DESTINATIONS: Unassuming Rockland, Maine becoming the star of the state's arts scene

With its recent move into a new, purpose-built building in downtown Rockland, the Center for Maine Contemporary Art has elevated this unassuming city -- which already houses the venerable Wyeth-filled Farnsworth Museum -- into a star on the national art and design stage. The new venue, designed by architect Toshiko Mori, is expected to draw 40,000 + visitors annually. Formerly a quiet fishing village, Rockland has become a magnet for artists, hipsters and young entrepreneurs; Main St. is now replete with small shops, cafés, book stores, art supply stores and restaurants.

The new CMCA, showcasing

“Particle Soul” figures by Ogunquit artist Jonathan Borofsky

photo credit to Boston Globe

"The glass enclosed space, with its corrugated metal exterior and emphasis on 

Maine’s legendary light, is unlike anything else in the state. It’s designed to 

be accessible and inviting, with a central courtyard that offers views inside and links the space to the community like an open embrace. Here, CMCA continues its mission 

as a current and future catalyst for carrying forward Maine’s 

exceptional legacy in American art, on a whole new scale."

                                                                                                   ... Portland Press Herald

 One of the many airy galleries at the new 7,700 square foot venue

Architect's rendering by Toshiko Mori

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Currently showing/upcoming exhibitions at CMCA: 

• Jonathan Borovsky: Particle Soul

   Closes August 21

 

• Laura Henkin: Second Nature

opens August 28

Henkin encourages her viewers to think about how the vast amount of imagery 

we see every day affects our relationship to the natural environment. Her art asks:

 "What is real in an increasingly digitized, virtual world?"

 

• 2016 Biennial, opens Nov. 4

 

An open, statewide juried exhibition featuring work in all media

produced by selected artists in the past two years.

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If you're in Rockland, don't miss the highly acclaimed Farnsworth Museum.

I love the Robert Indiana "Eat" sign (originally designed for the 1964 New York 
World's Fair) that perches atop the building, rescued from demolition. 
The museum's Wyeth Center houses many memorable paintings 
by three generations of Wyeths: N.C., Andrew, and James.

 Photo by Michael Schonbach

For more information about the CMCA, link here.

 To learn more about the Farnsworth Museum, link here.

Last but not least ...

while you're in Rockland, make sure to stop in at the Project Puffin's

Main St. headquarters! You're guaranteed to leave with a smile on your face,

and possibly an armful of puffinabilia.

~ oOo ~