Spin-Off Online Brochure

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SPIN-OFF A collaboration between Montserrat College of Art & the Cape Ann Museum

Fall 2015

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• The 15-week semester course focused on the connections between Cape Ann’s art, environment and the economy, with learning experiences offered both inside and outside of the college environment. The creative works of so many were, for the students, embedded in the tour of the landscape. Courtney Richardson, former museum Education Director, acted as our well-informed tour guide. Students experienced a number of prime spots in the Cape Ann landscape, enjoyed a picnic at Halibut Point State Park, read books, catalogues and poetry and responded in their writing and discussion. We had the opportunity to learn from museum docent and former Montserrat Trustee, Trina Smith. Trina provided us with comprehensive tours of the collection. We met with landscape painter, Jeff Weaver, at his studio on Rogers Street in Gloucester. This was timely since Jeff’s work was on exhibit at the museum during the semester.

In the studio, students were presented with views of contemporary art, which were directly linked to various parts of the museum’s collections and asked to respond in their own visual work. Both Montserrat Professor, Diane Ayott and Kevin Lucey, Senior Teaching Associate targeted specific art, which would underscore student thinking in “spinning off” from the objects in the museum collection. Critiques were on going, both one-on-one and in groups. At one critique we hosted Trina Smith and Courtney Richardson from the Cape Ann Museum to join us for “coffee and crit.” They listened to student proposals for their Spin-Off work and gave critical feedback on their in-process art and discussed how this work might be curated for a museum exhibition.

We worked with Curatorial Assistant, Leon Doucette, on the exhibition project and enjoyed on-going communications throughout the semester between Montserrat and Cape Ann Museum professionals. It became more than a team effort.

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Tour of Cape Ann

“I knew that there was a lot of history here hidden by the busy highways but didn’t ever take the time to dig it up. During the bus tour Cape Ann turned from a place I had never been, to a place I want to come back. After looking below the surface of what my first impression was two years ago, the North Shore became beautiful to me again.” -Kendall Hanselman

Tour of the Cape Ann Museum

“Visiting The Cape Ann Museum provided me with many different sources of inspiration-with everything from the Fresnel Lens to the Folly Cove designers grabbing my attention. All have the potential to be the seeds of an exciting body of work, but what has become the most interesting to me are the color palettes of Fitz Henry Lane’s landscape paintings.” -Kelly Schultz

In The Studio

LiAnn Natter LiAnn Natter is an artist from Willow Grove, PA. She is a student at Montserrat, concentrating in drawing and painting. Among her interests are: color, form, depiction of space, pattern and repetition. Though primarily a painter, she uses a variety of different languages to depict these things, such as print and collage. She plans to earn her BFA in the fall of 2017.

Net Studies, LiAnn Natter

On The Harbor, LiAnn Natter

Exploration

When I was first presented with Cape Ann, and all it had to offer, I was overwhelmed. I drew inspiration from so many different aspects of the area and many of its different painters. Everything in the culture of the place seemed so rich and pure; it made it hard to narrow my focus. Initially I had a fascination with painter, Emile Gruppe. He seemed to paint the water the way it feels, wet and colorful and moving. I was struck by his expressive paint and colors and became anxious to explore the area for myself. I was convinced that I would paint like him, representing the water and boats of Gloucester.

However, my focus shifted to something else found at the harbor. The nets used by the men of the fishing industry fascinated me. I began to explore the pattern and repetition possessed by the nets, without painting them exactly as they were. I began weaving my own nets. In addition, I experimented with different mark making ideas in my painting. I did not know where to go.

Eventually I looped back toward realism in my painting, On the Harbor, incorporating a kind of pentimento of the netting into the surface of the painting.

Kendall Hanselman

Kendall Hanselman is from Stratham, NH and is a junior at Montserrat.

She is studying painting and art education. After graduation from college with her BFA, Kendall will work to become an established professional artist and art educator.

Color Study (Rockport Jetty), Kendall Hanselman

Color Study (Gloucester Wildflowers), Kendall Hanselman

Cape Ann Landscape

Exploring Cape Ann and all that the museum had to offer inspired my artistic sensibility. My influences came from painters Marsden Hartley, and Bernard Chaet. Through the materiality of paint as well as the colors of Cape Ann, my focus began to emerge. I did color studies, took photos, did more color studies, sketched, and went back to the studio with a sense of direction. I was able to hone in my inspiration from Cape Ann and create work that was completely my own and not something that mimics the artists whom inspired me. Through this exploration of color, light, and form, I was able to layer in depth of the rocky horizon line to bring my landscape to life.

Sebastian Sawyer is a mixed media and fiber artist from Bellingham, MA who is attending Montserrat and will be graduating in the spring of 2016.

Sebastian, who is concentrating in both interdisciplinary Arts and creative writing, is concerned with finding ways to incorporate found objects and words into her art.

Washed Up

Washed up showcases found objects from the beaches of Cape Ann. This installation is inspired by the artwork of Joseph Cornell and Mark Dion.

Collecting these objects that have washed up on Cape Ann beaches and giving them a new life is my goal. Each object has been dusted off, so to speak. As these objects speak to me, I will speak for them, giving them a context and a story.

These artifacts are presented with an audio recording of my voice reading aloud the flash fiction or poetry that I’ve created with inspiration from each particular object. During the exhibition these objects from Cape Ann’s beaches, things that would never be considered art until I made the decision to call it art, will be a representations of trash as treasure, showing that, even objects from everyday life that have been thrown away and have since washed up on the beach and been meticulously collected, have a story to tell.

Washed Up, Sebastian Sawyer

Sebastian Sawyer

Kelly Schultz Kelly Schultz is an artist from Ballston Lake, NY. She is a senior at Montserrat, working toward her BFA in painting/drawing with an art history minor. Her current work is characterized by an exploration of the subtleties within color. Kelly experiments with washes of paint, paying close attention to its application and its removal. The physicality of the paint and its qualities are tended to in her work. (left) Study of Norman’s Woe, Gloucester Harbor, MA (Scattered), Kelly Schultz (right) Study of The Fort and Ten Pound Island, Gloucester, MA (Scattered), Kelly Schultz

Study of The Fort and Ten Pound Island, Gloucester, MA, Kelly Schultz

The collection of Fitz Henry Lane paintings at The Cape Ann Museum really resonated with me- particularly their color palettes. For this project, I decided to make color studies from many of these paintings, organized into marks or ‘dots’ in a grid formation. (The grid is a critical artist tool, and has been utilized in the art world dating back to the Renaissance.) Each of my grids is based on a specific painting- some matching up with the format of the landscape and some with the colors scattered. The grids allow me to chase the hue, value, and chroma of a Fitz Henry Lane painting, yet they are abstractions, with the grid eliminating the color play and contrast with each other to a certain degree. Observing the images directly was ideal in this process, but not always practical, so I took my own photos at the museum to work from. Using the museum’s website presented a whole other color situation, as the lighting differs in every photo and setting. Because of this, I chose to begin to limit myself to working from my own photos for reference.

Viewing these works in different lights greatly affects the way the colors are perceived, as is true with any painting. This furthers the abstraction of these studies, and they become something separate from the works they are based on, able to be viewed in comparison to Fitz Henry Lane or independently.

Bri Bain Bri Bain, from Newburyport, MA, transferred to Montserrat College of Art from Maine College of Art in Portland. Her two areas of study at Montserrat are art education and painting. Bri’s interest in the visual arts are mainly in painting, focusing on color, the materiality of paint, and in exploring her own gesture.

Dawn - Doxology, Bri Bain

From Half Moon Beach

“One thing I loved most about the tour was eating lunch at Halibut Point. People are always talking about the Gloucester quarries, but I had never spent time at one before. It’s interesting to me that something like that which feels so natural was man-made.” -Bri Bain

In the tradition of so many artists before me, I was immediately drawn to the seascapes and beaches of Cape Ann. I adored daydreaming over lunch at Halibut Point, where the water was a reflective pool of all beauty that surrounds it. I found the large masses of rock affirming in their strong stance, they seemed to hold everything in place. I’m interested in the interactions between water, ground and sky at these various Cape Ann places. I love the generosity of the sky sharing color with the water, and the water sharing that color with the rocks.

I sought out to replicate these connections in my 30 x 30 inch square panel painting and 22 x 30 inch painting on paper. I also want to exaggerate these colors and push them further than their bounds in nature. I want to simplify and abstract the form of the rocks, while still making it apparent to the viewer what they are seeing. The landscape I am creating is fragments of photographs I took while spending time at Half Moon Beach, which is located in Stage Fort Park in Gloucester. I am drawing inspiration from Marsden Hartley’s Rock Doxology, Bernard Chaet’s Hot Dawn and artist Nell Blaine.

Theresa Dennehy Theresa Dennehy is from Peabody MA. She is majoring in art education. Although she is preparing to become an art educator, she has a strong passion for painting. Looking to nature for inspiration lead to the creation of a body of work incorporating connections to the land.

(left) By The Sea, Theresa Dennehy (right) East Gloucester Beach Study, Theresa Dennehy

Gloucester Landscape Studies

Visiting Gloucester through an educational lens created a new way for me to view its land. The Cape Ann Museum has a wide variety of work dedicated to the Cape Ann area that I also found inspiring. Artists such as Marsden Hartley, Nell Blaine, Bernard Chaet, and Fitz Henry Lane sparked my interest and I appreciated their connection to Cape Ann. From my inspiration I created paintings and sketches from observation, gaining more of an understanding, and a relationship to the land itself. Nature has always been my most profound source of inspiration, and Gloucester is full of breath-taking, meditative, and peaceful landscapes. My plan is to continue developing my knowledge of landscapes, while still incorporating my own connection to what it is that I am painting. I want to further explore different ways to represent landscapes, such as using odd compositions. For example, I am exploring ways to paint landscapes in the vertical format, rather than the typical horizontal format. I will continue to visit Gloucester and let the land itself inspire me as it did for so many artists who lived and visited the Cape Ann area.

Beach on Eastern Point Boulevard, Theresa Dennehy

Gray Day at Halibut Point, Kale Baker

Kale Baker Kale Baker is from Newburyport, MA. She is a third year student working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting at Montserrat College of Art. Baker enjoys working with the landscape, experimenting with the process and creating space within her paintings.

“I visited the quarry this past Sunday. While there I took note of the changes that have begun to appear within the landscape. The leaves are turning a fantastic bouquet of red, orange and yellow that reflects off the water. I keep trying to understand how the abandoned industrial location; a sixty foot deep man made crater, could become something of beauty.” -Kale Baker

(left) Just Before Dark, Kale Baker (right) Phases Of Fall, Kale Baker

Rockport Quarry Landscapes

Touring Cape Ann and learning about the museum collection has been a wonderful experience. After watching the video on the granite industry and exploring Halibut Point Park, I became very interested in exploring the quarry landscape. While at the quarry I tried to imagine the sound of drills and industry. I thought about the people who died there working seventeen-hour days; the people who became ill from carcinogenic granite dust. Despite these thoughts, I cannot help but feel at peace there. The spacious view and the silence are overwhelming.

I initially began studying the quarry through pastel drawings and photographs. From there I began working from these references on paper, canvas and panel in various sizes using oil paint. In addition to my own observations of the quarry I drew inspiration from Milton Avery’s, Autumn, at the Cape Ann Museum. I am most interested in the color palette he used within this work. After researching Avery I learned that Wolf Kahn; one of my favorite landscape painters, had drawn inspiration from the artist as well.

Their works heavily influenced my earlier pastel drawings of the quarry and continue to influence my painting exploration today.

Creative Contributors

Exhibition Info

Diane Ayott - Professor, Montserrat College of Art Kevin Lucey - Senior Teaching Associate, Montserrat College of Art Trina Smith - Cape Ann Museum Docent, former Montserrat trustee Courtney Richardson - Former Educational Director, Cape Ann Museum Leon Doucette - Curatorial Assistant, Cape Ann Museum Thanks to the Executive Director, Rhonda Faloon; Curator, Martha Oaks, and their staff for their support for Spin-Off.

SPIN-OFF An exhibition of Montserrat College of Art students in collaboration with the Cape Ann Museum On Display: November 20 - December 3, 2015 Reception: Friday, November 20, 5 - 7pm 27 Pleasant Street, Gloucester, MA 01930 (978) 283-0455 Museum Hours: Thur - Sat 10am - 5pm, Sun 1pm - 4pm More Info: www.capeannmuseum.org / www.montserrat.edu

Brochure designed by Kevin Lucey, Montserrat Senior Teaching Associate

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Montserrat Students Kale Baker, Sebastian Sawyer, Theresa Dennehy, Kelly Schultz, Kendall Hanselman, Bri Bain, and LiAnn Natter at the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, in front of a painting

by Montserrat founding faculty member Oliver Balf.

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