Pemaquid Art Gallery is open for the season

Pemaquid Art Gallery is now open daily from 10 a.m. to 5  p.m. through the summer until Indigenous People’s Day. COVID precautions are in place.

The Pemaquid Group of Artists’ yearly exhibit is one of the longest continuous art exhibitions in Maine. The vision for this group began in early summer of 1928 with Frederick Detwiller, a New York artist and Pemaquid summer resident. Detwiller was impressed with the paintings of several local fishermen and believed their work should be seen by the public. The fishermen and other local residents, encouraged by his support and praise, banded together to form what would become the Pemaquid Group of Artists.

Detwiller’s idea took full form in July 1928 when the first exhibition of the fishermen and local residents was organized in a gallery established in the Hall over the Clifton Hanna Garage in New Harbor. Five artists —  Simon Blaisdell, Frederick Detwiller, Parker Gamage, Dr. William Harvey and Guy H. Thompson — exhibited work. Other members joining the original group included Milfred Bowman, George Knipe and Guy Martin.

After four years at Hanna’s Garage, the exhibitions were held at various locations in the community, including the Willing Workers Hall, the Knights of Pythias Hall, a bowling alley in the Surf Casino, rooms over the New Harbor barbershop and The Mavooshen Elementary School.  From 1956 to 1959, artwork was displayed at the lightkeeper’s house at Pemaquid Point.

The building that now houses the Pemaquid Art Gallery was constructed in 1960 through the joint support of the artists’ group and the Town of Bristol. The architects, Alfred and Priscilla Dalmas, were also artists in the group. Prominent artist and past president of the Pemaquid Group of Artists Gene Klebe led efforts for construction of the gallery so artists would have a permanent place to display their work.

The long-standing tradition of exhibiting works by local Pemaquid Peninsula resident artists was altered somewhat in 2017 when the PAG Board decided to open membership to resident artists in all of Lincoln County. Once juried in, artists become lifetime members. While all of the members are residents of Lincoln County, much of their work has been shown in national and international forums.

Each artist has an individual panel or space for his or her work. In addition, there are numerous unframed and matted artworks. New work is displayed frequently. As a nonprofit, the Pemaquid Group of Artists maintains and runs the gallery through commissions, patron donations and membership fees. The group also provides financial aid each year to several visual arts programs, as well as a museum pass to the Portland Museum of Art through the generosity of gallery patrons and artist donated paintings.

For more information, call 207-677-2752 or visit www.pemaquidartgallery.com.