
Maine Farmland Trust’s new virtual exhibit, “A Reflection on Water,” explores the relationships that exist between humans and the precious resource, water. This show runs from Oct. 13 through Jan. 8 and includes work from 17 artists that show the diverse connections to this elemental and shape-shifting substance. With evocative multi-media, this exhibit explores the relationships that exist between humans and this essential resource and considers current issues regarding water as a vital component of agriculture and every ecosystem.
A macro color photograph by Emily Candler Davis and mixed-media paintings by Kathryn Shagas capture swift-moving water to create abstract images.
Sharon Yates and Carol L. Douglas rendered scenic oil paintings of gathering fog, farm ponds and places the land meets the water, while Leslie Harris’ paintings feature dreamlike figurative work of women wading in water in the moonlight.
The mixed-media paintings of Peter Walls and a monoprint by Julie Crane juxtapose beautifully in the underwater worlds of fish, while Julie’s reduction woodcut print of an otter complements Sara Gagan’s mixed-media collage of a blue heron. Jude Valentine’s digital prints are a striking interpretation of the elemental forms of water. Shana Rowe Jackson’s detailed colored pencil drawings depict shimmering morning dew on apples, blueberries, and grass stems.
Andre Benoit Jr. fashioned water scenes of stream run-off and reflecting moon cycles with painted wooden assemblages. Wonderfully complex paper cut and mixed-media images created by Mj Viano Crowe seem to tell mythological stories of the ocean. Mango Johnstone’s Nature Mandala features exquisite shells and sea horses, and Tracey Cockrell’s unique electronic speakers, fashioned of kelp, produce field recorded sounds of the shoreline.
“Upstream to Downstream: In Our Bloodstreams” is a digital video produced by ecological artist Krisanne Baker that illustrates how what we do upstream effects what happens downstream.
In addition, the full-color photographs of Bridget Besaw and Lily Piel, who have worked on documentary projects with MFT over the years, are showcased on the gallery web page to illustrate some of the many ways water is essential in agriculture, from growing crops to watering livestock.
There will be a virtual opening reception from 5 to 6 p.m. Nov. 20, with talks by the artists, including Krisanne Baker, a multimedia ecological artist whose work focuses on water quality, and Carol L. Douglas, a mid-coast plein-air, landscape and figure painter and instructor who writes a top-ranked art blog.
To attend, RSVP at mainefarmlandtrust.org/artist-talks-a-reflection-on-water for the Zoom link.
The Art Box — a beloved vintage vending machine stocked with original small-format artwork by local artists — has found a new home at Waterfall Arts in Belfast after more than a decade on the Blue Hill peninsula. The project was founded by Michele Levesque, who was inspired by Art-O-Mat machines she encountered around the […]
Jean Kigel Studio + Gallery in Waldoboro will loan paintings to “Emotional Currents: Between Survival and Freedom,” an exhibition opening June 19 at Open House of History — the Waldoboro Custom House — at 908 Main St. The show runs through Aug. 9. Curated by Michael Amico, the exhibition explores how the relationship between ocean […]
Turtle Gallery in Deer Isle opened its 44th season May 28 with an opening show on view through July 5. The gallery’s first featured exhibition brings together Galen Davis, Marjorie Glick, Vaino Kola and Susan Webster, with works ranging from Davis’s vibrant, joyful landscapes and Glick’s luminous large-scale watercolor gardens and coastal scenes to Kola’s […]
Triangle Gallery in Rockland is celebrating the opening of two new shows today, June 5, during the Rockland First Friday Art Walk. “The Black & White Show” brings together bold black and white work by Triangle Gallery artists and runs through June 20. Upstairs through June 28 is “Interiors/Exteriors (the Nature of Nature),” a solo […]
The Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland is celebrating the opening of its Arts@theIntersection Student Exhibition today, June 5, with a free community event from 5 to 7 p.m. as part of First Fridays at the Farnsworth. The exhibition will remain on view through spring 2027. The show features work by four classrooms across four Maine […]
Maine Art Gallery in Wiscasset will open “Song of the Wild,” an exhibition celebrating Maine’s wild landscapes, flora and fauna, June 18 through July 26. An opening reception with the artists will be held June 20 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., featuring a musical presentation by The Flying Seeds, a Maine-based duo. The exhibition and […]
The Deer Isle Artists Association opened its 2026 summer season with “New Beginnings,” a group show on view through June 14 at the DIAA Gallery in Deer Isle Village. A reception with the artists was held May 29. The exhibition features painting, drawing, metal, weaving, mixed media collage and ceramics by Cynthia Bourque Simonds, Ethan […]
Landing Gallery in Rockland opens “Fire and Ice,” new paintings by Sarah Faragher, today, June 5, with an opening reception during the First Friday Art Walk from 4 to 8 p.m. The show runs through June 28. Faragher, a midcoast Maine painter known for her deep engagement with the coastal landscape, draws on both direct […]
The Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockland opened its summer season May 23 with four new exhibitions and a reception in the Marilyn Moss Rockefeller Lobby. Bianca Beck presents “Eyes,” featuring new works that refuse the distinction between painting and sculpture — abstract, figure-suggesting forms in papier-mâché covered in DayGlo and jewel-toned colors that […]
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