of art. His subjects suggest utility but are not intended for that purpose. The smallness in scale and richness in detail and finish express fantasy.
Artist Lissa Hunter’s charcoal drawings of spoons transcend their original purpose . They recall a time of formality when there was a a spoon for many purposes: tea, soup, grapefruit, etc. Her large scale drawings illustrate what happens during the creative process as she explores her subjects and transforms them from little importance as implements for use to fantasies of her imagination.
Both artists have impressive credentials. Portland artist Lissa Hunter’s work is in the permanent collections of The Museum of Arts and Design in New York and The Renwick/Smithsonian in Washington D.C. She has taught at Haystack and is a consistent exhibitor at CRAFT. Jacques Vesery, from Damariscotta, is a Maine Arts Commission Fellow. His work Is in the collections of The Yale University Art Gallery and The Carnegie Museum. He has lectured widely on his design concepts. This is his first exhibit at CRAFT
Other “table Matters” artists create utilitarian objects that are meant for use at the table. Wood carver Danielle Rose Byrd, potter Autumn Cipala, metalsmith Erica Moody and weaver Amy Smith show teapots and teacups, copper and brass spoons and chopsticks, placemats and table runners and hand carved birch bowls. CRAFT Gallery is located in the courtyard at 12 Elm Street in Rockland. Wind Ensemble will perform classical music in the courtyard during the evening of the July 7 First Friday Artwalk. For more information please call 207-594-0167 and visit www.craftonelm.com
Dowling Walsh Gallery in Rockland is featuring “IDK,” an exhibition of paintings by Tollef Runquist that explores the intersection of personal reflection, archetypes, fantasy and play. Runquist’s paintings combine images and symbols drawn from lived experience, emotional landscapes and cultural influences, creating an intuitive dialogue between imagery and meaning. “My work explores a space where […]
Meetinghouse Arts in Freeport is presenting a full schedule of fall exhibitions and performances, including a members show, a collaborative exhibition by longtime artist friends Tim Sample and Linda Rowell-Kelley and several concerts. The gallery’s fall members exhibition, “Nature’s Palette: Art Inspired by the Season,” will remain on view through Oct. 18. Featuring paintings, drawings, […]
Local Color Gallery in Belfast will feature printmaker, collage artist and sculptor Jeff Wahlstrom from Oct. 19 to Nov. 22. An Art Walk reception will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 23, with an artist talk at 5 p.m. Based in Bangor, Wahlstrom creates block prints and watercolor collages inspired by the natural […]
Women Eco Artists Dialog (WEAD), based in Berkeley, California, is accepting submissions for its 2027 members exhibition, “Prototyping Futures of Making: Water, Data, and Living Systems.” The exhibition will explore the relationships among water, data, ecological systems and emerging technologies, asking how artists can engage with living systems as sites of collaboration, construction and consequence. […]
Triangle Gallery in Rockland is presenting three exhibitions through Oct. 31, including an extended solo exhibition by Carter Wentworth, a group fiber arts show and a fall exhibition of work by gallery artists. Wentworth’s “Sound of Rain Crossing the Lake” will remain on view in the upstairs gallery through the end of October. “Interwoven,” a […]
Waterfall Arts in Belfast will present “Found in Translation,” a mixed-media exhibition featuring Maine artists Deborah Jellison, JoAnne Houlsen and John LeBlanc, from Oct. 23 to Nov. 28. An opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 23. The exhibition brings together three artist friends whose work explores familiar Maine landscapes, objects […]
Courthouse Gallery Fine Art in Ellsworth is presenting “Form Meets Surface,” an exhibition highlighting porcelain ceramics by potter Mark Bell and collaborative works created with painter William Irvine. The artists, both established in their respective fields, have worked together since 2015 to create porcelain vases and plates that combine Bell’s ceramic forms with Irvine’s painted […]
Barn Gallery in Ogunquit concluded its 2026 exhibition season Oct. 12, but the venue will continue to welcome visitors for two performances in the 19th annual Elizabeth Dunaway Burnham Piano Festival. Pianist, composer and vocalist Zahili Zamora will return to Ogunquit with her Afro Cuban Jazz Trio for a performance from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. […]
The Brunswick Guild Fine Craft Show will return to the historic Fort Andross Mill in Brunswick on Oct. 24 and 25, celebrating its 10th season with work by 40 juried Maine craft artists. Presented by Shop Maine Craft, the indoor show will feature basketry, ceramics, decorative and wearable fiber art, furniture, glass, jewelry, mixed media, […]
Receive news and information about Maine artists and events delivered right to your inbox.