New Exhibition at the Farnsworth— Four in Maine: Site Specific

Rockland , Maine -- 02 April 2010

click to enlarge

Jesse Salisbury, Anatomy of a Boulder, 2004, granite.

(Photo by David Troup)

On Saturday, April 17, the Farnsworth Art Museum, in Rockland, Maine, will open a new exhibition entitled Four in Maine: Site Specific which will showcase the work of four artists, Kazumi Hoshino, Jesse Salisbury, Warren Seelig, and Aaron T Stephan. The second in a program of annual exhibitions devoted to artists working in Maine, the 2010 show will focus on sculpture, with each of the chosen artists creating a site specific work, with sites both inside and outside the museum. The exhibition, which will be accompanied by an on-line catalogue, will run through December 2010. Support for Four in Maine: Site Specific has been provided by the Davis Family Foundation. The primary media sponsor for this exhibition is Down East magazine, books and online.

Japanese born Kazumi Hoshino and her husband Jesse Salisbury both work in stone from their Steuben, Maine home and studio. Kazumi completed rigorous art training in Japan before gravitating toward sculpture. She now expresses ideas concerning abstraction of material, organic form and formal elements through direct stone carving. Salisbury is organizer of the Schoodic Sculpture Symposiums and works in massive granite or basalt boulders from the area. While he and his wife share workshop facilities, their working methods and concepts are very different.

Warren Seelig lives and maintains a studio in Rockland, Maine. Through his work Seelig explores the ambiguous relationship between material and light and shadow, transforming textile from the literal to the metaphorical. His work has been shown internationally in over thirty museums and galleries.

Aaron T Stephan creates site specific works that interact with the environment. The many unfolding levels of literal meaning of his work provoke a larger dialogue on art and perception than is perhaps possible in a gallery setting. Stephan resides in Portland, Maine, and has completed public art commissions nationwide. The opening of Four in Maine: Site Specific will be celebrated at a Live at Night at the Farnsworthparty at the museum on Friday, April 16, with a members’ only preview and reception from 6 to 7 p.m. followed by a free public party from 7 to 8 p.m. The primary sponsors of Live at Night at the Farnsworth are Bangor Savings Bank and VillageSoup.
In association with this exhibition, there will be Artists Talks on two consecutive Wednesdays, at 5:30 p.m. in the museum auditorium:
Wednesday, July 7, at 5:30 p.m., Warren Seelig and Aaron Stephan.Wednesday, July 14, at 5:30 p.m., Kazumi Hoshino and Jesse Salisbury. The cost for each of these talks is $8 for members and $10 for nonmembers. For more information or to make a reservation, please call the Education Department at 207-596-0949.

About Farnsworth Art Museum:

Celebrating Maine’s Role in American Art, the Farnsworth Art Museum offers a nationally recognized collection of works from many of America’s greatest artists. With 20,000 square feet of gallery space and over 10,000 works in the collection, there is always something new on view at the Farnsworth. The museum houses the nation's second-largest collection of works by premier 20th-century sculptor Louise Nevelson. Its Wyeth Center exclusively features works of Andrew, N.C. and Jamie Wyeth. The Farnsworth's library is also housed in its Rockland, ME, campus. Two historic buildings, the Farnsworth Homestead and the Olson House, complete the museum complex.