Artist Ed Nadeau taps into his Franco-American heritage and a sense of Maine to create stories of life lived near the edge. In the spectrum of Maine artists, Nadeau is something of a rarity: a narrative painter who mixes fact and fiction. Many of his canvases conjure stories, some drawn from family and personal experiences, others “ripped from the headlines.”
Painter Joel Babb is a consummate realist. His landscapes of Boston, sometimes based on photographs and sketches made from the air or tall buildings, are considered among the finest achievements of their kind. In recent years, he has turned this same attention to detail onto natural settings in Maine.
The 2014-2015 Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland’s exhibit “The Shakers: From Mount Lebanon to the World,” featured works from the Shaker Museum Mount Lebanon, the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, and several major museums. Some 200 objects were on display, including the minimalist furniture, boxes, and other household items for which the Shakers are renowned.
Celeste Roberge, a Maine sculptor whose work can be found in major collections across the country, explores the world, looking for inspiration in the environment. When she finds it, there is no telling how it will eventually manifest itself in her art, which, while conceptual, also is tangible, engaging, and provocative. Art writer Carl Little takes a look at her work with seaweed.
World-famous photographer Eliot Porter honed his eye in Maine on a Penobscot Bay island owned by his family. His book, Summer Island: Penobscot Country, was published 50 years ago, but the essays and images remain incredibly relevant today.
Maine may not be the first place that comes to mind when thinking of African-American artists. Yet a number of eminent black artists have found a home and inspiration here, including David Driskell.
Artist Sally Brun has met and befriended legendary figures in literature and art. At the same time, she represents that artist one finds in so many corners of Maine. Personal renown is less important than friends and family.
Inspired by a love of Maine and the outdoors, painter Jessica Ives records outdoor experiences—swimmers cutting across the water, a surfer bearing his board toward the waves, snowboarders resting on the slopes, a man casting a fly over a river.
The New-York Historical Society has sent an impressive array of its marine and maritime art holdings, mostly 19th century, to the Portland Museum Art for the 2014-2015 winter season. “The Coast & the Sea: Marine and Maritime Art in America” offers an excellent opportunity to take in a clutch of sea-going artifacts, plus ships, seascapes, and portraits by a top-notch lineup of painters.
