Magic, Myth, Machine & Matter is the title of the September 6 – 29, 2024 UMVA (Union of Maine Visual Artists) exhibition at the Oak Street Lofts Gallery, 72 Oak St., Portland, Maine featuring UMVA members Eva Rose Goetz, Gregg Harper, William Hessian and Abbeth Russell.   An opening artists’ reception is First Friday, September 6 from 5 to 8 pm.   This event is free and open to the public.   Gallery hours are Saturday and Sundays from 1 to 4 pm until September 29 th .     The exhibition themes are inspired by the main “epochs” in the development of human thinking on the nature of the cosmos, presented so beautifully by the late UMass-Amherst astrophysicist Edward Harrison in his book “Masks of the Universe” (2003/2015). The four artists will exhibit four artworks each with their own “riff” on each of the four themes of magic, myth, machine and matter – 16 artworks in all.  Oak Street Lofts is an Avesta property originally built to provide l...

  With a theme of “Express Yourself” the Union of Maine Visual Artists (UMVA) will host a 50th year Gala on August 3, 2024 at Merrymeeting Hall, 27 Main St., Bowdoinham from 6 to 11 PM.  Titled "The Carlo Pittore Costume Ball and Art Auction", this art party celebrates community and camaraderie in the spirit of Carlo Pittore, the force behind the founding of the UMVA in 1975. Pittore’s studio was in Bowdoinham.  The band BookHead SweetTooth from Belfast will supply the music ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/237598333928131/ ).  A pot luck plus wine and beer are also planned for the event.   Suggested donations range from $10-$50 at the door.  This fundraiser will finance and support UMVA’s new updated website providing more value for members.   Sponsors include Rising Tide Brewery, Maine Gallery + Studio Guide and WERU Community Radio. Pittore, the subject of the film CARLO … and his Merry Band of Artists,...

  Call for Pro Bono PR Writers   Help support the visual arts community in Maine, by volunteering to help with writing news releases about events with UMVA, The Union of Maine Visual Artists – www.TheUMVA.org We seek a retired journalist or PR person who can help the 1-person volunteer committee write news releases that will be sent to Maine media for different events and art shows.   The UMVA board member will be the person sending them out, so maintaining a media list is not a requirement.   A love of the arts and a knowledge of AP style is needed.   Join Maine’s oldest nonprofit providing exhibition opportunities to member artists and help us make a more colorful world.   Contact Ann Tracy - UMVA.PR@gmail.com.

 

Alternative Vision is the name of the exhibit featuring both artists from UMVA Midcoast as well as the regular artists who show at Mainely Gallery, 181 Searsport Ave., Belfast, beginning August 2nd and continuing through August 21st. An opening reception is planned for Friday, August 2 at 5:00 p.m. This marks the first time that the Midcoast chapter of the UMVA has collaborated with a commercial gallery. Gail Wartell Keeping Our Heads Above Water The exhibit features the work of local artists exploring the theme of alternative vision. This broad theme applies to a different way of looking at things and interpreting them, including different technology, or perspective of other creatures, including a dog and a fly. It includes new digital work, as well. UMVA artists include: Bernadette deCesare, Deb Bergman, Janelle Delicata, Gail Wartell, Sue Garrett, Arlene Leighton, and Pamela Faber.   The UMVA, founded in 1975, is a non-profit organization that promotes and advocates for...

  The Union of Maine Visual Artists in conjunction with The Lincoln Theatre, 2 Theater St, Damariscotta, ME, proudly presents the UMVA Portrait Pop-Up, which will take place in the Lincoln Theatre second floor lobby. The 2D exhibition of Portraits in a variety of mediums runs from July 30th to August 17th, and features notable works by current and former members of the UMVA, including the late UMVA founder Carlo Pittore.  Pittore is the subject of Maine Masters film, CARLO …  and his Merry Band of Artists , a documentary by Richard Kane, which will be shown at 7 pm at the Lincoln Theatre on August 8th. The artists’ reception is also August 8 th , from 4:30 to 6:30 pm.  The art exhibit is intended to complement the documentary film.  All works will be for sale, and will benefit UMVA artists as well as The Lincoln Theatre.  Contact the Lincoln Theatre for other show times and ticket prices.   Lesia Sochor - Self Portrait Lesley MacVane - Viva La R...

Life is a Carnival: from the Figurative to the Abstract , a UMVA (Union of Maine Visual Artists) art exhibit opens at the Waldo Theatre, 916 Main St, Waldoboro, on July 6 and runs to August 4, 2024.  Over a dozen artists are showing prints, photography, paintings and more in the spirit of one of the UMVA founders, Carlo Pittore.  Some of Pittore’s work will be included in the exhibition as well.  The documentary film CARLO … and his Merry Band of Artists by Richard Kane, the latest film in the Maine Masters series, will screen July 25 at 7 pm (runs one hour and 17 minutes) with an artists’ reception to follow.  The CARLO documentary will also screen at Nomad, 14 Main St, Brunswick on August 1st at 5pm and August 4 at 2 pm in conjunction with a UMVA art exhibit  Then and Now: Works by the Early UMVA Cast  throughout August at Nomad; as well as the Colonial Theater, 163 High St, Belfast on August 13th at 7pm.  Contact each venue for ticket prices. P...