Autumn, with its waning light, is a perfect time to display fine art that portrays evening or night. For its last exhibition of the 2024 season, the Maine Art Gallery chose autumn to present the work of more than 55 current Maine artists and several of their predecessors who set about to capture the magical realm of nocturne.
Nocturne is a theme that American artists, influenced by James McNeil Whistler’s nocturne series, began exploring in the late 1800s. Depicting the world at night is not only about what you see; it is also about what is obscure, represented in a tonal spectrum ranging from stark to subdued to suppressed.
This exhibition also explores the work of Maine’s photographer poet, Kosti Ruahomaa, whose often surreal, and occasionally abstract, nighttime images illustrate what Andrew Wyeth–a close friend of the photographer–once characterized as “being present at some intimate moment caught at the instant of revelation.” The Penobscot Marine Museum was generous with help and access to their photographic archives.
Nocturne runs from September 12 to October 20. A reception with live music by Jud Caswell will be held on Saturday, September 14, 5-7 pm.
The gallery thanks season sponsor Sherri Dunbar of Tim Dunham Realty, capital sponsor, Islebrook Villages at Wiscasset, and Nocturne exhibit sponsor J. Edward Knight Insurance.
A nonprofit organization, the Maine Art Gallery is dedicated to the advancement and preservation of the visual, fine and applied arts through exhibitions, lectures, demonstrations and educational programs for children and adults since 1958. More information can be found at www.maineartgallerywiscasset.org and on Facebook at Maine Art Gallery Wiscasset.
The gallery is located at 15 Warren Street, Wiscasset, with free on-street parking. From the north on Route 1, turn right onto Federal Street (Rt. 218) then left onto Warren Street. From the south on Route 1, turn left onto Federal Street, then left onto Warren Street. From Main Street shops, it’s an easy 8-minute walk.
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“Night Full of Murmerings, Kathryn Shagas
