Pam Cabañas

A solo show of recent work spanning a variety of mediums by Friendship artist Pam Cabañas is the first of the summer season’s offerings at Hedgerow Gallery.

Paintings and drawings included in the exhibition are large-scale, diptych shorescapes that represent a departure for the artist.

“Working on a larger scale is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Cabañas says, “but up until now I’ve held back because, you know, Maine has small walls!”

Deciding to work at a larger scale — some pieces measure 5- by 5-feet — has really been a matter of heart, Cabañas says, a way to get more fully immersed in the experience of the coast and islands she explores in her 14-foot skiff in and around the tip of the Friendship peninsula.

“I find that your iconic Maine imagery and landscape is all here in Friendship, especially out on the islands, where I do a lot of plein-air painting.”

Most of the paintings at the Hedgerow Gallery exhibit originated as plein-air pieces and then were finished in the studio.

“When I get the work back in the studio, I begin to see it as experiential, rather than simply as a picture of what I saw on a particular day.”

Adding that experiential element, Cabañas explains, involves “a quality of light, of values and, more than anything, movement.” The paintings become more atmospheric, she says. “I do photograph a lot out there, and I do use photographs for reference when I need them, but it is also pretty hilarious sometimes to see the photograph and to see the painting because they often have very little to do with each other.”

“Island Road,” by Pam Cabañas.

Cabañas began using the diptych format for her larger work, with a single image being split horizontally into two uneven sections, the larger surmounting the smaller, as a way to scale up her work without resulting in a physically unwieldy object.

More moderate-sized work in water color, ink and acrylic — along with Cabañas’ favorite medium, charcoal — are also included in the show.

Cabañas’ Hedgerow Gallery show runs from July 2 through 11. An artist reception will be held outside on the pergola deck and in the surrounding gardens at the gallery from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 5.

COVID-19 protocols will be followed. The gallery is closed July 6 and 7. Hedgerow Gallery is at 8 Ridge Road in the Martinsville section of the St. George peninsula, between Tenants Harbor and Port Clyde.

For more information on Cabañas’ show, go to hedgerowdesign.com. For more information on her work, go to www.pamcabanas.com.