As winter’s hush gives way to the vibrant crescendo of color and growth, “Explosive Spring” opens at the Kittery Art Association, celebrating the irresistible surge of life that defines New England’s most electric season. On view from May 29 through June 22, the group exhibition captures spring’s revitalizing energy through a dynamic collection of works that pulse with bold palettes, gestural strokes and the irresistible textures of renewal.
An opening reception was held on June 1.
Situated in the heart of Kittery Foreside, the Kittery Art Association has long been a home for Seacoast artists and art lovers. This latest exhibition is no exception, offering a vivid expression of the season’s raw vitality and the stirring sense of rebirth that follows winter’s stillness.
“Explosive Spring” is more than a seasonal tribute — it’s a call to notice the subtle and sweeping changes all around us, to revel in the shifting light, and to lean into the promise of growth.
Also on view are works by Spotlight Artist Christine Duprez-Young, whose bold explorations in color and scale have drawn inspiration from her life along the coast and in the mountains of New England. A self-taught artist who transitioned from a successful career in interior design, Duprez-Young first turned to pastels for their rich immediacy before expanding into oil and mixed media on larger canvases. Her paintings range from local seascapes and still lifes to florals rendered in lush, saturated hues — a visual diary of a life steeped in the natural world.
When the pandemic shuttered much of daily life, she found grounding and creative fuel in her own garden. Through macro photography, she honed her attention to detail and deepened her artistic relationship with flora and fauna, cultivating a new body of work that is as intimate as it is expansive. These works bring viewers into close conversation with the textures and colors that surround us, offering a glimpse of the world at once magnified and deeply personal.
The Kittery Art Association is at 2 Walker St., Kittery. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday. Learn more at www.kitteryartassociation.org, or call 207-451-9384.
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