Art Space Gallery September 1st Opening

Art Space Gallery invites you to the September “Arts in Rockland” first Friday art walk on September 1st.  Our front room features the work of Roger Barry, Janalee Welch, Joan Wright, and Melissa Post van der Burg. Additionally, there are many new works by our 15 other gallery artists. Please stop by and join us for wine, refreshments, and meet our artists on Friday, September 1st, from 5 to 8 pm.

Roger Barry of Edgecomb is a sculptor artisan who makes reliquaries from native hardwoods, many with secret locks. Heavily carved and beautifully finished, each is designed to hold precious personal items or enhance decor. Roger also creates sculptures and dreamlike tree houses that light up and draw starry nights on ceilings.“Most of my wood stock is milled from downed trees. Each one has its unique character and the sculpture that unfolds must reflect and honor it. Whether formal or whimsical, functional or decorative, all my pieces invite a personal encounter with the wood.”

Janalee Welch of Farmington uses paper, both bits of the old and those she has decorated, painted, printed, or rusted together with bits and pieces of found objects to express her ongoing interest in how these materials work together in collage. Her work is inspired by her love of the natural world that was her playground as a child and her subject as a classroom teacher. “I love the rocks of the Maine coast, and I am inspired by their shapes, colors, conglomerate components, their history and their formation.” Janalee’s collages employ reminiscences of nature using simplicity and order; and pattern and symmetry as design elements, creating the sense of serenity and stability that she takes from nature.

Joan Wright of Rockland continues her exploration of the abstraction of reflections in water as well as capturing the many moods of her favorite island in the fog and out. Her exhibition will include both abstract and land/water scapes around Vinalhaven. Joan, who has been coming to Vinalhaven for over 35 years, reveals the spirit of the coast in her photography. “Water fascinates me. Its beauty and destructive power. It’s ability to reflect, distort, to change itself into what we perceive as another medium.”  

Melissa Post van der Burg of Augusta will be featuring a new set of watercolor paintings. She works with the medium as if it were oil, creating rich, colorful and soulful paintings.  Her work, featuring images of Maine, has won awards across the country and is capturing the attention of many collectors. “Most of my work is figurative, with a narrative quality. I often use friends and family members as models–this is a venerable tradition dating back to the great renaissance painters. When I have a figure in front of me that I know very well, it leaves me free to focus on the story–what the painting is about.”

Art Space Gallery is located at 342 Main Street across from the Strand Theater in Rockland.  The gallery features works by nineteen artists who work in various media and genres.  September hours are Monday through Saturday 10 am to 6 pm and Sundays 1 pm to 4pm.  Visit our website for more information at www.artspacemaine.com or join us on Facebook for up to date gallery news.