My Mother’s Bookcase

My mother, who is 88, has Alzheimer’s disease. What does that have to do with getting an art degree, you might ask. Well … in my Drawing 2 class at USM this spring, we had an assignment that had my mother’s lost memories written all over it.

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A new appreciation for charcoal

I have never enjoyed working with charcoal — until now. We had a model in class last week and our assignment was to sketch her using a big stick of charcoal. I thought, “No way am I going to be able to manage this chunk of charcoal. No way!” ...

Playing with Gesso

We’ve been playing quite a bit in drawing class this past month. At least, it feels like playing to me. Playing to learn, as my friend Lucy would say.

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An exhibit by Maine Artist Francine Schrock Opens at House Arts Gallery — Convergence: engaging in the milieu

When I first met Francine Schrock, she had just finished creating a beautiful mural for a memory care facility in Portland. Her grandmother died of Alzheimer’s, so the project had special meaning and she went on to paint more murals in other facilities. You can read about the first mural in my health and wellness blog Catching Health.

This past week, House Arts Gallery in Gray held an opening reception for Francine’s latest body of work. I was delighted to be able to attend. ...

King Tide Marginal Way

It’s a King Tide Party and You’re Invited

In my 2D Design class, we’ve learned about more than creating good design. We also learned something about nature’s designs and the impact we humans can have when we try to intervene.

Our professor, Jan Piribeck, is involved in the Envisioning Change project, which aims to visualize sea level change in Portland and the Casco Bay region over about a 200- year period — from 1900 to 2100.

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