Rockland, ME, September 18, 2020 – The CMCA Biennial 2020 features the work of 34 artists from 17 Maine communities. The exhibition will open to the public on Saturday, October 3 with a virtual reception live streamed to CMCA’s Facebook page from 5 to 7pm.
The virtual event will include a live video tour of the exhibition with Biennial artists speaking about their work, as well as comments from the jurors and CMCA staff. The exhibition will remain on view at CMCA in Rockland through April 2021, and is sponsored by The Via Agency.
The selected artists were chosen from a pool of more than 500 individual submissions by jurors Nina Johnson-Milewski, owner, founder, and director of Nina Johnson Gallery, Miami, FL, and Kate McNamara, an independent curator and educator based in Providence, RI.
In a statement by the jurors, Johnson-Milewski writes, “I hope this exhibition will reflect the importance of harnessing the creative spirit, particularly in times of disconnection, isolation and confusion.” And McNamara adds, “With over 500 submissions the process of looking through the Biennial entries offered us an opportunity to view an incredibly diverse range of art practices reflected in the contemporary art field. I am thrilled with our final selection of work which reflects some of the hopefulness and re-imagining this particular and historical moment in time calls for.”
This year marks the 22nd edition of the CMCA Biennial, which typically takes place in the fall of even numbered years. Dating back to 1978, it is the longest running open juried exhibition in the state.
CMCA executive director, Suzette McAvoy states, “We are immensely grateful to The VIA Agency for sponsoring this year’s edition of the CMCA Biennial. It is always a process of discovery to learn the jurors’ selections and to see the breadth of talent by artists connected to Maine.”
The CMCA Biennial 2020 artists and their towns are:
Jeffrey Ackerman, Morrill; Henry Austin, Portland; Susan Beallor-Snyder, Southwest Harbor and New York, New York; Fanny Brodar, Kennebunkport; Anne Buckwalter, Portland and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Penn Chan, Portland; Ben DeHaan, Portland; Brian Doody, Portland; Jenny McGee Dougherty, South Portland; Norajean Ferris, Portland; Donna Festa, Bangor, Sam Finkelstein, Rockland; Kevin Ford, Portland and Norwalk, Connecticut; Elyse Noelani Grams, Portland; Meg Hahn, Portland; Breehan James, Scarborough; Gregory Jamie, Portland; Tom Jessen, Temple; Baxter Koziol, Portland; Mandy Lamb, Norridgewock; Phil Lonergan, Portland, and Campton, New Hampshire; Hector Nevarez Magaña, Portland; Ashley Normal, York and Nashua, New Hampshire; Isabelle Maschal O’Donnell, Portland, Elijah Ober, South Portland; Aaron Rosenblum, Northport and Louisville, Kentucky; Nicholas J Sevigney, Wells and Holderness, New Hampshire; Susan L. Smith, Dover-Foxcroft; Maia Snow, Portland and Austin, Texas; Benjamin Spalding, Portland; Richard Van Buren, Perry; Jimmy Viera, South Portland; Susan B. Webster, Deer Isle; and Erin Woodbrey, Sebago Lake and Orleans, Massachusetts.
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Exhibition sponsor | The VIA Agency
About the Jurors:
Nina Johnson-Milewski is the owner, founder, and director of Nina Johnson Gallery in the Little Haiti district of Miami, she has produced numerous solo and group exhibitions by new, emerging and established artists from around the world.
Kate McNamara is a curator and educator based in Providence, RI. She currently holds the position of Visiting Critic at Rhode Island School of Art and Design and is the Creative Director of My HomeCourt, a nonprofit organization working with contemporary artists to revitalize city parks.
ABOUT CMCA
CMCA is a contemporary arts institution presenting year-round exhibitions, engaging events, and educational programs for all ages on site and online.
Location: 21 Winter Street, Rockland, Maine. Hours: July through October, Monday – Saturday, 11am to 5pm; Sunday, noon to 5pm. November through April, Wednesday – Saturday, 11am to 5pm; Sunday, noon to 5pm. Closed Federal holidays. Admission: $5; children under 18 free, CMCA members free.
Below:
1) Anne Buckwalter, Forever, 2019, gouache on panel, 18 x 24”
2) Benjamin Spalding, Winged Victory, 2019, nails, mesh, steel, bungee cord, athletic mat, plaster, resin, sporting balls, approx 72 x 72 x 48”
3) Fanny Brodar, Garden in the Middle of a City, acrylic and oil pastel on canvas, 36 x 36”
4) Tom Jessen, Recess, 2019, various metal objects painted in enamel, 90 x 90 x 15”
