UMVA presents a Dual Exhibition

Portland Works by Tom Bloom

and

A Wicked Tiny History of Playing & Tarot Cards

by Amy Bellezza

The Union of Maine Visual Artists is presenting a Dual Exhibit opening at the gallery, this October 2 through to October 29, 2022. With an Opening Reception Friday, October 7 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, during First Friday Art Walk, at the UMVA Gallery, 516 Congress Street; located in the Portland Media Center’s offices. This exhibit presents two photographers; Tom Bloom and Amy Bellezza.

Portland Works, by Tom Bloom, is an exhibit of portraits of residents of Portland, celebrating the nobility of hard work. All of the personalities in the show work at jobs which most of us pass by without noticing but which are essential to the special character of Portland. Each portrait is shot in Tom Bloom’s studio in Portland, often directly from work.

Tom Bloom is a professional photographer and actor, New York, Boston, Portland. His photography work over 50 years has specialized in theatre and dance performance, theatre portraits, and fine art documentation. His acting career has been on Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional, television and film.

Amy Bellezza exhibits her photograph exhibit titled, A Wicked Tiny History of Playing & Tarot Cards, that explores aspects of the history and design of Playing and Tarot cards. Utilizing her own personal decks, she has come up with a series of still lives that illustrate different times in their evolutions. They interpret magical spells, literature, movies and historical events, all the while explaining their relevance to their time in history. And some are just Art for Art’s sake.

Amy Bellezza is a photographer based in Portland. She is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York. Her work has been shown in New York, Maine, Washington and Italy. She has been primarily exhibiting with and is the Gallery Manager for UMVA.

The UMVA Gallery presents monthly member group, thematic and solo exhibitions and is open during regular operating hours of the Portland Media Center (www.ctn5.org). Monday thru Thursday 10am - 5pm and Friday 5pm - 8pm plus Saturday and Sunday 1pm - 4pm. Tom or Amy will be at the UMVA Gallery every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 1pm – 4pm during October.

The exhibition is free to the public and the Portland Media Center facility and Gallery is ADA accessible. Artworks in UMVA exhibitions are generally for sale through the artist(s) and a portion of each sale benefits the UMVA.

Comments

In Balance/Imbalance

“In Balance/Imbalance” July 3rd to July 29th Reception Friday July 7th 4-8 ‘In Balance/Imbalance at the UMVA Portland Gallery inside the Portland Media Center at 516 Congress Street is a collaboration between the Maine Arts Journal and the Union of Maine Visual Artists Portland Gallery. Over thirty UMVA artists works will be displayed. The artists have interpreted the theme in multiple mediums. All the works are accompanied by text explaining their interpretation. All of the works displayed will be in the Summer edition of the Maine Arts Journal where the concept of how we see our world as “In Balance and “Imbalanced” is furthered explored. Hours The Portland Media Center 10-5 Monday-Thursday Gallery hours with artist docents are scheduled: Friday 4-8 Saturday 1-4 Sunday 2-5* these hours are by chance due to PMC filming schedule

Love/Rage: Goddess

A virtual show at the UMVA Gallery Co-curated by Ann Tracy and Christine Sullivan This show, originally scheduled for May of 2020, was cancelled on the brink of the pandemic. All of the submissions were in, and we were making plans for the First Friday Reception, always a treat but even more so in warm spring weather! Social upheaval was front and center in 2020. In many circumstances, the clashes already inherent in our culture were amped up to devastation. We were forcibly reminded that the economic fallout of the pandemic is disproportionately endured by women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ . BUT, the Goddess always rises, and we looked at the 2021 vision of the show with new eyes. In response, we modified our original call for submissions, and invited artists to show us the Goddess “however you perceive her.” We are beyond thrilled by the response – this show displays an amazing range of gifts and perspectives from artists in many media. For a glimpse of their thoughts, I i

Sheltered in Place - a Pandemic Art Show

The Covid pandemic reshapes our lives. It continues to strip down our existence, separating us from loved ones and exposing weaknesses in our system of governance and our political leadership. It demonstrates the devastating impact of the nation's grave social injustices. Systemic racism and socioeconomic disparity put oppressed peoples at greater risk for Covid-19. Then, on May 25, as many of us bunkered inside our homes, we witnessed the cold-blooded murder of George Floyd. This videotaped tragedy and the eruption of Black Lives Matter protests across the nation revealed the depth and breadth of racism in America. It is a contagion every bit as present and virulent as the coronavirus. In the face of both existential challenges – pandemic and racism – we can only recover through radical social change. The images and words of UMVA artists in this online exhibition surface from the isolation and compression of life in the pandemic. The works express personal and universa

Search This Blog