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Maine’s Oldest Artists Group Elects New Leaders for 2024

David Estey - UMVA President Belfast painter David Estey, Harpswell painter Joanne Tarlin and retired Belfast entrepreneur John Patrick “Pat” Mullen have been elected as President, Vice President and Treasurer, respectively, of the Union of Maine Visual Artists (UMVA).   Estey and Tarlin are leading the board of directors toward a new emphasis on “Artists Helping Artists,” through networking gatherings, exhibitions, critiques, mentoring, studio visits and workshops.   UMVA is a 48-year-old nonprofit that advocates for the arts and artists in Maine to support the common good. It produces the Maine Masters series seen on MPBN, the online quarterly Maine Arts Journal, Artists’ Rapid Response Team! posters and banners for public causes, and LumenARRT! messages for worthy nonprofits projected on public buildings in Portland and other places. UMVA was Instrumental in passing the Maine Percent for Art Program required in all new State buildings and The Artist’s Estate Law that allows payment
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UMVA Midcoast and Camden Public Library Present a Workshop for Artists

Local artists and the public are invited to the Explosion Book Seminar by UMVA artist Linda Leach on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 from 11 am to 2 pm at the Camden Public Library, 55 Main St., Camden, ME.   To register for this workshop, please contact Linda Leach at studio@lindaleachdesigns.com by October 25th. There is a $10 materials fee.   An “explosion book” is a handmade small square book, which “explodes” into a series of square and triangular pages when you open it up. Leach has been a teaching and exhibiting artist for over 26 years in the Midcoast area.   She finds that when teaching, she also learns much in the process herself.   She has received several awards and has been published in a number of art magazines in recognition of her new polymer discoveries.   She has been fortunate to be a presenter at several polymer clay retreats.   Creating new avenues to share ideas and cultivate artistic interest is her goal for the future while having fun in the process. UMVA, founded
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Water - November Member show at UMVA Portland Gallery

Over 20 artists are involved in “Water”, the current membership show at the UMVA Art gallery inside the Portland Media Center, 516 Congress St. in Portland until November 24 th .   Gallery hours with artists there are: Friday 5pm - 8pm; Saturday 1pm - 4pm; Sunday 2pm - 5pm.  The artists were asked to think about all the complexities of water in that it can be cleansing but also can carry contaminates and micro-plastics.  Water is life-giving, but can also cause destruction. UMVA member, Dr. Susan Smith, curated the show.  She is the coordinator/faculty for the Intermedia MFA program at the University of Maine, Orono, and a practicing artist.  Smith was also the former director for the Orono campus Lord Hall Gallery.  The participating artists are from Portland, Biddeford, Cumberland, Falmouth, Westbrook, Bowdoinham , Belfast , Northport , Orrs Island and Kennebunkport. UMVA, founded in 1975, is a non-profit organization that promotes and advocates for the visual arts, artists, and
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4 x 6 Show in Blue Hill November 2023

  Union of Maine Visual Artists - UMVA Midcoast Presents Invitational Exhibit in Blue Hill   “4 x 6” is the name of the exhibit featuring 4 pieces of work by 6 artists chosen by Janelle Delicata opening November 1, 2023 at the Blue Hill Public Library, 5 Parker Point Rd, Blue Hill.   The artists are Kelly Desrosiers (Unity), Janelle Delicata (Blue Hill), Jane Gilbert (Orland), Elisabeth Goodridge (Appleton), Marjorie Strauss (Rockland) and Deb Vendetti (Hope). The show runs from November 1 through November 30.    Library hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 9 am to 6 pm, Thursday 9 am to 8 pm and Saturday 9 am to 5 pm.   For more information contact the Blue Hill Public Library at 207-374-5515 or Janelle Delicata at 207-944-8822. Watercolor and ink landscapes that find inspiration in the natural world are where Desrosiers’ art lies.   She says “I have spent many years absorbing the experiences and knowledge that I now attempt to express through my art.” Her detailed an
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Alight on the Rocky Shores Opens in October at UMVA Gallery

  Portland Maine - Three artists, Judith Greene-Janse, Joanne Tarlin, and Ann Tracy, who have lived across the US and now are relocated to coastal towns in Maine, exhibit paintings and mixed media artwork in "Alight on the Rocky Shores: This is not an exhibition of lighthouses".   The exhibit opens Friday, October 6th with an artists’ reception from 5 to 8 pm at the UMVA Gallery, inside the Portland Media Center, 516 Congress St., Portland, Maine and continue on Fridays (4 to 8 pm) and Saturdays (1 to 4 pm) until October 28, 2023.   An artists’ talk is set for Saturday, Oct 21 st at 2 pm. Kayak under Cliff by Judith Greene-Janse 22 x 16" Greene-Janse, Tarlin and Tracy have lived along both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans prior to alighting on the Maine’s rocky shores. These artists find sublime qualities in its elements that speak to them personally and universally.  Like a lighthouse providing a safe beacon in the fog, the coast of Maine attracted their attention and g
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Exploring Nature, the Feminine and Spirituality at UMVA Gallery

  Patsea Cobb - Moon Mother , acrylic on board. The Union of Maine Visual Artists presents “The Divine Feminine,” a group show at the UMVA Gallery, 516 Congress St., Portland Maine.   Artists are Patsea Cobb, Roberta March, Christine Morgan, Ellen O’Donnell, Judy O’Donnell, Gary Perlmutter, and Rhonda Pearle.   These seven artists interpret themes such as: paying tribute to Gaia, the Goddess of Earth, and mother of life and all its natural beauty; exploring female energy in balance with male energy; and, a reach for divine enlightenment, compassion and love through the ever present beauty in nature and as expressed through the grace of the female form.   An Artists’ Reception is scheduled for the First Friday art walk, September 1, from 4 to 8 pm.   This event is free and open to the public.   Gallery hours will be Fridays from 4 to 8 pm, Saturdays from 1 to 4pm, and most Sundays from 1 to 4pm.   The show continues to September 29 th . Patsea Cobb says when her hand is on a paintbrus
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Waterways Continues in Damariscotta

The Midcoast Chapter of the Union of Maine Visual Artists presents “Waterways,” a dynamic curated collection of artworks celebrating water at the Central Lincoln County YMCA, 525 Main St., Damariscotta continues to Sept 15th, 2023.  Artists in this show include: Sett Balise, Chris Covert, Bernadette De Cesare, Jean Kigel, Linda Leach, Arlene Jurewicz Leighton, Sandy Olson, Linda Packard, Rachel Robbins, Liv Kristin Robinson, Emily Sabino, Marcia Sewell, Kathryn Shagas, Ann Tracy, and Leslie Woods. The exhibit, juried by Matthew Barter of the Barter Art House Gallery, includes representational waterscapes with a twist; fantasy marine creatures; crashing waves, prayers for rain, buried treasure, ghosts and more. This show will delight art lovers, nature enthusiasts, and daydreamers who wonder what lies at the bottom of the ocean. For Rachel Robbins, while she hopes to beautify the world around her, she also attempts, with her artwork, to help increase understanding about the neurodiv
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