MECA Magazine Winter 2021

WINTER 2021 The Creative Heartbeat of Portland WINTER / SPRING 2020

BE SEEN

A Celebration of Hope

Feature BE SEEN: A CELEBRATION OF HOPE Front and Back Cover: Images from Project Project, a Be Seen initiative that showcases student artwork with digital projections throughout the city.

Front Cover Photo by: Joel Tsui ’16, Salt ’17, MFA ’19

LEADERSHIP TEAM Laura Freid, President Beth Elicker, Executive Vice President Ian Anderson, Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of the College Lauren Glennon, Interim Director for Institutional Advancement & Strategic Planning

EDITOR Leah Igo Brooks, Director of Marketing and Communications

DESIGN Brittany Martin, Lead Graphic Designer

BOARD OF TRUSTEES Brian Wilk ’95 , Chair Kathryn Yates, Vice Chair Dan Bailin Denise N. Carey P ’19 Daniel N. Crewe Deborah H. Dluhy Thomas Dwyer Edward Friedman ’08 Diane Garthwaite Meredith Koerner P ’16 Margaret Morfit Dan Poteet Susan A. Rogers Gimbala Sankare Jenny Scheu Susan Schraft Ari B. Solotoff, Esq. Deborah Spring Reed Dr. Abigail Wark, Ph.D Paula Zeitlin

EMERITUS TRUSTEES Joan L. Amory Jane G. Briggs Betsy Evans Hunt, Hon. DFA ’13 Candace Pilk Karu, Hon. DFA ’13

MAINE COLLEGE OF ART 522 Congress St Portland, ME 04101 1-800-639-4808 meca.edu | info@meca.edu

Table of CONTENTS

7

2 Feature BE SEEN: A CELEBRATION OF HOPE

5 Spotlight ART PLACEMENT PROGRAM

2

Be Seen: A CELEBRATION OF HOPE

5

Roux Institute’s ART PLACEMENT PROGRAM

7

The Next Generation OF YOUNG DESIGNERS

13 EMERGING ARTISTS

Highlight THE NEXT GENERATION OF YOUNG DESIGNERS

13 Focus on EMERGING ARTISTS

23 Margaret Brownlee: MECA’S NEW DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION OFFICER 25 Alumni News 29 Alumni Class Notes 33 A nnual Report of Giving

(L - R) 1. Be Seen Campaign Illustration by Michael Byers 2. Work by Michel Droge MFA ’10 3. Photo Courtesy of LOQUAT 4. Meg Hahn ’17

Letter From the PRESIDENT I am writing this letter in the midst of a global pandemic, thinking with cautious optimism about how different our lives will be next year at this time. The year 2020 has made us all very aware of what we can change and what we are powerless to impact. It has certainly reminded us that we need each other, our community, and hope for the future. Here at MECA, we have been fortunate to experience this year with our students and faculty together. We have continued our work to educate artists and designers, to embolden a diverse group of creative thinkers to ask questions and solve problems, and to motivate students of all pursuits to make art, make an impact, and inspire change.

Together, we are working to enrich our world with the inspirational work of artists and designers.

For the past sixteen months, we have been working with members of our community, faculty, staff, and students to outline a strategic plan that will lead MECA into the future; we will be sharing our guiding principles with you all in the coming months. It has been a very rewarding process and I am confident that it will set us on a progressive course for the future.

We have also been working together to develop a collective vision of MECA that captures the diverse and powerful creative energy at the College today.

This issue of MECA Magazine highlights some of that work, reflected in our Be Seen campaign. The conceptualization started in my office during a conversation that Adjunct Instructor of Graphic Design Drew Hodges and I had regarding his work on Broadway. Drew moved to Maine from New York City, where he was known as Broadway’s go-to genius. He developed the brands for some of Broadway’s most successful shows, including RENT and Hamilton, to name just a few. Drew moved his studio to Maine a few years ago and for the past several years he has taught courses at MECA in our Graphic Design Department, leading students on how to work with large concepts for real-life clients. His work and vision deeply impressed me and I asked him to help us think about how to present MECA to the world. Of course, MECA has a vibrant presence in Portland, but the College was poised to emerge on the world stage and we needed a way to describe ourselves and to differentiate who we are to those in other parts of the country and the world, who may not be aware of us.

Drew agreed to lead a team of faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community members on a journey of self-discovery.

Along the way, we were fortunate to be joined by MECA Trustee Dan Bailin, Director of Client Strategy at The VIA Agency. Together we explored MECA inside and out and discovered that MECA has multiple unique advantages in the art and design college environment. We are located in Portland, a city that is large enough to offer a great cultural scene for those who crave an urban environment, but small enough to be a town you won’t get lost in. Like our city, MECA is big enough to offer a wide variety of academic disciplines but small enough to provide a close-knit community where every student can feel truly “seen.” And because of our unique location, students here enjoy a quality of life and inspiring natural landscape that are the envy of our peers.

MECA’s Be Seen campaign was launched this semester with our new animated website, a series of MECA posters displayed on storefronts across the city, and student artwork projected across our urban landscape. I hope you will enjoy reading about Be Seen and learning about some of our newest graduates featured in this issue. It is a pleasure to share all of these successes with you, particularly at this time when it seems like the world is standing still. Art and art-making are thriving in our oasis here at MECA, and it is thanks to the spirit, motivation, and talent of everyone in our community.

Excelsior, (Above) Each fall, MECA hosts a BFA exhibition open to all students. The work is showcased throughout the Porteous building for several weeks and a jury awards prizes and recognition. Congratulations to the 2020 winners pictured here with President Freid.

(Right) Illustration by Michael Byers

BE SEEN

A CELEBRATION OF HOPE

AS PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD STRUGGLE TO ABSORB THE IMPACTS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WHILE ADDRESSING LONG-SIMMERING ISSUES OF RACIAL AND SOCIAL INJUSTICE, "BEING SEEN" HAS TAKEN ON DEEPER NUANCES.

We now live in a radically transformed culture defined by wearing face coverings, socially distancing, and avoiding crowds and personal contact.

For artists especially, having their work seen is vitally important. And as we grapple with change and uncertainty, we need artists to provide us with spiritual, emotional, and intellectual sustenance.

Maine College of Art understands the importance of sharing the work of our artists, not only to help them succeed, but to positively impact communities. Be Seen is based on MECA’s position in Portland’s creative economy and features poster placement in local storefronts, outdoor projections on and off campus, community partnerships in the classroom, and collaborations with businesses. This campaign allows student, alumni, and faculty artwork to Be Seen and brings the work of a diverse group of artists to a wider audience in recognition of the power of creativity, resilience, and hope.

Phot y:b Jole Tsui 1’ 6, Satl 1’ 7, MFA 1’ 9

IT TAKES A TEAM Hats off to the team of creatives who helped us bring this exciting project to life.

BE SEEN PROJECT TEAM + Creative Direction by Drew Design Co. owned by Drew Hodges, Adjunct Instructor of Graphic Design + Creative copy by The VIA Agency MECA BRAND TASK FORCE + Leah Igo Brooks, Director of Marketing and Communications + Lauren Glennon, Director of Institutional Advancement and Strategic Planning + Mary Anne Lloyd ’83, Assistant Professor and Program Chair, Illustration + Brittany Martin, Lead Graphic Designer + Hallie Mitchell ’17, Drew Design Co. + Jessica Tomlinson, Director of Artists at Work ORIGINAL BE SEEN ARTWORK + Michael Byers + Christian Northeast + Opal Robinson ’23 WEBSITE HOMEPAGE + Animation Team + Adam Fisher, Assistant Professor and Program Chair, Animation & Game Art + Ruthie Harrison ’21 + Richie Ward ’21 WEBSITE HOMEPAGE INTERACTIVITY DESIGN + VONT

NEW CLASSES PROVIDE NEW SKILLS RACE AND ENVIRONMENT Race and Environment is a Philosophy seminar class taught by Assistant Professor of Academic Studies and SEAD Minor Coordinator Christopher Malcom, focusing on a fusing of site and sight in delving into considerations of race as it relates to the environment. By examining land use conflicts and environmental justice case studies, students learn to think about how settler colonialism and anti-blackness inform the ways in which the natural and built environments are organized. The course includes viewing how damaged landscapes bear the inscriptions of past histories through observation, data collection, and reading the landscape as a political and aesthetic work.

SILVER AND INK Silver and Ink is a Foundation photography class taught by Photography Professor and Program Chair Justin Kirchoff. This hybrid class utilizes traditional and contemporary photographic materials and methods to mirror Foundation curriculum objectives using both digital and wet processes.

The first half of the semester is taught in the analog darkroom, using a manual 35mm film camera, film processing, and black-and-white gelatin silver printing. Monochromatic materials are used to explore time, figure-ground relationships, value, hierarchy, light, and content. During the second half of the class, students transition to digital cameras and the digital output facility to explore color, temperature of light, elements of composition, content, the importance of context, and how to make exhibition-quality prints.

STONE SCULPTURE Stone Sculpture, team-taught by Sculpture Adjunct Instructors Kazumi Hoshi and Jesse Salisbury, is unique to MECA. Students learn the basic techniques of carving stone sculpture while working with highly skilled faculty artisans. Techniques include carving, joining, shaping, sawing, and finishing, using grinders, hand chisels, and pneumatic tools. Through direct carving and working from maquettes, students define form, determine images and content, and come to thoroughly understand the properties of stone.

Left: On the first day of Stone Sculpture class, Adjunct Instructors Kazumi Hoshi and Jesse Salisbury had a giant block of granite delivered to MECA’s nearby Green Space; the class split it up into 16 pieces to use for their projects. Photo by Joshua Reiman, Sculpture Program Chair.

ART PLACEMENT PROGRAM As part of MECA’s Be Seen initiative, the College offers a paid service to place art in high-profile locations. In a partnership with the new graduate school The Roux Institute of Northeastern University, more than 30 pieces of MECA alumni work will be on view for a year in their new building located at 100 Fore Street in Portland, Maine.

The Senior Campus Designer at Northeastern University collaborated with Artists at Work at MECA to identify artwork that resonated with their mission. With a focus on technology and research, The Roux Institute is designed to spur innovation, build talent, and drive economic growth in Portland, the state of Maine, and the Northeast.

5

Selected artists are MECA alumni Carter Shappy ’15, Barbara Rita Jenny MFA ’02, and Michel Droge MFA ’10, all of whom incorporate science and research in their creative practices.

Jenny’s sculptural installation is Dura Mater, laser-cut reliefs that reconstruct astroglial brain

cell forms into lacey orbs and digital prints of the voids between those forms that morph into monochromatic continents.

Droge has three bodies of work featured in this project. Their cyanotypes document the life cycles of the varied native plant species at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm Sanctuary in Falmouth, Maine. Their watercolors are based on a study of microrize and mycelium forms found in nature, and their abstract paintings draw parallels between Metamorphoses, Ovid’s literary classic, and our present-day cultural and environmental conundrums.

Shappy was an artist-in-residence at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, where he created a visually immersive and experiential interpretation of research on ocean acidification.

The Roux Institute also hosted MECA’s Project Project initiative during November’s First Friday Art Walk. Project Project showcases the work of MECA students and alumni by projecting it on buildings throughout the city.

1.

2.

3.

The floor-to-ceiling windows of Roux’s new building are viewable from the waterfront and Eastern Promenade Trail in Portland. The projections included photographs by Salt Institute for Documentary Studies at MECA students that focused on the working waterfront, as well as images from the annual Fall Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibition.

1. Barbara Rita Jenny MFA ’02, Astrocyte fix, blue-gray, digital pigment print on archival rag paper, 12” x 12”, 2016 2. Michel Droge MFA ‘10, When Cupid Went Crazy, oil on canvas, 75” x 110”, 2020 3. From the Audubon Series

by Michel Droge MFA ’10.

6

THE NEXT GENERATION OF YOUNG DESIGNERS We introduce you to four up-and-coming Portland designers and recent graduates of the Textile & Fashion Design Program at Maine College of Art.

PROFILE

LOQUAT Jordan Carey ’19 & Madison Poitras Upton ’19 LOQUAT is an independent fashion and accessories business with a social justice focus, founded by Madison Poitrast-Upton ’20 and Jordan Carey ’19, both of whom majored in Textile & Fashion Design at MECA. During her time at MECA, Poitrast-Upton’s area of study focused on the style of female performers, inspired by her love of music, performance, and fashion. Now, as a graduate, she is dedicated to the advancement of women and people of color through clothing and design. Carey’s work is predominantly focused on the cultural aesthetics and influences ever present and changing in the African diaspora and island life of his native Bermuda. Since graduating, he has worked as an assistant designer for Jill McGowan, Inc., a nationally known Maine-based female apparel manufacturer founded by Jill McGowan, who is also an Adjunct Instructor in MECA’s Textile & Fashion Design Program.

LOQUAT’s mission statement is: “We know that art can save lives. Our materials, motifs, collaborations, and contributions are selected to directly benefit and empower marginalized people, causes, and aesthetics. Our goal as artists and designers is to honor the individuals, traditions, and communities that have made LOQUAT possible.”

MECA Magazine spoke with both of the brand’s founders about their mission, collaborative process, and upcoming collection.

LOQUATSHOP.COM

Photos courtesy of LOQUAT

Tell us about your current or upcoming collection/ work. What is most exciting to you about it?

One of the projects we are most excited about right now is our upcoming spring/summer collection.

We are working closely with our friend and mentor Meeta Mastani and her company, Bindaas Unlimited, to create a series of naturally dyed and printed fabrics.

This is a great opportunity for us to tell stories of heritage and culture through fashion and textiles. By focusing on our personal journeys and relationships to what is around us, we are able to come up with things that are fresh but also feel timeless. It feels good to know that in an industry like fashion that is shrouded in mystery and abusive labor, we know where and from whom our fabric is coming.

What do you think is the potential for art as an agent of social change—who is being engage with in your work?

The potential that art has for social change is undeniable. Everything in our world is created, designed, and marketed with artistic thinking. For better or worse. Representation is the key to this—who is being represented, how they are being represented, and where they are being represented. At LOQUAT, it is our firm belief that the relevance of who, how, and where extends past the canvas or the garment and into what exists around it. That is why representation 8

in our fabrics or models is not enough. In our short time as business owners, we have made it a point to always have a collaboration in the works as a device to empower members of marginalized groups. The work I mentioned before with Meeta Mastani is a good example of this, but you could also look at our work with Indigo Arts Alliance or Pendeja Studio.

We also use our platform for more direct political action. Over the summer we made a T-shirt that stated, “MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS SHOULD BE FREE.” From that campaign we were able to raise close to $1,500 for wholesale menstrual products that were donated during Portland’s recent housing crisis. There is no separation of art and life at LOQUAT, so we are committed to making sure that what we do here is with awareness and intention.

How do you work together as collaborators?

So much of our process is done in-house. The cutting, sewing, pattern drafting, fabric design, sample making, photography, and marketing are split almost entirely between the two of us. We are only now starting to open that process up to other people. Since we chose this somewhat unusual method of starting a fashion company, we have really been able to experiment. There has been a lot of play and one or two items that may or may not ever see the light of day, but that winding, backstreet method is the one we have come to enjoy for now.

How has your time at MECA influenced your work? How do you stay connected with MECA? MECA offered us a fine arts fashion education, which was a great fit for the LOQUAT vision. Many of the connections we made in the building have blossomed into genuine mentorships and friends. Both Jill McGowan and Indigo Arts Alliance have been bountiful sources of knowledge and experience. Jill was our pattern drafting teacher and now works with us both.

By doing so, she has offered us a serious opportunity for mentorship in both the creative and business sides of fashion. She was also our first wholesale account, which is no small thing. Marcia Minter and Daniel Minter (MECA Illustration Professor), cofounders of Indigo Arts Alliance, afforded us access to a larger professional art world. The connections and resources that have been made available to us and other artists of color by IAA have been priceless.

9

PROFILE

CHLOE ADAMS Textile & Fashion Design 2020 Chloe Adams received a BFA in Textile & Fashion Design from MECA in 2020. Chloe’s practice is versatile, focusing mainly on creating connections between textiles and the modern human experience.

Her work observes textile processes such as garment-making, basketry, felting, knitting, lacemaking, and others, which then expand to other inspirations outside of the field. This process of observation and experimentation has resulted in several projects, including a collaborative photo book (Circle Square) an installation series (Lace Work), and a series of baskets paired with paintings for her final thesis work (Net Work). Chloe currently lives and works in Portland, Maine.

CHLOE-ADAMS.COM What are you working on right now, and what is most exciting to you about it?

After graduating in the spring of 2020, as I have found with most graduating students, I had to pause for a moment and reflect. Spending so much time isolating is both a blessing and a curse for artists. With the pandemic, all of a sudden you have all this time, but it is very difficult to force creativity in a moment like this. I started really slowly, making work that felt good to me and trying completely new processes without putting pressure on myself to make them perfect. As fall came, I picked up momentum and started using a knitting machine, which has fascinated me ever since

I took a class in this at MECA. I am most excited about a group installation that I am involved with that features my work as well as that of my peers and fellow MECA classmates Ashley Page ’20, Lauren Anderson ’20, MAT ’21, and Keegan Whitford ’21.

We did a similar project together about a year ago, and it has been wonderful to communicate with other artists again—even if it’s mostly through digital channels. The show is mixed media—ceramics, sculpture, found objects, wool, yarn, and grass—and all our work has a way of making the others look better. It’s really easy and cohesive.

What do you think is the potential for art as an agent of social change and how do you engage with this in your work?

There is so much potential for art to explain what words simply cannot. I’m of the belief that we all have the intuition to be creative, that the exploration and process of our emotional self is crucial to our well-being, similar to how we dream. For me, I have to make. It’s a feeling, and a compulsion, and in this way, it can be hard to think about my audience, because I will create regardless.

This is why I chose an education in art, because there are no clear answers.

My work visually expresses feelings and emotions that can’t be represented in other ways. My work has themes—how we work together, who we are, what our interactions mean—but my goal is resonance. My goal

(L-R): Atmos-techne-sphere. Photo by Jay Wickersham ’19 | Circle Square, 2019. Photograph by Adam Fowler ’20

is for my viewer to feel in touch with their compassion, with further appreciation, with emotions that are harder to reach. In this way, we employ social change; when we force ourselves to feel new emotions, like discomfort or joy, we become more connected with our humanity.

How has your time at MECA influenced your work?

How do you stay connected to your MECA network?

I chose MECA for the community. The intimacy was important to me, and I have absolutely found that. I cannot thank my peers and professors enough for helping me to find my own confidence and helping me to distinguish my path. It sounds so simple, but the small community really allowed for a support system that was greater than I could have ever expected.

People show up for each other here, we lift each other up, and not just professionally, but beyond that. It’s a difficult task, to put an emotional investment into your profession, but I’ve never felt invalid or alone.

In this way, I consider the connections I’ve made at MECA to be like family, a deeper support system than a recommendation or a studio visit. It’s so easy to stay connected, from seeing people on the street in Portland or online. I know I will be supported by the people here for the rest of my life.

10

PROFILE

KINCAID PEARSON Textile & Fashion Design 2019 Kincaid Pearson ’19 grew up in the rural New Hampshire town of Henniker. Surrounded by nature and with little desire for interactions with technology from a young age, Pearson developed an interest in incorporating bright colors and organic shapes into his work. An interdisciplinary artist, Pearson incorporates his textile skills with sculpture, painting, furniture design, and home decor, and plans to expand into interior design.

Pearson received a grant from MECA’s Belvedere Fund for Professional Development in 2020 to purchase a tufting gun to fabricate his rug designs.

His work has been featured in MECA’s 2017 and 2018 MECAmorphosis Runway Fashion Shows, and his curatorial projects include the 2017 Virtual Reality Art Gallery Experience (VRAGE) at the ICA at MECA. Tell us about the recent Belvedere Fund grant you were awarded. What inspired you to apply for this funding, and how will you use the tufting gun that you purchased with the grant?

This Belvedere Fund grant is open to MECA alumni who graduated within the last 10 years and who are working in the field of crafts. I applied for this grant because I wanted to purchase a tufting gun. For those who may not be familiar, a tufting gun is a machine that allows you to create both loop and cut pile tufts using yarn to puncture a backing fabric to create rugs and/or wall hangings. This process is how most rugs are made, with the exception of hand-knotted and woven rugs, both of

Artwork by Kincaid Pearson ‘19 11

which require much slower processes, but all of these techniques produce beautiful finished rug designs.

Tell us about some of your current work.

At the moment I have a number of different projects that I am working on. My main project is creating a series of rugs based on motifs that I find myself using in the gouache paintings that I have been working on for the past year. I am trying to create rugs that have a sort of painterly quality to them. I think of rugs as canvases that lay upon the floor in the same way a painting hangs upon a wall. Rugs, though, of course, have a tactile nature to them and allow the viewer to actually interact with them, as opposed to most paintings.

How has your time at MECA influenced your work?

How do you stay connected to your MECA network?

My time at MECA influenced my work greatly because it was a place where I could really explore any and all avenues of art that I was interested in. With MECA’s many great faculty and resources, I was able to figure out that I had a passion for making rugs in my senior year. MECA really let me do exactly what I wanted to do, in particular during my thesis year. I was able to learn about making rugs at the same time I learned how to create CNC-made furniture. I don’t know many other schools that would allow for or have the resources to let you do something like that. I like to stay connected to my MECA network by going to gallery shows that happen in Portland and by supporting other MECA alumni. Currently, Naomi Russo ’19 and I are in the very early stages of creating a series of mirrors. Without MECA, I would not know all these other fantastic artists.

KINCAIDPEARSON.COM

Photo by: Nicolas Tanner Salt ’11

Isaac Kestenbaum Salt ’08, the Director of Salt, is a veteran audio producer and journalist. He is the co-founder, along with Josie Holtzman Salt ‘08 of the production company Future Projects; their true crime podcast Midnight Son recently won an Online News Association Award for excellence in audio digital storytelling, and a National Native Media Award for best coverage of Native America.

Photo by: Yevonnie Lowe Salt ’13

Photo by: Soffa Aldinio Salt ’14

Since 1973, the prestigious Salt Institute has taught students from all over the world to become truthful, thorough, creative, and responsible storytellers and documentarians.

In April of 2016, Maine College of Art was pleased to be in a position to ensure that the Salt Institute of Documentary Studies legacy would endure. Since becoming part of MECA in 2016, the full Salt experience has been accredited, offering a Graduate Certificate to those who successfully complete the program. The Graduate Certificate is not limited to those with an undergraduate degree. Anyone who is prepared for the rigor of a graduate program—such as a working professional in a similar field— can complete the program.

Salt is committed to transforming the field of documentary studies so that it reflects and amplifies a diversity of experiences, identities, and voices. The Salt Diversity Fellowship is specifically dedicated to providing assistance to accepted students from underrepresented communities who wish to attend the Salt at MECA Documentary Studies Program.

MECA’s ability to honor and continue the Salt legacy was made possible by generous gifts from the Quimby Family Foundation and The Betterment Fund, which committed significant operational funds in recognition of the deep value of this program.

meca.edu/salt | meca.edu/salt-fellowship

EMERGING ARTISTS MEG HAHN Meg Hahn ’17 currently lives and works in Portland, Maine. Her work has been included in exhibitions in Maine at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Perimeter Gallery, and BUOY, and at Collar Works in Troy, New York.

Hahn has attended residencies at the Vermont Studio Center, Hewnoaks Artist Colony, and the Monhegan Artists’ Residency, and will be a resident at the Sam & Adele Golden Foundation in 2021. In 2017, she was a recipient of the Joseph A. Fiore Painting Prize, a Maine award for emerging artists. Meg is also a co-director of the curatorial collective Border Patrol in Portland, Maine, and has co-organized Re-Site, a public art initiative organized by SPACE Gallery, and the inaugural Portland, Maine, chapter of the Terrain Biennial. She graduated from Maine College of Art with a BFA in Painting and a Minor in Art History and works out of the SPACE Studios building.

Can you talk a bit about your experience at MECA and why you chose to study here?

What is a project you are currently working on that you are particularly excited about?

My time at MECA was a positive experience both personally and academically. I felt really connected to the community I was around, and felt like there were a lot of opportunities to grow. I chose to study here because I was interested in Portland and was really attracted to the small size and intimate nature of the school and the studios themselves. I like the variety of creative energy Portland has and the close-knit nature of the community here, especially within the arts. While I was at MECA, the small and intimate nature definitely encouraged me to ask questions, try new ideas, and learn in a more personable way. The smaller class sizes and being able to connect with professors in this way were really beneficial to me.

In my studio, I am steadily making paintings that pertain to the same language and realm I am always working in and developing. One project I am currently working on that I am excited about is as an independent curator with SPACE Gallery, co-organizing Re-Site— a site-specific public art and Portland history-telling initiative. In collaboration with Maine historian Marieke Van Der Steenhoven and co-organizer Lia Wilson, I am working with five artists who each chose a site on the peninsula to create a temporary installation or performance in response to that location’s history.

The artists featured in Re-Site are Asha Tamirisa, Shane 14

C. Smith, Heather Flor Cron ’20, Veronica A. Perez ’16, and Asata Radcliffe (Adjunct Instructor of Academic Studies at MECA). The project description reflects our commitment to reexamining history: “Rooted in the fundamental knowledge of our presence on Wabanaki land, Re-Site strives to promote broader understanding of the lineage of colonization and gentrification that has transformed this landscape, seeing connective steps from the past to the present moment.” This is a project I am very proud to be a part of, as it has provided me with the professional room to grow and learn in a very collaborative way.

I also have three works on view at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art 2020 Biennial, in Rockport, Maine, which I am also very happy to be a part of. The works in this exhibition were all made earlier this year, and focus on my continued interest in color relationships and how the architecture of windows and door frames relates to abstraction.

How did your experiences at MECA and the networks you developed influence your career path following graduation?

I felt very fortunate to be able to ask questions and have conversations with faculty, who had professional experiences and personal knowledge they shared with me. This gave me the opportunity to learn more, gain inperson experience, and become aware of potential career paths I was interested in pursuing after graduating. Two

pieces of advice I received during my last year at MECA have stuck with me since. First was the idea of doing what you feel like doing in your studio, rather than maybe what you think you should be doing. It’s a good reminder for me to not be so strict with myself at times. For example, if you feel like cutting paper, filling in sections of color, etc., that day, do that—in the end, it all becomes incorporated into the work. That interest and energy will come through and help guide your process. The second, which I think is important for students, especially seniors, is that graduating is really just is the beginning of your artistic career and that there is much more to come.

How do you stay connected with MECA? Recently, I served as the Painting Studio Technician for the Painting Department at MECA. I also stay connected and up-to-date on MECA and my network by keeping up with alumni and MECA newsletters.

Top: Circle 4, oil on paper, 22.5” x 18”, 2020. Photo courtesy of artist.

Bottom: Window Gate, oil on panel, 14” x 14”, 2020. Photo courtesy of artist.

15

EMERGING ARTISTS SAM LEEDS SALT '19 Sam Leeds Salt ’19 is an audio producer and artist.

Leeds is currently a producer for National Public Radio Music’s Louder Than A Riot, a podcast tracing the interconnected rise of hip-hop and mass incarceration. Their work has also been heard on NPR’s Life Kit and All Things Considered, as well as on NPR affiliate station KNKX Public Radio in Seattle. Sam is a recent graduate of the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies at MECA and holds a BA in Communication and Spanish from the University of Washington.

Can you talk a bit about your experience at MECA and why you chose to study here?

What is a project you are currently working on that you are particularly excited about?

Before coming to Salt at MECA, I had been working a full-time job in another industry and freelancing in radio on the side. After about a year, I realized I wanted to switch careers and become a full-time radio producer.

My previous career meant I had the privilege of being able to afford tuition at Salt, so I took the leap. Salt made it socially acceptable to spend all my time either carrying a recorder or obsessing over a Pro Tools session. It also introduced me to a community of people who were equally passionate about audio—there’s nothing quite like being in a room of radio nerds. My cohort was full of incredible producers who wanted to make all different kinds of radio, and when I left I felt like I had a solid toolbox for entering the field.

Right now, I’m one of the producers on NPR Music’s new narrative podcast Louder Than A Riot. It’s a limited series that traces the interconnected rise of hip-hop and mass incarceration through stories and voices of the artists at this intersection. I started on the show as an intern with NPR’s Story Lab and am now on contract as a producer with the team. I’m especially passionate about two episodes I’m producing towards the end of our season. One episode tells the story of Philly rapper Isis Tha Saviour (née Mary Baxter). She gives us a window into how Black girls and people of marginalized genders are treated as adults from a very young age and punished accordingly, in ways that often funnel them into the prison system. Mary’s art helps her process her trauma, begin to heal, and reclaim time lost to the carceral system. The second episode unpacks the history of

Photo Left by: Kyle Dubay ’18 | Top Right Photo by: McKenna Hadley-Burke Salt ’19

17

prison reform through the story of Parchman Farm, a maximum-security prison farm in Mississippi, and the push towards abolition. I feel incredibly fortunate to get to work with hosts Sidney Madden and Rodney Carmichael to help bring their vision for this series to light.

How did your experiences at MECA and the networks you developed influence your career path following graduation?

Since Salt is only a five-month program, my time at MECA was fairly short, but it has had a big impact on my career path already. Part of the reason I landed my Story Lab internship with NPR was because of the connections I made through the Salt network. And because of that internship, I was at NPR right as the production of Louder Than A Riot was kicking into high gear. It was definitely a combination of networks, timing, and all of the skills I learned at Salt. Since moving across the country to enroll in a graduate certificate program isn’t a feasible option for many aspiring producers, I also want to push to develop more accessible entry points. Some of the failures that public media and journalism are facing right now stem from how high the barriers to entry are within our industry.

How do you stay connected with MECA? My Salt classmates formed a listserv before we left Portland and we keep each other updated on our lives and careers as much as possible. I’ve also really enjoyed speaking with people who are considering attending Salt and/or who are currently in the program. I also follow MECA’s Instagram account (@mecaart) for when I miss Portland and seeing all the installations in the hallways at MECA. What impacts do you think your work has had on your community?

Since graduating from the Salt program, I have reported and produced stories on the deaths of essential workers due to COVID-19, the high rates of anxiety and depression in the LGBTQ community, and the rise of mass incarceration through my work with Louder Than A Riot. I think these kinds of stories are essential to understanding how to build toward a safer and more equitable future. But I’m also continually thinking about ways to make my work more of a resource to my community. Although Louder Than A Riot just launched earlier in October, the project unpacks some powerful truths about who gets to make art freely and whose art is surveilled and conscripted.

As the hosts often say, the criminalization of hip-hop is a microcosm of America’s obsession with race and criminality writ large.

Note: Social justice is a cornerstone of Salt at MECA’s values, and that includes efforts to ensure that Salt helps to diversify documentary work and create opportunities for people who have historically been underrepresented in this field. To support our new Salt Diversity Fellowship Fund, visit meca.edu/salt-fund or contact Annie Wadleigh, Assistant Director of Development, at 207.699.5015. To learn more about the Salt program, visit meca.edu/salt.

18

EMERGING ARTISTS BEN SPALDING MFA ’17 Benjamin Spalding MFA ’17 is an interdisciplinary artist and educator based in Portland, Maine.

Spalding’s art practice is grounded in figuration and visual rhythm, influenced by music and ancestry. Spalding received his MFA from Maine College of Art in 2017 and moderated a panel at the International Sculpture Conference regarding materiality and the marginal identities (2017).

He was a former resident at the Ellis-Beauregard Foundation (2018–2019) and has worked as an adjunct professor for the past three years. He is currently an Assistant Professor in Foundations and Sculpture at MECA. Can you talk a bit about your experience at MECA and why you chose to study here?

I still go back to books and lectures from my MFA experience for inspiration and conceptual grounding.

Prior to starting my MFA at MECA, I was somewhat adrift. I had been living abroad in Germany for eight years and had just moved back home to Maine and lacked structure in my art practice. I initially began to look into MECA because of its proximity and professorto-student ratio. As I learned more, I realized that MECA was a small school that values individual development and experimentation. During my time here, I was met with a challenging curriculum and professors who offered varied perspectives for making and relating as artists. My MFA at MECA was an intense process that has really enriched my art practice and opened me up to the importance of teaching as part of my practice.

What is a project you are currently working on that you are particularly excited about?

My practice pivots between different making approaches and conceptual umbrellas, depending on the project, but right now, I’m asking questions about material. For better or worse, we are materialists who exist in a world of excess “stuff.” If we were really sensitive materialists, we’d care much more for the material around us. This leads me back to approaching objects and items that carry memory, offer possibilities for transformation, or are loaded with sensory impact. VHS tape, recorded sound, sporting equipment, and used construction 20

materials have been flowing back into my practice as installations and figurative forms. When it feels like the world is ending, how can we use the materials around us to rebuild and make something new? How can we use the discarded material around us to build an individual sense of cosmology or forge personal myths? All the pieces are here, it’s just a case of shifting perspective.

How did your experiences at MECA and the networks you developed influence your career path following graduation?

Prior to MECA, I never considered teaching to be a viable career path. During my time as an MFA student, I was a teaching assistant in several classes and enjoyed working with students and learning from them. This experience allowed me to begin teaching as an adjunct in the Sculpture Department after graduation, and, over time, developed into a visiting faculty position in the school. I have been supported by the MFA faculty as both an artist and educator, and the connections I’ve made here have led to various exhibition opportunities and residencies. As a professor, I’m constantly learning from my students and their individual perspectives, which has had a definite impact on my practice.

mystery and strangeness back into reality. The world is a strange place right now, and it’s calling on us for creative change—let’s see how weird we can make it.

How do you stay connected with MECA? Teaching at MECA means that I’m constantly connected with the school and its larger community. I visit the Institute of Contemporary Art at MECA on the first floor every time a new show opens, and I encourage all my students to visit as well. Thankfully, I’m invited to show in exhibitions that feature a healthy group of MECA alums, so I see people from the school everywhere.

For me, it’s about showing up as much as I can and realizing that I’m part of an active community of makers.

What impacts do you think your work has had on your community?

To say that my work speaks for other people or empowers a specific social cause puts a great deal of pressure on my practice. Hopefully my approach to both medium and making inspires people to view their reality as malleable and construct their own world with personally resonant material. In living in a world that’s dominated by language and science (both of which I respect and value), it’s important to inject some 21

Photos courtesy of artist.

PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE WHILE INVESTING IN OURS DO YOU LOVE MECA??

Planned giving is one way to give back to Maine College of Art in recognition of the College’s transformative impact on artists, arts education, and the economy in Maine and beyond.

Donors typically receive tax benefits for planned gifts that may enhance your financial situation and/or that of your heirs—while leaving a legacy for future generations of MECA artists.

We are happy to share educational materials and customized illustrations of how a planned gift can benefit you, a loved one, and MECA, all at the same time. We can assist you in crafting bequest language that will help you accomplish your charitable goals while ensuring that MECA will be able to use your bequest as you intend. There are many flexible giving options available, including ones you may not have considered.

If you have already included MECA in your estate plans and have not informed us, please let us know so we can thank you personally. We would like to welcome you into the 1882 Society, which recognizes MECA’s planned gift donors.

CONTACT US TODAY TO INVEST IN THE FUTURE OF MECA. Rebecca Swanson Conrad, Planned Giving Advisor, beckie.conrad@meca.edu Annie Wadleigh, Assistant Director of Development, awadleigh@meca.edu, 207-699-5015

MARGARET BROWNLEE MECA'S NEW DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION OFFICER Margaret Brownlee (she, her, hers) is MECA’s first Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Officer and also serves as the College’s Learning Support Coordinator. Her goal is to use design thinking and principles of transformative change to create new initiatives to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion on-campus. Margaret works closely with the Students of Color Coalition, Students of Faith Club, and students of the LGBTQAI+ community.

Margaret is currently working on her doctorate (Ed.D) in Educational Leadership at the University of New England and holds a master’s degree in education as well as a bachelor’s degree in performing arts. She is passionate about helping college students establish a sense of belonging in higher education by facilitating conversation about intersectionality, intercultural competence, and global fluency. Margaret also serves on the Human Rights Commission of the City of South Portland, Maine.

How did you come to work in the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion?

What does your role at MECA entail and what are some of your goals?

Growing up in a predominantly white state, I knew that I was going to stand out from the crowd.

This gave me the motivation to work harder and smarter at everything that I do—I went to college and got my bachelor’s, master’s, and am now enrolled in a doctorate program. I loved learning new things and quickly became interested in critical race theory, which encapsulates everything from implicit bias to microaggressions, intersectionality, and more. In addition to my interest in the research and inquiry side, I have lived experience as a queer woman of color, which is opening my eyes to so many systemic inequalities within society.

My role at MECA is to build a culture of mutual trust and respect among students, faculty, staff, alumni, and trustees. I do this by facilitating campus-wide training and advising, supporting the Strategic Plan (2020-2027), serving on the Diversity Committee, and working closely with Indigo Arts Alliance, the MECA Students of Color Coalition, and the Gender Sexuality Alliance. My goals for the 2020-2021 academic year are to facilitate conversations around the First-Year Experience Common Read, which is The Marrow Thieves; serve on the BFA Racial Justice Scholarship Committee and the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies Diversity Fellowship Committee; and conduct monthly trainings in coordination with Tanya Guay, MECA’s Director of Human Resources.

What does diversity mean to you, and why do you think it’s important in the world of the arts and arts education?

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) come together like peanut butter and jelly. With that said, DEI means people, power, and policy. These are the three pillars by which I approach my work at MECA. It means that I build strong relationships with everyone that I meet, constantly think about power dynamics and how they influence my work, and how I can change policies within the institution. It is important to the world of art and arts education because there are so many aspects that it touches: curriculum and instruction, hiring faculty, critiques, clubs and activities, programming, training, workshops, and so much more. The possibilities are endless.

MECA’s new brand initiative encourages students to “Be Seen.” How does this idea fit in with your vision for inclusion and visibility for students from underrepresented backgrounds?

Students at MECA can’t hide—the College is small and they are seen. We expect to hear from them and want them to speak to us. If there are things that students want us to know, they should call us, email us, and/or schedule a meeting with us; we are here to help. My vision for the first year is to build a culture of mutual trust and respect. I hope to do this through daily interactions in the halls and online. I encourage students to participate in the Students of Color Coalition, Genders & Sexualities Alliance, and come to our Student Life office to meet me. Here’s to a great year!

24

Alumni News Artists at Work Awards Aminata Conteh ’21 and Helena Jefferson ’22 were selected as interns at Indigo Arts Alliance, an arts incubator and residency program in Portland, ME, committed to cultivating the artistic development of artists of African descent that was founded by Assistant Professor in Illustration Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19, and Marcia Minter, Hon. DFA ’19.

Other News

Ebenezer Akakpo ’01, Hannah Rosengren ’13, and CS faculty member Kifah Abdullah were some of the artists to create banners and signs for Creative Portland as an addition to the city of Portland, ME’s public health campaign Stay the Course, created by LK Weiss ’11 of Portland Design Co and their team.

Jenny McGee Dougherty ’05, Maia Snow ’13, Meg Hahn ’17, Baxter Koziol ’17, Alumni Relations & Events Coordinator Isabelle Maschal O’Donnell ’17, Anne Buckwalter MFA ’12, Adjunct Instructor in Sculpture and Foundation Benjamin Spalding MFA ’17, and Elyse Noelani Grams MFA ’20 were featured in the 2020 CMCA Biennial in Rockland, ME.

Joseph Della Valle ’97, Harlan Crichton ’12, Cole Caswell MFA ’08, Christian Farnsworth MFA ’09, Below: Work from the 2020 CMCA Biennial: 2a: Jenny Tim Greenway Salt ’03, Program Chair of McGee Dougherty ’05, 2b: Baxter Koziol ’17, 2c: Anne Photography Justin Kirchoff, Assistant Professor Buckwalter MFA ’12 Scott Peterman, and CS faculty member Thurston Howes were featured in the show, Faculty 2a Photography, at Cove Street Arts in Portland, ME. Ebenezer Akakpo ’01 created the installation Hope and Friendship in downtown Portland, ME, as part of the Creative Bus Shelter program organized

by Creative Portland, in partnership with Greater Portland Metro and the Greater Portland Council of Governments, and made possible by a National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town” grant award.

The project aims to strengthen communities by engaging local artists and arts administrators, in partnership with transit providers and in collaboration with the Office of Economic Opportunity and the Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center, for positive social impact and systems change.

Below: Ebenezer Akakpo ’01, Hope and Friendship bus shelter installation

25

2b

2c

Victoria Marsh ’07, Asherah Cinnamon ’08, Meg Hahn ’17, Gabrielle Brown ’18, Ashley Page ’20, and Hannah Adams MFA ’19, were featured in the exhibition Woven Together at Engine in Biddeford, Maine, which explores the work of contemporary textile and fiber artists while examining the history of textiles in Maine.

Image 3a and 3b: Work from Woven Together at Engine: 3a: L-R Meg Hahn ’17, Ashley Page ’20, Gabrielle Brown ’18, Hannah Adams MFA ’19.

3a

3b

Rachel Gloria Adams ’15, Ashley Page ’20, Maddie Poitrast-Upton ’20, Aminata Conteh ’21, Assistant Professor in Illustration Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19, and Marcia Minter, Hon DFA ’19, along with other community artists, painted a mural integrating the words of the artist Ashley Bryan, “Black is beautiful, uh-huh!,” in front of Indigo Arts Alliance in Portland, Maine. This piece was a part of Indigo’s Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Book Festival that honors Ashley Bryan and celebrates children’s books and their creators from across the African diaspora.

Rachel Gloria Adams ’15 and Ashley Page ’20 created Fallen Blooms, a mural in downtown Portland that uses Rachel’s floral design work in tandem with cyanotypes that Ashley created in response to the death of George Floyd (part of her ongoing project In Memory of Those Taken).

According to Rachel, “These prints were created to honor the lives of African Americans that have been cut short due to racially motivated violence... we present the lives of the dearly departed in a bed of flowers to pay homage to their beauty and remember the life they led with grace and excellence.” The mural shares a building 26

Above: Rachel Gloria Adams ’15 and Ashley Page ’20, Fallen Blooms mural, 2020 with the art installation Counting From 13, a collaboration between artists Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19, Assistant Professor in Illustration Ryan Adams, and Titi de Baccarat.

Rachel Gloria Adams ’15, Al Tomas ’19, Ian Colwell ’20, Alejandra Cuadra ’20, and Assistant Professor of Illustration Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19 were featured in the exhibition One Day at a Time, curated by Ashley Page ’20, at the Portland Public Library in Portland, Maine, in collaboration with Pilar Nadal MFA ’13 of Pickwick Independent Press.

Heather Flor Cron ’20, Veronica A. Perez MFA ’16, and Adjunct Instructor in Academic Studies Asata Radcliffe created temporary public installations in Portland, Maine, as part of SPACE Gallery’s Re-Site, a public art and 27

Portland history-telling initiative that was coorganized by Meg Hahn ’17.

Veronica Perez MFA ’16 was the recipient of a 2020 Ellis-Beauregard Foundation Fellowship Award for Maine visual artists, paired with a solo exhibition at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockland, ME. Alumni Opportunities Maine College of Art recognizes our alumni as an essential part of our community. Please visit meca.edu/alumni to learn more about our alumni benefits, residencies, grants, and other opportunities. To share a news story of your own, email Alumni Relations & Events Coordinator Isabelle Maschal O’Donnell ’17 at alums@meca.edu.

IN MEMORIAM FREEDOM LEIGH HAMLIN (Attended) ’04 Freedom Leigh Hamlin was born on January 27, 1981, after the American hostages were freed from Iran (thus the name Freedom) and passed away at 39 years old on June 30, 2020. She grew up in Rockland, Maine, and graduated from Rockland District High School where she excelled academically and athletically. In her youth, she was an accomplished equestrian, taking home numerous blue ribbons.

She later attended Maine College of Art, where she polished her skills as a jewelry maker and painter. Freedom received certifications in Philadelphia and Tucson and enjoyed going to area schools and sharing her craft with the children of Rockland. She and her mother owned a jewelry shop in downtown Rockland, where she loved taking her mother’s designs and bringing them to life. She is survived by her mother, Heidi Stevens, and her stepfather, David Hooper, of Rockland; her father David Hamlin and her stepmother, Cindi, of South Thomaston; her three children Alexandra Bunker, Xavier Luce, and Lux Luce; siblings Cassie Burrows, Zeke Hamlin, and Taylor Hamlin; and many other relatives and friends. One of Freedom’s favorite places to be was the private beach of Chickawaukie Lake, where she shared simple and extraordinary times with her mother and children.

MICHAEL WHITNEY GALLAGHER ’07 Michael Whitney Gallagher, 37, of Hickory, North Carolina, passed away on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at Catawba Valley Medical Center. He was born August 9, 1983 in Omaha, Nebraska. Michael studied architectural and engineering design at Southern Maine Community College and graduated from Maine College of Art with a BFA in Woodworking & Furniture Design. He took workshops at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and Penland School of Crafts, and in 2009 he was awarded a MECA Belvedere Grant for professional development. He worked at Arcadia Designworks, LLC; as the Woodshop Manager at North Carolina State University Craft Center, where he also taught classes; and for over 11 years as a designer and builder for Atreeom, LLC, a small family furniture company. Most recently he had become the owner of Strauch Fiber Equipment Co. He also ran a custom woodworking and furniture shop out of his studio and was a member of Hickory Young Professionals. He is survived by his former wife, Tanya Casteel ’06, and their daughter Aeon Casteel Gallagher, of Asheville, North Carolina; fiancée Ashley Chapman and her daughters Presley and Lillian Olson of Newton, North Carolina; his parents Carl Andrew Gallagher and Linda Ann Lovgren Gallagher of Lincoln, Nebraska; his brother Robert Andrew Gallagher of Milford, Ohio; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and other extended family members.

Alumni CLASS NOTES 1970s William Rand ’78 participated in the LongHouse Shares: Benefit Auction 2020, a fundraiser for LongHouse Reserve in East Hampton, NY. Celeste Roberge ’79 had work included in the exhibition Seaweed Sensibilities at George Marshall Store Gallery in York, ME. Below: Celeste Roberge ’79, Wet Suit #2, Wet Suit, Hydrocal, cotton, wax, various seaweeds, neoprene wetsuit, welded steel base,45” x 15” x 7”. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Greg Dyro ’81 was interviewed by Jasin Boland about his career as a Hollywood photo lab director and working over 20 years in the motion picture photography industry.

Jill Osgood (attended) ’83 was selected as Baxter State Park’s Visiting Artist.

Sharyn B. Paul Brusie ’86 and Mildred Bachrach MFA ’19 were featured in the section titled On Healing in the Maine Arts Journal, coordinated by Continuing Studies faculty member Diane Dahlke.

Thomas Connolly ’87 had a solo exhibition at Greenhut Galleries in Portland, ME.

1990s Anne Ireland ’94 had a show at the Gallery at Somes Sound in Mount Desert Island, ME, with part of the proceeds benefiting Maine Coast Heritage Trust.

Kara Taylor ’97 was featured in the Martha’s Vineyard Times article “Home Is Where the Art Is.” Renée Bouchard ’99 had her essay “Artist/ Mother/Quarantine” published in Isele magazine.

Renée also participated in the virtual exhibition TOGETHER at Now About Art. Jon Byrer ’99 did an online artist presentation hosted by Camden Public Library in Camden, ME.

2000s Mali Mrozinski ’04 had a solo exhibition, Woven Archives, at New System Exhibitions in Portland, ME. Lisa Pixley ’07 was included in the exhibition Flight at Cove Street Arts in Portland, ME.

2010s Adam Chau ’10 had a solo exhibition, SENT, at the Clay Studio in Philadelphia, PA. Abbeth Russell ’11, Alice Carroll ’88, Colleen Forde ’96, and Christine Hall MFA ’06 were featured in The Small Works Fundraiser’s general sale at River Tree Arts in Kennebunk, Maine.

1980s Michael Vermette ’80 was selected as the inaugural 2020 visiting artist for the Allagash Wilderness Waterway artist-in-residence program.

29

LK Weiss ’11, owner and creative director of Portland Design Co, designed the City of Portland, Maine’s Stay The Course website for COVID-19 information.

John Nelson ’12, owner of Nelson Metal Fabrication, made swings for Park at Amethyst, a new waterfront park in Portland, ME. Swings at the Park at Amethyst that were fabricated

by John Nelson ‘12 of Nelson Metal Fabrication.

spirituality in the Afro-Atlantic world; and the (re)creation of meanings of home. Daniel and Marcia Minter, Hon. DFA ’19, were featured on Maine Voices Live, a program that hosts conversations between Portland Press Herald writers and notable Mainers.

Jordan Carey ’19 and Madison Poitrast-Upton ’20 of Loquat were featured in a Portland Press Herald article about Portland, ME, designers who make wearable art.

2020s Candice Gosta ’20 and Sidney Sanchez ’21 worked with Continuing Studies faculty member Kerrin Parkinson on a mural in downtown Portland, ME. Below: Let Equality Shine mural by Candice Gosta ’20, Sidney Sanchez ’21, and CS Faculty Member Kerrin Parkinson Shelby Goldsmith ’14, Jayne Redman ’77, and Nisa Smiley ’00 were included in the 2020 Craft Apprentice Program Capstone exhibition Open House, organized by the Maine Crafts Association in partnership with the Maine Arts Commission.

Rachel Gloria Adams ’15 created a flag entitled Resilient Blooms that was on display outside SPACE Gallery in Portland, ME. Rachel and her husband, Ryan Adams, also created a series of murals called the Piece Together Project, throughout the East Bayside neighborhood located in Portland, ME, celebrating locals who have shaped the community.

Gunnar Johnson ’17 had a sticker set he designed featured in The Push ’n Pull project, which connects local Maine artists with venues and the general public in the Portland, ME, area through coin-operated art vending.

Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19 and Assistant Professor in Illustration, had a solo exhibition, States Of?, at Greenhut Galleries in Portland, ME. Minter is known for his work in the mediums of painting and assemblage. His overall body of work often deals with themes of displacement and diaspora; ordinary/extraordinary blackness;

Ramone Lampos ’20 won the International Sculpture Center’s Award for Outstanding Student Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture. ISC is based in Jersey City, NJ, and publishes Sculpture magazine.

Athena Lynch ’20’s piece Altar’d Space was installed in Congress Square Park in Portland, ME. Ollie McGowan ’20 created a flag for SPACE Gallery that addressed the discrimination of the transgender community within the United States and throughout the world.

30

Ashley Page ’20’s piece In Memory of Those Taken was installed in Congress Square Park in Portland, ME. Page was also interviewed by the Portland Press Herald about her artistic practice and the social and political role of art.

Ashley Page ’20, In Memory of Those Taken, Congress Square Park, 2020

MFA Aaron T Stephan MFA ’02 curated the new exhibition The Taste of a Cinder Block is Not a Cinder Block or An Ordinary Kind of Magic at Able Baker gallery in Portland, ME. John P. Gardiner ’07, MFA ’14 was accepted as a new associate member at the Boston Sculptors Gallery, and will be featured in an exhibition at the gallery in January/February.

Gardiner also received an Adjunct Faculty Development Grant from MECA and a Small Project Grant for Artists from the Maine Arts Commission, and was awarded a Hewnoaks Artist Colony residency in Lovell, ME. Michel Droge MFA ’10 had an exhibition, The Farm Tools, displayed at the University of Maine at Farmington’s Emery Community Arts Center.

The exhibit was a visual exploration of the use of hand tools on small farms, featuring cyanotype images made by Droge, with the help of archaeologist Sarah Loftus.

Top Right: Michel Droge MFA ’10, Eliot Coleman’s Garden Hoes -Four Season Farm, cyanotype, 22” x 30”.

31

John Fireman MFA ’14, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Art History, was featured in ACOUSTIC RESONANCE, an exhibition focused on the art of sound at The Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art in Portland, ME. John Fireman MFA ’14, IN THE FURY! (video still), 2018

Annika Earley MFA ’16 and Veronica Perez MFA ’16 had a two-person exhibition, Veiling: New Work, at New System Exhibitions in Portland, ME. Amelia Garretson-Persans MFA ’16, along with her husband, Ian P. Hundt, designed an installation for the SPACE Gallery window titled Mystery Pond.

Amelia Garretson-Persans MFA ’16 and Ian P. Hundt, Mystery Pond, 2020

artist who enjoys tactile process art, natural fiber spinning, botanical dyeing, printmaking, and photography and is inspired by natural phenomena, botany, animals, stories, myths, memories, ephemera, and literature.

Salt Ayumi Horie Salt ’92 wrote an essay for the Maine Craft Association as part of its series “What Maine Craft Means To Me” about how her identity is inextricable from politics and politics is inextricable from craft.

Willa Kammerer Salt ’09 directed the featurelength documentary film on early childhood education Starting at Zero: Reimagining Education in America. The film was co-produced by the Saul Zaentz Charitable Foundation and Kammerer’s team, Firestarter Interactive. Starting at Zero explores the power of investing in high-quality early childhood education and brings together the voices of educators, academics, business leaders, pediatricians, parents, children, and policymakers.

Will Jacks MFA ’20 was a Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters 2020 award winner in the Photography category for his exhibit Po’ Monkey’s: Portrait of a Juke Joint. Jacks spent 10 years photographing scenes from the last rural juke joint in the state, in Merigold, Mississippi

Ali Lemer Salt ’19, Paige Mazurek Salt ’19, and Rosie Julin Salt ’20 contributed to the project NO Justice ! NO Peace.stream, a permanent crowdsourced audio stream that broadcasts global anti-racist protests.

Pritha RaySircar Salt ’20 was awarded a six-month residency at the Ellis-Beauregard Foundation in Rockland, ME.

Anna Valenti MFA ’20 was one of four artists chosen to create work for the Outdoor Sculpture Project Outstanding in the Field, at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts in Newcastle, ME. Anna Valenti MFA ’20 Johab Silva MFA ’22 was featured in the exhibition Traces at The Kreeger Museum in Washington, D.C.

MAT Ouda Baxter MAT ’17 was hired as the K-12 art teacher for Islesboro Central School in Maine.

Baxter is a multimedia sculptor and installation

32

Annual Report OF GIVING Maine College of Art is proud to present our Annual Report of Giving to acknowledge and thank our donors for gifts made between July 1, 2019, and July 30, 2020, which totaled:

$2,154,262

This total represents an over 17% increase from Fiscal Year 2019. We are deeply grateful to our donors for their vital support. Every gift has an immediate impact on our students. Make your own transformative gift by June 30, 2020, and add your name to our growing list of supporters! meca.edu/donate THE PORTEOUS SOCIETY

Donors who make generous gifts of $2,000 or more each year to any purpose at the College are included in MECA’s Porteous Society. Members are invited to special events and share the College’s commitment to provide students with the tools they need to take risks, think critically, and work creatively to become the next generation of artists and thinkers. $100,000 AND ABOVE + The Crewe Foundation + Davis Educational Foundation + Dr. Edward M. Friedman ’08 and Carol Joyce Friedman + Roger Gilmore, Hon. DFA ’02 and Betty Gilmore + The Lunder Foundation + Roxanne Quimby Foundation, Inc. + Estate of Carl Benton Straub •

$20,000 – $99,999 + Anonymous + Joan and Dan Amory + The Gene R. Cohen Charitable Foundation + Deborah S. Reed + Estate of Philip P. Thompson, Jr. • + Hoyt Walbridge and Stephanie Sewall + Warren Memorial Foundation + Kathryn A. Yates

$10,000 – $19,999 + Anonymous (2) + Mr. and Mrs. Douglas R. Coleman, Jr. + Daniel N. Crewe + Diversified Communications + Evergreen Foundation + E. Kent Gordon + Betsy and Christopher M. Hunt, Hon. DFA ’13 + Onion Foundation + Susan A. Rogers and Dr. Malcolm P. Rogers + Jenny Scheu and John Ryan + Katharine J. Watson + Brian Wilk ’95 33

$5,000 – $9,999 + Katherine Bradford + Jane G. Briggs + Matthew and Lesli Friel P ’21 + Diane Garthwaite and Matthew Liang + Hasbro Children’s Fund, Inc. + The Holt Family Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + The Roy A. Hunt Foundation + Brian Manske + Leo Manske and Michael Johnson + Margaret and Mason Morfit + Anne and Vincent Oliviero, through the Arthur W. Purdue Foundation + TD Charitable Foundation + Louise Tuski + The VIA Agency

$2,000 – $4,999 + Anonymous + Anderson Family Foundation + Richard and Karin Anderson + Judi and Paul Clancy + The Harry E. Cummings Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + Dick and Margaret Curran through the Curran Family Fund + Bob and Debby Dluhy + Linden Frederick + Laura Freid and David Gottesman + Cyrus Hagge + Judy Hamlin ’82 and Gordon Hamlin + Harvard Pilgrim Health Care + James Horne and Cathy Jeanette + Indigo Arts Alliance

+ The William Sloane Jelin Charitable Foundation + Mark and Meredith Koerner P ’16 + Margaret Lawrence ’93 + C. Waite Maclin + Karen L. McDonald + Suzanne and Cornelius McGinn + Roy Milligan + Northland Enterprises, LLC + Dan and Nancy Poteet + The Rines/Thompson Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + Jayne Robbins P ’12 + Mary Schendel and Phil Gleason + Susan Schraft, M.D. and Richard S. Berne + Judy M. Sisson + Ann C. Slocum P ’81 + Ari and Natalie Solotoff + Alice Spencer, Hon. DFA ’18 and Richard A. Spencer through a Component Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + The Phineas W. Sprague Memorial Foundation + Phil Stevens ’91 + The Estate of Marie E. Thomas 47 • + Bill and Jacky Thornton + Dietlind Vander Schaaf and Kelly Palomera + Verisk Analytics + Michael E. Vermette ’80 + Susan Wilk P ’95 + Brad and Ann Willauer + Guy G. Williams ’80 + Caron Zand and Donald L. Head + Paula and Jamie Zeitlin + Bill and Patty Zimmerman through a component fund of the Maine Community Foundation

$1,000 – $1,999 + The Edward S. and Cornelia Greaves Bates Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + Donald B. Best ’81 + Allison Brown ’01 and Blake Brown + Annette H. Cardullo + Melanie and Eliot Cutler + Roderick L. Dew ’80, MFA ’00 + William R. Dill, Hon. DFA ’14 and Jean Dill + Elijah River Dion ’19 + Cindy Dykes + Elizabeth Elicker + Betsy and Tom Elliman though the Elliman Charitable Fund, a Donor Advised Fund of The U.S. Charitable Gift Trust + David and Heidi Fitz + Marian A. Godfrey Gardner through the Maine Community Foundation + Alan and Margaret Gorman P ’21 + Meg Hahn ’17 + Ineke Heinhuis-Schair through the Ineke H. Schair Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + Mark Jamra + Judith Kane + Jeffrey Klotz + June LaCombe Sculpture + David Lakari + Rebecca Lambert + Maine Humanities Council + J.S. McCarthy Printers + June M. McCormack + Mr. Hugh P. McCormick III and Mrs. Joyce N. McCormick P ’15 + Kathleen and Warren McKeon P ’02 + The Stephanie Hope Mull Memorial Scholarship Fund of the Maine Community Foundation + Kenneth and Mary Nelson + Tessa G. O’Brien MFA ’16 + Suzi Osher + Kerrin Ries Parkinson + Sam and Teresa Pierce + Whitney River (attended) ’92 + Celeste Roberge ’79 + David E. Shaw, Hon. DFA ’16 + Peter Sheldon, Hon. DFA ‘82 and Ann Sheldon + Gail Spaien + Bill and Peg Tetreault P ’18 + C. David Thomas ’68, Hon. DFA ’16 + Crandall Toothaker + USI Insurance Services, LLC + Neil W. Wallace

$500 – $999 + Anonymous (3)

+ Judith Allen-Efstathiou + Ian C. Anderson and Kari E. Radasch ’97 + Nancy and Michael Beebe + John S. Beliveau + Matthew Blackwell ’77 + Renee R. Bouchard ’99 + John Bowdren + Juliette Britton ’95 + Caravan Beads, Inc. + Elinor Clark + Kenneth Cole III and Anne Ireland ’94 + Sydney Davis + Charles de Sieyes and Carol Ward + Nicole M. Duennebier ’05 + Joshua Ferry ’94 + Emmett Brown Armitage Freeman ’17 + Russell French ’83 + Maria Gallace and Tim Soley + Kathleen Galligan + Olwen and Peter Gardiner P ’07 + Grace Hager ’15 + Séan Alonzo Harris + Drew Hodges + Richard and Jennifer Hubbell + Wheaton and Elinor Hudson + Matt Hutton and Erin Hutton ’98 + Alice W. Ingraham + Wendy Kaye + Kathryn Knight-Wise + Maya Kuvaja ’97 + Justine Lasdin MAT ’19 + The Second Abraham S. and Fannie B. Levey Foundation + Dale Lewis ’91 and Rich Lewis + Karen Lium + Anne Massey + Franklin Warren McFarlan + Mr. and Mrs. Richard P. Mellon + Daniel Minter, Hon. DFA ’19 + Jeremy Moser and Laura Kittle + Munira and Ali Naqui + Grace Nelson ’82 + Vanessa Nesvig + Shirah Neumann MFA ’12 + Diane S. Nichols + Northern Benefits of Maine LLC + Isabelle Maschal O’Donnell ’17 + Mrs. Gillet T. Page + Patricia A. Peard + Holly Ready ’94 + Thomas and Rita Saliba + Cary Slocum ’81 + Jan C. Ter Weele + Carolyn H. Thomas • + Nancy R. Wade P ’20 + Annie Wadleigh

+ Monte and Anne Wallace + Abigail and Barry Wark + Wright-Ryan Construction, Inc.

$250 – $499 + Anonymous + Janice B. Adler + Aileen Agnew + Isak W. Applin ’98 + Lori A. Austill ’85 + Marian L. Baker + Cat E. Bates ’09 + Sissy and Sandy Buck + Hannah S. Day ’20 + Brian D. Downs MFA ’19 + Elizabeth Ehrenfeld + Jack and Kay Emory + Jessica Parker Foley MFA ’20 + Lisa Gent + Cate S. Gilbane + Tracy Ginn ’83 + Peggy Greenhut Golden + Carol Grape ’78 and Michael D’Innocente + Siobhan Haggett ’19 + Ayumi Horie Salt ’92, Sara Varon, and The Democratic Cup + Kris-Way Truck Leasing, Inc. + Kelley Lehr and John Danos + Liberty Mutual Group + Anthony Mancini, Inc. + Lori Calabro McGrath + Theresa McNally and Michael Thompson P ’14 + Naomi Grace McNeill ’08 + Katie Murphy ’91 and Peter Lindsay + Jeffrey M. Noel ’85 + Victoria Nolan and Clark Crolius + Sue Nutty + Judith O’Donnell + Dennis and Anne O’Donovan + One4All Charitable Fund + Jim and Amy Osborn + Rachael O’Shaughnessy ’94 + Tina Petra + Elizabeth Prior ’82 + Catherine Quattrociocchi ’17 + Lewis J. Rossignol ’17 + Jim and Lynn Shaffer + Brendan Ripken Shea ’18 + Scott Simons Architects LLC + Taproot Media LLC + Nat Thompson + André S. F. van de Putte + Michael Welch ’68 + Rob and Robin Whitten + Sally Wigon + Wipfli / Macpage

• Deceased 34

$100 – $249

+ Anonymous (5) + Aglaia and Mumtaz Ahmed + Ebenezer Akakpo ’01 + Jonathan and Nancy Aldrich + Diana and Tom Allen + Gerald Alles and Patricia Arbour Alles ‘69 + Leslie Anderson and Dan Nygaard + Nathan Aranson + Sally and Ron Bancroft + Amy Kustra Barksdale and Scott Barksdale + Wyatt Barr ’17 + Kelley Boero + Carolyn B. Branson + Steven Brinn + John H. Bubar + Teri and Richard Burdick P ’22 + Burgess Advertising + Olivia Cabot-Sawyer + Claude Caswell + Frances P. Caswell + Jim Cavanagh P ’83 + Dianne Chicoine + Asherah Cinnamon ’08 + Andrew and Judith Coburn + Kimberly M. Convery ’05 + Meredith Cough ’89 + Jennifer Coyne + Tom Cushman + Sarah Daignault + Shiva Darbandi + Lea N. DeForest ’07 + Roberta and David deGrandis P ’05 + Terrence J. DeWan & Associates + Henry L. Donovan + Sarah and Thomas Dowd + David C. Driskell, Hon. DFA ’96 • + Joel Eckhaus and Donna Doughten + Rochelle Edelson + Linda and Sam Emerson + Eric Eng ’04 + Stephen and Joan Fitzhugh P ’05 + Jen FitzPatrick + Julie Coxe Freund ’81 and Daniel Freund + Daniel Gardner + Sheila Geant + Lauren and Aron Glennon + Shelby Goldsmith ’14 + Sara Gray + Diane L.E. Green-Minor + Daniel J. Guettinger P ’12 + Katherine and Ralph Harding + Heather Harvey + Constance Hayes ’80, Hon. DFA ’03 and George Terrien + Willard J. Hertz + Jamie Hogan + Kathy Irving + Tim Kane and Beth George + Kate Katomski MFA ’02 35

+ Dr. and Mrs. Frederick S. Larned + Richard Lemieux + Michael E. Lewis, M.D., P ’16 + Rob Licht ’84 + Mary Anne Lloyd ’83 + Martha N. Lohaus ’98 + Arnela Mahmutovic ’17 + George M. Manyan + Rose Marasco + Nat May + Robin McCarthy ’87 and Ted McCarthy + Susan and Frank McGinty P ’08 + Roxanne McGlashan ’88 + Samuel Mechanic P ’13 + Susan Metters and Mark Segar + Kent and Ann Mohnkern + Rachel Suzanne Monegue ’19 + Jenny Moore ’01 and Kenn Guimond + Mary Morse + Charles Stewart Mott Foundation + Diane and Steve Neal + Leonard Nelson and Merle Nelson, Hon. DFA ’04 + Ben and Anne Niles + Harold Osher + Peter and Helen Pachios + Barbara S. Pappas P ’80 + Grace F. Payne + Meg Brown Payson + Kincaid R. Pearson ’19 + Abby Peck + Emily Percival ’06 + Jeff and Sarah Peterson + Sharon Portelance ’82 + Lois P. Poster P ’97 + Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Prinn III + Sandra Quinn ’87 and Eddie Quinn + Emily Rogstad ’13 + Joseph Rosshirt ’11 + Farrell Ruppert ’00 + Naomi David Russo ’19 + Paul and Jula Sampson P ’11 + Holly and Steve Sawtelle P ’19 + Ellen Seidman + Esi Seng + Barbara and Peter Shaw + Michael and Tammy Sherwood P ’13 + Amy Shinn + John and Janice Siegle + Dr. and Mrs. Barry H. Smith + Paul and Vivian Smith P ’20 + Rebecca Waxman Sneed and Doug Sneed + Judith E. Sobol + Kenneth Spirer and Joan Leitzer + Roger Sprague + Seth and Laura Sprague + Norma St. Angelo + Dawn L. Stanley ’62 + Robert E. Stevens, Esq. and Kathleen Sullivan + Dr. Connie Stevenson P ’03

+ Jessica Tomlinson + David and Marjorie Tourangeau + James Turack + C.M.C. Twitchell Timberlands, Inc. and Thomas C. Carney + Patricia VanTuyl + John and Cheslye Ventimiglia + Christine J. Vincent + Violet Weiner ’20 + Donna Wermenchuk + Katarina Weslien + Ian McKibbin White and Florence Hildreth White + Michael Wilson + Sarah Camille Wilson ’07 + Woods Remodeling & Service + Gan Xu + Daniel and Franny Zilkha + Anne B. Zill

UP TO $99

+ Anonymous (6) + AmazonSmile Foundation + Gary Ambrose P ’06 + William Austin + Katharine Ayer ’98 + James Baker + Martha deLyra Barker P ’18 + Bob and Bev BaRoss + Sandra M. Bauer ’07 + Chris Berry + Paul Boghossian + Piper D. Bolduc + Victoria Bonebakker + Alexandra Boucher MAT ’19 + Leah Brooks + Phillip Brou + Nik Bsullak ’99 + Jane Burke ’77 + Joan Campbell + Rachel Chaya Caron ’99 + James Chute + Donna J. Coffin ’63 + Diane Coit + Corner Stone Chapter OES #193 + The Cousens Family ’21 + Maysey Craddock MFA ’03 + Jenna Crowder ’09 + Michael Yates Crowley + JoAnne Daly P ’97 + Christina Davis ’87 + Del Bene Family ’21 + Anne E. Dennison + Raffi DerSimonian + DeVico Family ’19 + Kristen Leigh Devico ’19 + Gail Dodge + Peter F. Donnelly + Nicholas K. Downing + Steven Emmons

+ Eri Design + Barbara Ritchie Fixaris ’58 + Marilyn G. Fraktman + Carri Frechette + Olivia Fredericks + Brenda and Mark Gadzik P ’19 + Rochelle Garcia ’15 + Amy Robinson Gendrou MFA ’04 + Phyllis and Bernard Givertz + Pauline M. Gobeil ’81 + Rebecca and Joel Gratwick + Amy and Martin Grohman + Mark D. Grover + Stephen and Judith Halpert + Margo Halverson + Tina D. Hamilton P ’21 + Barbara Harrison + Kendra Haskell ’89 + Hanna McCrum Henderson + Adriane Herman + Andrew Herrschaft ’88 + Andrea and Terry Hook P ’13 + David Hutchins ’87 + Tammy E. Jackson ’02 + Nico Jenkins + Emily Johansen + Penelope Jones ’84 + Bob Jordan ’02 + John Kaminski + Denise Karabinus ’99 + Rachel Katz MFA ’00 + Sharon and Jim Kaye P ’20 + David Kelsey and Kimberly Clouser + Ruth Kepron + Stuart Kestenbaum and Susan Webster + Sharon Kimball + Jerrica Demers Kontos + Rusty Lamer ’99 + Coleen Laprise + Karen and Howard Levine + Elizabeth H. Lewis ’16 + Denise Linet + Paula D. London ’99 + Karen Lukas + Arikah Lynne ’22 + Zelie Madwin + Estelle S. Maillet ’59 + Mr. Russell B. Mamone P ’04 + George E. Mandell P ’16 + Silvia Masters + Tracy Mastro ’91 + Mary McAllister + Kelly McConnell and Matt Priddy + Douglas Bruce McDonald + Maureen McHugh + Sarah S. Meacham + Marjorie Melikian ’63 + Betsy and Roger Mervis + Michelle Michaud ’09 + Caren-Marie Sargent Michel ’78 + Marianne Millette-Kelley

Maine College of Art FY20 GIVING TO MECA | TOTAL: $2,154,262

$415,028

Annual Fund 19%

$1,137,380

52%

Endowment Gifts

17%

$359,769

Restricted Gifts

8%

1%

$1,615

Holiday Sale 2019 Event:

+ Jerry C. Millhon P ’95 + Erica Moody + Jessica Morel + Judith and Lucien Morin + Leeanna Morris MFA ’14 + Tom and Carolyn Noering + Dorothy and Bogdan Olaru + Bryan Olson + Will O’Shea + Edith M. Ouellette P ’90 + Joe and Sue Packard P ’14 + Patricia Parker + Mary Lynn Parsloe P ’18 + Abe and Jean Peck + Raffaella D. Peters + Heidi Peterson + Russ and Lisa Pierce + A. Pinard ’07 + Leticia Plate + Sarah and Jonathan Prescott, Sr. P ’19 + Laura Preshong ’92 + Nikki Farrand Rayburn ’11 + Natalie Reed ’13 + Christopher I. Rice + John and Carolyn Richards P ’20 + Rosanne Riddick + Paige Riley + Hannah Rosengren ’13 + Mary Roy + Whit Kilpatrick Russell ’09 + Pam Ryder P ’17 + Jeff and Susie Saffer + Julie Poitras Santos + Arline Saturdayborn ’91 + Betsy Scheintaub

3% $173,129

President’s Fund $67,341

COLLECT: Art Sale

+ Stephen and Lisa Schiffman + Susie and Steve Schwartz + Deborah S. Shinn + Karen Siatras ’91 + Gina Siepel MFA ’08 + Jack Silverio + John Smedley P ’18 + Julie Smith + Daniel B. Sobel and Kira Wigoda + Rachel Somerville + Vanja Somerville + Jennifer McCrea Steele ’90 + Stonewall Kitchen + Beth Thomarios + Karen Thorpe + Dr. and Mrs. Robert Timothy + Jules Tortolani + Judith Waldron P ’04 + Susan Waller + James Walsh ’05 + William Webster + Audrey M. White P ’94 + Kay White + Susan Whitford + Rosemary Whitney + Stephen T. Williams P ’21 + Suanne Williams-Lindgren + Rhonda Wilson ’91 + Evelyn Wong MFA ’19 + Louise Woodbury + The Wrights ’22 + Heather York + Robin Zuckerman P ’20

• Deceased 36

MECA’s GIVING PROGRAM Every gift is important to us and we strive to keep accurate records. We apologize if we inadvertently omitted or misspelled any names. Please let us know so we may correct our error. Contact us at 775-5098 or advancement@meca.edu with any corrections or questions about the AROG, Annual Fund gifts, restricted gifts, planned gifts, charitable bequests, or other information.

1882 SOCIETY Maine College of Art’s 1882 Society gratefully recognizes individuals who have made arrangements for the College in their estate plans. Contact Planned Giving Advisor Rebecca Swanson Conrad at beckie.conrad@meca.edu to learn more about making a legacy gift to MECA. + Constance Hayes ‘80, Hon. DFA ’03

+ Marta Morse

+ Jane Briggs + Allerton Cushman

+ Alison D. Hildreth ‘76

+ Deborah Spring Reed

+ Roderick Dew ‘80, MFA ’00

+ Albert C. Hubbard

+ Joan Fowler Smith, Hon. DFA ‘01

+ Robert Diamante ‘93

+ Candace Pilk Karu, Hon. DFA ’13

+ Katy Stenhouse ‘91

+ Jo Orise Dodge

+ Mark and Meredith Koerner P ‘16

+ Susan H. Webster

+ Roger Gilmore, Hon. DFA ‘02

+ Lorraine Lazzari

+ Caron C. Zand

+ Lisabeth F. Barrett ‘88

+ Grace Nelson ‘82

COMMEMORATIVE, TRIBUTE, AND LEGACY GIFTS It is especially meaningful for Maine College of Art to be the recipient of gifts to commemorate or honor a student, graduate, family member, faculty member, or friend of the College. Gifts to MECA’s endowment benefit the College in perpetuity and provide annual income for scholarships and designated program and operating support.

In Honor of Chloe Adams ’20 and MECA’s Advancement Team

In Honor of Laura Freid

In Memory of Christine Maclin

+ Lori Calabro McGrath

+ Anonymous

To the Dr. Edward M. Friedman ’08 and Carol Joyce Friedman Artists at Work Professional Development Endowment

To the Christine Maclin Continuing Studies Endowed Scholarship Fund

In Memory of Katherine Jones Brinn + Steven Brinn In Honor of Jesse Ryan Brown MFA ’20 + Maysey Craddock MFA ’03 To the Margaret Coleman Brown Endowed Memorial Scholarship + Mr. and Mrs. Douglas R. Coleman, Jr. To the Madelyn B. Cohen Visiting Artists Endowment Fund + The Gene R. Cohen Charitable Foundation In Honor of Debby Dluhy + Anonymous In Honor of Doug Doering and the MECA Facilities Team + Annie Wadleigh In Memory of James Dustin ’81 To the James Dustin ’81 Endowed Scholarship + Anonymous + Roy Milligan

37

+ Dr. Edward M. Friedman ’08 and Carole Joyce Friedman To the Beatrice Gilmore Endowed Scholarship + Roger Gilmore, Hon. DFA ‘02 and Betty Gilmore In Memory of Morris and Sylvia Greenburg + Barbara Harrison To the Winslow Homer Scholarship + Brad and Ann Willauer In Memory of Dahlov Ipcar + C.M.C. Twitchell Timberlands, Inc. and Thomas C. Carney In Honor of Francine Kontos + Jerrica Demers Kontos In Honor of Elizabeth H. Lewis ’16 + Michael E. Lewis, M.D., P ’16 To the Lunder Scholars Fund + The Lunder Foundation

+ C. Waite Maclin + Anne Massey + Tom and Carolyn Noering + Dennis and Anne O’Donovan + Abby Peck + John and Chesley Ventimiglia + Annie Wadleigh To the Flavia Manske Continuing Studies Endowed Scholarship + Brian Manske + Leo Manske and Michael Johnson + Louise Tuski In Memory of Mark Maynard + Lori Calabro McGrath To the Mildred A. and Harold P. Nelson Endowed Scholarship + Barbara Harrison + Kenneth and Mary Pennell Nelson To the Diane Nolan Endowed Scholarship + Victoria Nolan and Clark Crolius + Jim and Amy Osborn

In Memory of Patti Sandberg ’02

In Memory of Gregory St. Angelo

In Honor of Keegan Whitford ’20

To the Patti Sandberg ’02 Memorial Award

+ Norma St. Angelo

+ Karen Thorpe

In Honor of Scott R. Stevenson ’03

In Honor of Brian Wilk ’95

+ Kathleen and Warren McKeon P ‘02

+ Dr. Connie Stevenson P ’03

+ Susan Wilk P ’95

In Memory of F. Paul Shields, Jr.

To the Olivia Louise Straub Library Fund

+ Anonymous To the Laurence and Judy Sisson Endowed Travel and Scholarship Fund

+ Estate of Carl Benton Straub•

+ Mrs. Judy Sisson

+ Dr. and Mrs. Robert Timothy

In Memory of Margaret Libby Standley ’52

In Honor of Joan Uraneck

To the Margaret Libby Standley ’52 Endowed Scholarship

In Memory of Joanne Waxman

+ Corner Stone Chapter OES #193 + David Kelsey and Kimberly Clouser + Mary McAllister

In Memory of Dr. Philip Thompson, Jr., Hon. DFA ’91

+ Arline Saturdayborn ’91

Make a gift easily and securely at meca.edu/donate

To the Joanne Waxman Endowed Scholarship + Rebecca Waxman Sneed and Doug Sneed

• Deceased

A LASTING LEGACY

Photo by Phyllis Graber Jensen / Courtesy of Bates College

A legacy was fulfilled through a $100,000 bequest to the Olivia Louise Straub Library Fund at MECA, made by Carl Benton Straub, who died Nov. 15, 2019, at his home in Lewiston, Maine, at the age of 83 years old. Carl served as a MECA Trustee from 1994 to 2006 and the endowed fund he established supports annual book purchases for the Joanne Waxman Library.

He was a revered and influential Bates scholar, teacher, and academic leader whose ideas, vision, and love for the college influenced generations of faculty and students. As a scholar, he focused on religious interpretations of the American landscape and on environmental ethics, as well as on the relationship between religion and other cultural expressions, such as art and political mythologies. A lifelong philanthropist, who generously supported Maine communities and institutions, he believed strongly in the arts’ ability to enable understanding of one’s place in the world, serving as a member of the Maine Arts Commission, a trustee of the Portland Symphony Orchestra and as president of Maine Audubon’s board of trustees, among many other roles. He is deeply missed and the impacts of his generosity will reverberate for generations to come.

38

DEVELOPMENT NEWS MECA Trustee Deborah Reed demonstrated her ongoing commitment to diversity at MECA through a leadership gift of $50,000, made to The Deborah Spring Reed Endowed Scholarship, which she established in 2016, doubling its value. This scholarship supports undergraduate financial aid for students who are traditionally underrepresented, such as economically disadvantaged students, African-American students, Asian students, Hispanic/ Latino students, multi-racial/ethnic students, indigenous/Native American students, students with disabilities, and/or first-generation college students. President Laura Fried said, “This gift means so much to all of us and particularly to the students who receive it. We are so grateful for this continued investment in diversity at MECA.”

Major support from the Davis Educational Foundation has helped MECA to invest in innovative methods to improve the quality, accessibility, and range of education delivery through two separate grants for more than $125,000 related to online learning initiatives. The first Implementation Grant provides $103,500 over two years in support of a potentially transformative online learning project that has provided MECA with the flexibility to deliver courses in-person, hybrid, and fully online. In addition, MECA was the recipient of a newly offered and separate 2020 Davis Educational Foundation $25,000 Presidential Grant for Alternative Academic Delivery to support instructional design and faculty training for the new system. The projects reflect MECA’s investment in online learning, which a key priority identified in MECA’s Strategic Plan (2020-2027), a need accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Davis Educational Foundation was established by Stanton and Elisabeth Davis after Mr. Davis’s retirement as chairman of Shaw’s Supermarkets, Inc.

Photo Courtesy of Waite Maclin A new Continuing Studies (CS) scholarship fund will Invest in the future of talented young artists. Established by C. Waite Maclin in memory of his wife, artist, and CS student Christine Maclin (1941-2016), the Christine Maclin Continuing Studies Endowed Scholarship Fund at Maine College of Art will provide scholarships for youths (ages 8-17) year-round through our CS programming, providing a lifelong legacy for deserving youths in our community who would otherwise not have access to the level of art education offered through our CS Program. “MECA meant so much to her and this scholarship is an important means of keeping her beautiful spirit alive,” said Waite.

39

Announcing the DR. EDWARD M. FRIEDMAN ’08 AND CAROLE J. FRIEDMAN GARY AMBROSE PROFESSORSHIP FOR SCULPTURE and the GARY AMBROSE SCULPTURE LECTURE SERIES

Photo by Erin Little

Thank you, Ed and Carole Friedman Maine College of Art is pleased to announce the establishment of The Dr. Edward M. Friedman ’08 and Carole J. Friedman Gary Ambrose Professorship for Sculpture, which will directly support faculty teaching in the Sculpture Program. This endowed fund was established by Edward and Carole Friedman in honor of Sculpture Professor Emeritus Gary Ambrose, who has been an integral part of MECA’s evolution for over 30 years and who helped define and advance the Sculpture Major at MECA with great care, skill, and dedication. In addition, the Friedmans are funding The Gary Ambrose Sculpture Lecture Series to bring visiting artists to the College to speak on areas related to sculpture and new innovations. President Laura Freid commented, “This endowment will have a great impact on the future of MECA, and reflects our vision to expand our support for faculty in a way that honors their work and legacy. We are extremely grateful for Edward and Carole’s generosity.” Dr. Friedman added, “I have such incredible respect for Gary Ambrose, who was my teacher as I began my second career as an artist. His knowledge, talent, and deep consideration of his students was very inspirational to me and I am so pleased to be able to express my appreciation while giving back to MECA.” Stay tuned for an additional celebration and news about the upcoming lecture series. Email advancement@meca.edu for more information.

MAINE COLLEGE OF ART 522 CONGRESS STREET PORTLAND, MAINE 04101