The salt air of Maine’s coast has long inspired artists to capture its ever-changing moods, and this spring, Wiscasset Bay Gallery transforms that inspiration into a compelling narrative spanning three centuries. “Spring Arrivals – Three Centuries of American and European Art” opens May 24, marking the gallery’s impressive 41st season with a collection that reads like a masterclass in artistic evolution.
What makes this exhibition particularly fascinating is its ability to weave together disparate artistic movements into a cohesive story of place and perception. The American coastal works anchor the show with William Lester Stevens’ vibrant harbor scene, where rich reds and oranges dance against the blues and greens of New England waters. Stevens, who was exhibiting at the National Academy of Design by age eighteen, brings the confident brushwork of someone who understood both technique and emotion.
The Maine contingent offers a modernist counterpoint that speaks to the state’s role as an artistic laboratory. William Zorach and his daughter Dahlov Ipcar represent a fascinating artistic dynasty, with Ipcar’s “Fox and Two Geese” capturing that split-second tension between predator and prey with remarkable dynamism. Meanwhile, the Abstract Expressionist interpretations by Morris Shulman and Yolanda Fusco transform Monhegan Island into bursts of color and movement, proving that even the most remote locations can serve as conduits for avant-garde expression.
The European selections add sophisticated urban counterpoints, with Henri Grenier’s bustling Saint-Germain-des-Prés street scenes offering viewers a glimpse of Parisian elegance rendered in meticulous detail. These works create an intriguing dialogue between the raw beauty of Maine’s coast and the cultivated sophistication of European city life.
Keith Oehmig’s contemporary “Island Houses” serves as a bridge between past and present, his thick brushstrokes capturing September’s dramatic skies over Monhegan with an immediacy that honors both plein-air tradition and contemporary boldness.
The exhibition runs through June 2.
Wiscasset Bay Gallery is at 75 Main St., Wiscasset. Call 207-882-7682, email info@wiscassetbaygallery.com, or go to www.wiscassetbaygallery.com for more information.
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.