Portland Press Herald: The must-see art exhibitions at Maine museums this year

Fill your summer with art by taking in these 16 shows at museums from Ogunquit to Rockland.

By Jorge Arango
Published May 18

This article appears in the Portland Press Herald.

Here the major summer exhibitions happening at Maine’s most prominent art museums:

Bates Museum of Art
Lewiston, bates.edu/museum

“Selections from the Diversify the Collection Program,” through Oct. 7. Featuring some stunning works from a wide variety of underrepresented artist populations.

“Who Are They? Who Am I?” through Oct. 7. Almost 150 portraits of artists and artist self-portraits from the permanent collection.

Bowdoin College Museum of Art
Brunswick, bowdoin.edu/art-museum

“Strangeness is Inevitable,” through Sept. 17. A fascinating survey of poet, artist and proto feminist Mina Loy, who knew everyone (Mable Dodge, Peggy Guggenheim, Marcel Duchamp, Joseph Cornell, Tristan Tzara, the Dadaists, and on and on) but whose work few know today.

“People Watching: Contemporary Photography Since 1965,” June 24 to Nov. 5. The subject of “people watching” as recreation, surveillance, harassment, empathy and documentary expression.

Center for Maine Contemporary Art
Rockland, cmcanow.org

“Rodrigo Valenzuela: Weapons,” May 27 to Sept. 10. A major installation that is dream-like and a bit surreal as it explores global economics and human dimensions of labor.

“Nancy Andrews: Homebodies,” May 27 to Sept. 10. Drawing, collage, video and sculpture that explores the disconnect between American ideals and actuality, especially where it concerns women and their bodies.

Colby College Museum of Art
Waterville, museum.colby.edu

“Constellations: Forming the Collection, 1973-2023,” July 8 to Nov. 26. Emphasizing art by self-taught practitioners, portraiture and art connecting the natural and spiritual worlds.

“Come Closer: Selections from the Collection, 1978-1994,” July 8 to Nov. 26. Exploring the relationship between the personal and political through current events and social issues (i.e. gender equality, racial justice, the AIDS crisis, technological advancements).

Farnsworth Museum
Rockland, farnsworthmuseum.org

“Edward Hopper and Andrew Wyeth: Rockland, Maine,” May 27 to Aug. 27. Industries of Rockland such as lime quarrying and fishing as viewed through the artist lenses of two very different painters.

“Alvaro’s World: Andrew Wyeth and the Olson House,” at the Wyeth Center, June 17 to Oct. 29. A look at the iconic Olson House – currently under renovation – through Wyeth’s watercolors of the farmstead and, particularly, Christina Olson’s brother, Alvaro.

Institute for Contemporary Art
Portland, meca.edu/about/institute-of-contemporary-art

“This Is Out of Hand,” July 14 to Sept. 16. Curated by Joshua Reiman, this show brings together 33 artists from around the world through the common thread of carving to examine the variety and complexities of the carving process. It will include traditional materials, but also artists who have used carved historical objects in their work and others who use digital technology and video.

Ogunquit Museum of American Art
Ogunquit, ogunquitmuseum.org

“Networks of Modernism, 1898-1968,” through Nov. 12. A fresh look at the museum’s collection that celebrates its 70th anniversary.

“Spontaneous Generation: The Work of Liam Lee,” July 8 to Nov. 12. Lee’s first solo museum show centers on alchemical concept of living organisms arising from non-living materials and illustrates the many aspects of his multi-disciplinary art: furniture, tapestries, ceramics and works on paper.

“Ever Baldwin: Down the Line,” July 28 to Nov. 12. Sexuality, costume, landscape, organic form, the unconscious all mix in paintings that feel ritualistic and are framed in charred wood.

Marguerite Thompson Zorach (United States, 1887–1968), “The Woolwich Marshes,” circa 1935, oil on canvas, 21 x 26 inches. Portland Museum of Art, Maine. Bequest of Mildred G. Burrage, 1983.86. Image courtesy Pillar Digital Imaging. © The Zorach Collection, LLC Courtesy of Portland Museum of Art

Portland Museum of Art
Portland, portlandmuseum.org

“Passages in American Art,” opening May 27. Both the Farnsworth and the Ogunquit have rethought and rehung their permanent collections. The PMA is doing it with the input of multiple community voices drawn from partners such as the Akomawt Educational Initiative, Atlantic Black Box, Indigo Arts Alliance, Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Portland Public Schools.

“Drawn to the Light: 50 Years of Photography at Maine Media Workshops + College,” June 16 to Sept. 10. About 100 works produced at this vital Rockport institution for learning and experimentation in the photographic medium, which was established in 1973.