The Spirit of Maine

When one thinks of Maine, images drawn from memory and photographs often appear: rich, navy Atlantic Ocean sparring with imposing grey rock it carved itself; piercing blue skies with understated clouds; towering pine trees in varying hues of hunter green that remain verdant come summer or snow. This is, of course, Maine, and it is beautiful, simple, and familiar. Each of the artists in this show have seen, understood, and loved this Maine; after all, artists from all backgrounds have found inspiration in Maine’s majestic landscapes. But they have also found more in each wave, tree, and mountain. There is a reason the place itself, and not simply its idea or image, has kept them coming back. These artists ask you to look again, beyond literal colors and shapes, to the way Maine and its people move and feel. N.C. Wyeth captures the infinite summer breeze in Wash Day, and turns a moment of chore into one of bliss. Modernists John Marin and Marsden Hartley drew out the purple, orange, and pink possibilities each moment in Maine holds. They found new ways to render classic, seemingly-unchangeable, shapes. They saw beyond the literal to the essence, and summarized their views in fewer brush strokes and bolder colors. In Richard Estes’s astonishing details, he shows us how each blade of grass and ripple of ocean contribute to the moments that take our breath away. The artists in this presentation have interpreted these hallmark features in their own distinct ways, and in doing so, challenge us to see beyond the literal and embrace the wondrous spirit of Maine captured in each stroke and color.