FARNSWORTH ART MUSEUM: PART 1
The Farnsworth Art Museum is in Rockland around two hours north of Portland. It’s noted for its extensive collection of works by three generations of the Wyeth family and its focus on Maine and artists working in Maine. The Chief Penguin and I visit this museum annually; this time our motivation was a new exhibit of Jamie Wyeth’s work, but more about that exhibit in a future blog post.
This week we enjoyed Magwintegwak: A Legacy of Penobscot Basketry, were impressed by Louise Nevelson’s paintings and sculpture, and were introduced to a tsunami of color in Lynne Drexler’s recently restored pieces, Color Notes, Paintings from 1959-1969.
WABANAKI BASKETS
The Penobscot Indian Island Reservation, informally known as Indian Island, was the site of basket weaving going back to 1800. North of Rockland along the Penobscot River, part of it extends to Bangor. Wabanaki weavers here made a variety of baskets for daily life as well as more decorative artistic ones. For many years, they set up basket-selling tents on well-traveled routes and sold their handmade creations to tourists and others. Their baskets were, and still are, generally made of brown ash and lovely fragrant sweetgrass.
Robert Anderson spent much of his life collecting and documenting the basketry of these Penobscot weavers, learning from his grandparents Leo and Florence Shay and from successive generations of weavers. It’s thanks to his legacy that this exhibit was possible. The Wabanaki also made miniature baskets to use or to show off their skills.
LOUISE NEVELSON: SCULPTOR & PAINTER
Louise Nevelson was born in Ukraine, but grew up in Rockland after her parents emigrated. Years later, she was astonished and delighted to discover this wonderful art museum in her small hometown. She donated many of her works to the Farnsworth, and this exhibit is just a sample from the collection.
I liked the small black figures and also her two self portraits. She favored black for virtually all of her sculpted work, but later she created an elaborate and monumental wedding piece in white. The Farnsworth owns one column from it.
COLOR NOTES: “I COULD ALWAYS FIND THE COLOR”
Lynne Drexler (1928-1999) was considered a second-generation Abstract Expressionist whose work was influenced by time spent in Hawaii, California, and Mexico. She created with colored chalk, crayons, paint, and colored pencils. Later in her life, she lived like a hermit on Monhegan Island. Years after her death, this little known artist’s paintings sold for more than a million dollars.
Some of her works use different materials that make the colors pop and look alive like this vibrant study in pinks, greens, and lavender.
WATCHING: SPANISH SOAP
Betrayal (PBS Passport)
Passport offerings curated by Walter Presents are generally very good. I’m less sure about Betrayal, although the Chief Penguin and I seem to be committed enough to keep watching. We have completed six of the eight episodes.
Influential, well-connected attorney Julio Fuentes and his firm were close to merging with a UK law firm when he died suddenly. His family—widow, three daughters, and one son—are in disarray when his death is ruled a murder and when another son, Carlos, unknown to them, shows up.
Emotions in this group run high with shouting, angry outbursts, and hasty actions. Son Roberto wants to divorce his wife and has another woman; brother-in-law Victor, the firm’s financial manager, has personal money troubles; and sister Almudena’s son Sergio is suspicious of his stepfather’s behavior and believes he’s lying to his mother. Meanwhile matriarch Pilar works mightily to control everyone’s actions to her bidding.
This is just a sampling of the layers of complexity, the lies, and the secrets. Who is betraying whom or how many betrayals are there? And who killed Julio Fuentes? Overall, the plot is less than convincing, the characters lack depth, and yet we keep tuning in! In Castilian Spanish with English subtitles.
Note: Header photo is a point basket by Ganessa Frey, 2006. Unattributed photos by JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)
Love the basketry! I have a small basket similar to the “curly bowl,” which my mother had. I have no idea where it came from but I’m now wondering whether it’s Penobscot work.