‘Different Shores’ reveals rhythm in Joanne Tarlin’s art

The paintings of Joanne Tarlin hum with a rhythm that forms a three-part harmony along with nature and poetry. Tarlin’s new exhibition, “Different Shores,” will open at Jackson Memorial Library in Tenants Harbor with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Aug. 7. The paintings will remain on display in the Community Room through the end of the month.

“The paintings created for this show are reflections of how I view the world: beautiful, sublime, threatening, and filled with controversies and disagreements,” Tarlin said.

“Hold On” is one of those paintings. It shows a wave bursting into a spray of mist and foam as it crashes against a scrub-covered outcropping. Tarlin created the effect by mimicking her subject. The layered, almost rhythmic application of brushstrokes captures the swirling tidal energy.

Such scenes are drawn from experience. Tarlin’s home in Harpswell sits on a peninsula. The ocean is only a short walk in any direction through a landscape covered in trees, granite, brush and wild roses. Tarlin internalized not only the visuals around her, but also the scent of salt on the breeze and the never-ending pulse of seawater meeting land.

A love of world travel also informs Tarlin’s art. Memories are still fresh from a recent trip to the westernmost tip of England, where she walked the trails along Land’s End. The coastline, with its soaring sedimentary cliffs and sprawling moorlands, offered a contrast to Maine’s familiar geography. Earlier visits to Cuba, France, Morocco, Spain and Vietnam continue to supply Tarlin with inspiration.

Her travels will be the focus of a Tea and Talk at the library from 2 to 4 p.m. Aug. 26. The event will be a discussion, not a speech. Tarlin wants to hear about the far-flung places guests have visited and discuss how interactions across cultural lines have enriched their lives. With the exhibition all around them, visitors can see how Tarlin’s experiences abroad became part of her artistic language.

“These works leave me expectant, feeling recognition and wonder at the same time,” said Adrienne Berg, director of Jackson Memorial Library. “It’s the kind of art I want to talk about, and find out what other people see, think and feel.”

The library is a fitting exhibition space, since the drumbeat of coastal life that runs through Tarlin’s work translates especially well into the meter and cadence of poetry. Tarlin has high praise for the work of contemporary Maine poet Betsy Sholl. Another favorite is 19th-century French poet Charles Baudelaire, who bridged the gap between the Romantic and Decadent movements. His talent for translating pain into beauty resonates with Tarlin.

“I too am in love and tormented,” Tarlin said. “I love life but fear for our future.”

Tarlin pays tribute to Baudelaire through her painting “The rain and the winds wrought such havoc and harm.” The quote is from Baudelaire’s poem “The Enemy.” Tarlin matched his emotional intensity with her dramatic depiction of a storm-tossed thicket. Flowers, brambles, berries and vines tangle into each other across a six-foot length of canvas. Tarlin renders their shoots and stems in bold, stabbing slashes of color.

The force behind her brushstrokes is no poetic put-on. Tarlin makes art from her emotions, and they have been roiling in a political environment that runs counter to many of her deeply held principles. It is another expression of rhythm, like a vein behind the eyes that pulses with adrenaline during moments of anger.

Beyond “Different Shores,” Tarlin is known throughout New England, where her paintings can be found in museum, corporate and private collections. The Maine Jewish Museum recently hosted an exhibition of her work, and she is regularly featured at Bayview Gallery in Brunswick. As president of the Union of Maine Visual Artists, Tarlin helps fellow artists help each other and gain strength in community.

Jackson Memorial Library is at 71 Main St., Tenants Harbor.