by Sara Farizan
RAYMOND, MAINE-There is never a good excuse not to visit Maine in the summertime if you are a resident of New England.
Maine was essentially made for summer with beautiful lakes, blueberries, lobster rolls and the random Moose sightings while on a leisurely canoe ride. And there is then no excuse not to visit the Hole in the Wall Gallery if you are near the town of Raymond.
The gallery is near Sebago Lake and has been frequented by many a tourist and seasonal homeowner. The gallery has also become a haven for local artists working in different mediums ranging from mixed media to oils to sculpture.
The gallery isn’t so much a hole in the wall, but more of a whimsical cabin that Hansel and Gretel may have come across without the impending danger of a cannibalistic witch.
This summer, Hole in the Wall is featuring two artists who both work in oils, Wendy Newcomb and Ann Stein-Aaron, with their joint show beginning August 6th. The artists will be present at the opening reception on August 6th from 6-8 p.m., happy to field any questions about their work for visitors.
Newcomb, a member of the Maine Arts Commission, has had her paintings appear in publications like L.L. Bean, Bayview Press, Old Cars Weekly, and Artists of New England. Newcomb is known for her gorgeous landscapes but more recently has been trying her hand at allegorical landscapes.
Newcomb writes, “I have been exploring the area of the subconscious in an attempt to combine and integrate the inner landscape of the mind with my more representational landscape imagery. These paintings usually have a double meaning that invite the viewer to be a participant in the piece, and hopefully invoke the understanding that there is always more for us to discover. I call these works Modern Allegorical Paintings.“
Ann Stein-Aaron, a staple at Hole in the Wall, has been a full-time painter for over twelve years and graces the gallery with her new paintings. The subject of these paintings are Bonsai Trees that look so lifelike you will wonder what kind of magical dust Stein-Aaron sprinkles on her brush before painting.
Stein-Aaron muses on what makes an important painting,”To me, a valuable painting is one in which the painter has been a conduit, allowing an idea or vision to filter mysteriously through his unconscious, through his body, arm and hand, to come out onto that blank surface as an exciting, surprising and inexplicable translation. The viewer may be shocked, satisfied, delighted or disturbed, but definitely affected at a gut level.”
The exhibit runs from August 6th-September 11th and the gallery is located on Route 32 in Raymond, Maine. The gallery is open daily 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM and on Sundays 11 AM-4 PM