“Maine… the way life should be.” The tourist tagline you’re greeted with as you enter this much sought-after vacation state is classic, timeless marketing. Poignant. Iconic.

Like the marketing strategy tagline, the new show at Bates Museum of Art, “An Adventurous Spirit: The Jane Costello Wellehan Collection,” is also poignant, iconic — and by Maine artists exclusively. Many were from Maine. Many moved away from Maine and returned. Many chose Maine later in life, desiring a laidback, casual lifestyle. And many chose Maine because they deemed it the quintessential environment for an art career. All believe that Maine is the way life should be…

The show opens in Lewiston, Maine, on November 5 and runs until March 19, 2022, and showcases the work of approximately 50 Maine artists donated by Maine collector and Bates alumnus, Jane Wellehan. She followed the careers of artists whose work she collected, often acquiring several works over the years. Wellehan was particularly fond of ceramics, a medium which she felt is underappreciated, and her gift significantly increases the museum’s holdings of works by contemporary ceramicists.

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