In the spring of 2018, art conservator Nina Roth-Wells came to the PMA to review a painting that had just come into the collection. Observing the painting under UV light revealed unusually large patches of darkness, indicating that something had been added on top of the varnish.
Read MoreIn the spring and summer of 2020, the PMA presented Carrie Moyer and Sheila Pepe: Tabernacles for Trying Times, an exhibition that reimagines a familiar form of religious furniture—the tabernacle—as a symbolic location for cultural values such as justice, equality, and knowledge. Painter Carrie Moyer and sculptor Sheila Pepe have achieved international acclaim through abstract works that are rich with color and materiality and informed by feminist politics and queer activism.
Read MoreReal Estate brokers, agencies, and mortgage brokers are invited to join the PMA’s new program. Partnership with the PMA demonstrates your commitment to Maine’s creative economy and the region’s arts and culture at a time when institutional support is more crucial than ever.
Read MoreThe $15,000 grant from the Maine Arts Commission is unrestricted, which means that the museum may allocate it where it will make the most impact. Unrestricted grants and gifts are great ways to ensure that the PMA has the resources it needs to sustainably grow for years to come, and we’re grateful to the Maine Arts Commission for realizing the impact of their support.
Read MoreIn this letter, Mark Bessire reflects on the upcoming exhibition Mythmakers: The Art of Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington and the many community voices and advisory groups that helped support it.
Read MoreDid Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington ever meet in person? What’s the connection between the two artists’ work? Our upcoming exhibition, Mythmakers: The Art of Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington, brings together the best-known artworks of two great American artists and explores the mythologies both artists perpetuated in their work. Read this article to learn more about why Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington are an unlikely pair, even if they never met in person.
Read MoreIn this virtual program from August, fly tyer and designer Selene of Maine shares a few artifacts related to historic fly tyer Carrie Stevens and demonstrates how to tie a Grey Ghost fly in her hands!
Read MoreWhen I joined the Portland Museum of Art earlier this year, I never imagined that 2020 would be a year of such change—one in which we would all be asked to rapidly adjust to a new world shaped by a global pandemic and calls for social justice.
Read MoreJessica May discusses Clifford Ross’ photograph: Hurricane LXVIII and how this artwork formed the backbone for an exhibition around Ross’ practice.
Read MoreThis September, Deputy Director and Robert and Elizabeth Nanovic Chief Curator Jessica May leaves the PMA after eight remarkable years. In this letter, Jessica reflects on her tenure and bids a fond “until we meet again” to PMA members and the museum community.
Read MoreThere is no way to encompass all the stories of what is now known as Maine. Stories of Maine: An Incomplete History represents one effort to gather stories that have shaped this state through the eyes of its peoples. Have a Maine experience, object, or anecdote to share? We want to know. Visit the digital iteration of our Workshop installation and record it at portlandmuseum.org/recorder
Museum audiences across the country know Will Barnet for his graphic print work and his haunting canvases…For generations of artists, however, Barnet is better known as a dedicated instructor and loyal mentor. Read this article by Diana Greenwold with contributions from Will Porta and Brett Bigbee.
Read MoreChristian Adame and Shalini Le Gall discuss how Juan Genoves's prints function as works of political protest. His artwork, created during Franco's regime, is just as relevant 50 years later.
Read MoreIn this video, 2020 Barnet Scholar Judith Walsh discusses the innovative changes Winslow Homer made to his artistic practice during the summer of 1878.
Read More"Our responsibility to the artists and community didn’t pause at all. In fact, our efforts multiplied. I suddenly found myself reliving the exhibition planning process. Carrie and Sheila were on speed dial and ready to participate at every turn...I now liken everyone’s efforts to raising a virtual barn: not one part possible without the next, each new strategy supporting and hoisting the next into position." -- Curator of Contemporary Art, Jaime DeSimone, shares her thoughts on Tabernacles for Trying Times as the exhibition comes to a close.
Read More"The big social occasions of the summer are all either very small or happening on a computer screen. There’s a sadness to that but I have to hope that for many artists who return to Maine annually, this is a summer with a quieter footprint, maybe a little more time to paint, read, reflect, or take walks." -- Chief Curator Jessica May, shares her thoughts on Maine's summer artist community and why it doesn't feel quite the same in 2020.
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