SHOWCASE – March 2013
By Rebecca Falzano

An exhibition at the University of Maine Museum of Art highlights the work of contemporary New England artists. 

Opening next month, the University of Maine Museum of Art’s second I-95 Triennial: From Connecticut to Maine will highlight the diversity of contemporary creative practice by artists from five New England states: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. The exhibition features works in an array of media—from sculpture and painting to photography and mixed media. One hundred and fourteen artists submitted works for consideration, and after a highly competitive jury process, 34 artists were invited to participate. The jurors were Timothy McDowell, professor of art and former chair of the art department at Connecticut College, and George Kinghorn, director and curator of the University of Maine Museum of Art. Kinghorn first developed the concept for the Triennial shortly after arriving at UMMA in 2008. “This exhibition is a unique opportunity to showcase significant contemporary artists who reside in the New England states through which I-95 passes,” he says. “It also serves to highlight innovative Maine artists, from emerging to established, and to place their works in context with a larger community of artists engaged in contemporary artistic practice.”

The Triennial showcases a wide range of approaches to materials and styles, including representational, abstract, and conceptual works. Color photography is represented by several artists including Noah David Bau and Christopher Chadbourne, each of whom works in a fine art documentary style, and together they offer an in-depth investigation of subjects ranging from the colorful world of state fairs to young boys in brutal boxing camps in Bangkok, Thailand. Also featured are artists working in the traditional medium of gelatin silver prints, including Maine-based Ilya Askinazi and Claire Seidl. Sculptural works by J. T. Gibson, Walter Kopec, Paul Oberst, Christine Owen, and Edward Mackenzie range from mixed-media assemblage incorporating appropriated objects to beautifully crafted bronze and wood forms. Contemporary abstraction is reflected in Daniel Anselmi’s multilayered collages and Marc Leavitt’s pulsating, colorful painted surfaces.

The 90-plus works by these New England–based artists attest to the multitude of approaches to art making and the pluralistic nature prevalent in contemporary art. Here, MH+D presents a preview of the exhibition.

Daniel Anselmi, Ryan Arthurs, Ilya Askinazi, Noah David Bau, Roberta Baumann, Lindsey Beal, Charles Benner, Renate Caraballo, Christopher Chadbourne, Kenny Cole, David Estey, Joshua Ferry, Kathie Florsheim, Kathryn Frund, J. T. Gibson, Rachel Hellmann, Terry Hire, Kay Howell, Jana Ireijo, Nina Jerome, Alexis Kochka, Walter Kopec, Marc Leavitt, Edward Mackenzie, Robert Moran, Paul Oberst, Christine Owen, Linda Packard, Gerri Rachins, Ken Sahr, Roxanne Faber Savage, Claire Seidl, Cheryl St. Onge, and Barbara Sullivan

Works featured in print include:
Daniel Anselmi, Untitled (Blue Form), 2012, collage, 9.75″ x 7″

Robert Moran, Vintage Phone, 2011, archival pigment print, 16″ x 16″

Noah David Bau, 14, 86 lbs., 2011, archival pigment print, 40″ x 32″

Christopher Chadbourne, Miss Georgia State Fair, 2010, archival inkjet on Museo Silver Rag, 25.25″ x 33.5″

Paul Oberst, Ceremonial Fount, 2012, tin-lined copper with acrylic/wood (with water in bowl), 47″ x 28″ x 10.25″

Ilya Askinazi, Tuscany, 2011, archival inkjet print, 23″ x 27″
I-95 TRIENNIAL 2013: FROM CONNECTICUT TO MAINE RUNS FROM APRIL 5 TO JUNE 8.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT UMMA.UMAINE.EDU.