Congressional Arts Competition Reception

It was another amazing event at the Blaine House yesterday as First Lady Ann LePage graciously hosted, along with representatives from our congressional offices, a reception for the 2013 Congressional Arts Award Recipients.

Joining our hosts were Don Tuski from the Maine College of Art, who brought scholarships for students wishing to attend the college once they graduate. Also speaking at the event were Charles Stanhope and Julie Richard from the Maine Arts Commission. Many state representatives also attended.

All of these distinguished speakers offered words of encouragement, and of gratitude, for the award recipients. Don Tuski reminded the students that they should use their creativity in every area of their future careers.

The true stars of course were the students who received multiple rounds of applause and were photographed with the various people in attendance. The First Lady, as always, was more than happy to pose with students for photos after the event.

You can read more about the recipients on this blog by clicking this link.

You can now show your support of the arts by purchasing your very own “State of the Arts" license plate. The new specialty license plate features artwork by long-time Vinalhaven resident, Robert Indiana. The plate features the world-famous “Love” sculpture that was installed in Central Park in 1969, and later became the number one seller when issued as a stamp by the U.S. Postal Service.

But before we can all sport this amazing new plate we need to gather 2,000 pre-orders. The Maine Arts Commission and Maine Crafts Association (MCA) are seeking pre-payments to offer the plate statewide.

The specialty plate will serve as a fundraiser for the MCA and will have a direct positive impact on the arts in Maine through the organization’s marketing, business and outreach programming. The Maine Arts Commission will receive a portion of the funds to put toward their statewide arts initiatives.

We need 2,000 Mainers, with cars registered in their name, to pre-pay $29 for the specialty plate. Upon reaching that goal the Bureau of Motor Vehicles will release the plate to the 2,000 pre-paid registrants and make the plate available for purchase at all Maine BMV’s. Please visit www.mainecrafts.org/programs/license-plate to sign-up and pre-pay for your own plate today.

Winners of the 2013 Congressional Art Competition Announced

Congressman Michael Michaud and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree have announced the winners of the 2013 Congressional Art Competition in Maine.

Wiggly Bridge in the Rain—York, Maine - Eliza Hazen
A Constructed Home - Brianna Hall

Brianna Hall of Rangeley Lakes Regional School and Eliza Hazen of York, a senior at Berwick Academy, were selected by a panel of experts to represent Maine in a year-long show in Washington, D.C. These students are among over 700,000 that have now taken part in this contest nationwide.

The Congressional Art Competition, jointly run by the Maine Arts Commission and Maine's congressional offices, began in 1982 to provide an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents. It is open to all high school students. The over-all winner of each participating district has the opportunity to have their work displayed in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol for the entire year, beginning in June. In addition, winners will be flown to Washington, DC, for the official opening of the show in June.

Congressman Michaud congratulated Brianna Hall and noted that her winning artwork, A Constructed Home, which is a collage of gelatin monoprints “will bring some much-needed Maine-made artwork to the nation’s capital.”

Congresswoman Pingree praised Eliza Hazen for her award winning painting, Wiggly Bridge in the Rain—York, Maine. “Her painting speaks from the heart about the special connection Mainers have with the water,”

The 2013 first place winners will be joined by four runners-up from each congressional district when they meet with representatives from the Congressional Offices at a Blaine House reception held in their honor. This event is the culmination of a close partnership between the Maine Arts Commission and Maine's Congressional offices. Both of Maine's congressional delegates support this program enthusiastically and have provided their full support throughout the process.

The 2013 Student Honorees in full:

 1st Congressional District

• Eliza Hazen, 12th Grade, Berwick Academy, York
• Lauren Merritt, 11th Grade, Camden Hills Regional High School, Camden
• Jacob Richards, 12th Grade, Gray-New Gloucester High School, New Gloucester
• Jocelyn DeSisto, 12th Grade, Marshwood High School, South Berwick
• Katerina Adams, 11th Grade, Sacopee Valley High School, Parsonsfield

2nd Congressional District

• Brianna Hall, 11th Grade, Rangeley Lakes Regional School, Rangeley
• Sarah McQuoid, 11th Grade, Bangor High School, Bangor
• Taylor Leighton, 12th Grade, Bangor High School, Bangor
• Dayna DeRaps, 12th Grade, Nokomis Regional High School, St. Albans
• Caroline Colan, 12th Grade, Maranacook Community High School, Readfield

Maine Arts Commission Seeks Visual Arts Director

The Maine Arts Commission is seeking a full-time Visual Arts Director to develop and oversee the agency’s visual arts programming for the state of Maine.

The Visual Arts Director will work in a strong team setting with other program directors and under the supervision of the agency’s Executive Director to further the arts in Maine. This position is an exciting one with a great deal of scope to develop new partnerships and programs that are essential to Maine’s cultural development.

The person selected will take the reins of some of the agency’s ongoing programs, such as Arts in the Capitol, the Maine Youth Excellence in Art Project, and Maine’s Congressional Art Awards Competition.

Beyond that the Visual Arts Director will collaborate and consult with state and national arts organizations and institutions to promote best practices, exemplary visual arts programming, and to implement professional development opportunities.

To be considered an applicant must have a bachelor’s degree in an Arts or Humanities related field and two (2) years experience working with artists, art groups, and/or humanities organizations. Preference will be given to applicants with a master’s degree or commensurate work experience preferably in the field of visual arts. Knowledge of Maine artists, galleries and museums is a benefit.

To view the full job posting and for details of how to apply, please visit http://www.maine.gov/bhr/state_jobs/direct_jobs.shtml.

Creative Economy Conference in Portland

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Maine is the host for a creative economy conference that is taking place on June 6-7. The conference will be centered at the Maine College of Art, with events in the surrounding area of Portland. You can take advantage of an early registration fee by going online and registering before May 6. This conference provides a day and a half of practical creative economy workshops and networking. You'll gather advice to use in your community, including how to:

• Strengthen your network
• Activate your main streets
• Leverage partnerships to maximize resources
• Build relationships with those outside of your sector

The Exchange's closing reception will include the announcement of NEFA's Creative Economy award winners. For workshop details and information on hotel blocks, directions, and more, visit www.CCXNewEngland.org

Three Grant Deadlines Approaching

The Maine Arts Commission has three grant deadlines on the horizon.  

SMART
Application Deadline: April 5, 2013 Maximum grant award: $10,000 (with a required match of 1:1)
Program GuidelinesThis grant supports schools, arts organizations/institutions and community based teaching artists as they collaborate on the design and delivery of high quality arts learning experiences for K-12 students.
http://mainearts.maine.gov/Pages/Grants/SMART

Innovative Production
Application Deadline: April 5, 2013
Maximum grant award: $2,000 (Organizations are required to show an in-kind and/or cash match)
Program Guidelines
This grant supports artistic innovation in the production and presentation of media and/or performance work of artists and organizations.
http://mainearts.maine.gov/Pages/Grants/Innovative-Production

Jane Morrison Film Scholarship

Application Deadline: April 5, 2013
Maximum grant award: $2,000

Program Guidelines
This grant, offered through a partnership with the Maine Community Foundation and the Jane Morrison Film Fund, supports educational opportunities for filmmakers in the early stages of their career development. The Fund is designed to help filmmakers attain instructional guidance and skills.

http://mainearts.maine.gov/Pages/Grants/Jane-Morrison-Film-Fund

Video of Maine Poetry Champion

If you were unable to make it to Bangor for the state final of Poetry Out Loud then we are able to share just a snippet of the quality that these competitors bring to the stage. This is Dyer Rhoads reciting Onions by William Matthews: