The Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art & Design Presents
The Last Season on Earth
2023 Maine College of Art & Design Faculty Triennial
On view from January 13 - February 19, 2023
Prof. Jeane Cohen, A Choir of Drowning Trees, oil on canvas, 66” x 82”, 2020.
PORTLAND, ME — December 14, 2022— The Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art & Design (ICA at MECA&D) is pleased to announce the opening of the Maine College of Art & Design 2023 Faculty Triennial, The Last Season on Earth. A public reception for the artists will be held 5–7pm on Friday, January 13.
Juried by Sam Adams, Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Allen Memorial Museum at Oberlin College, The Last Season on Earth: 2023 Maine College of Art & Design Faculty Triennial presents the work of ten artists who teach across the College in the Photography, Painting, Sculpture, Textile & Fashion Design, Metalsmithing & Jewelry, Master of Fine Arts (MFA), and Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) programs.
“These works are proposals for the necessity of art in the Anthropocene,” says Adams. “Visual signs and images have arguably always oriented people in the world.”
The works by the artists in the 2023 faculty triennial “are acts of interpretation, feeling, energy, and mental health—in short, of art making as an act of survival,” Adams continues. The faculty exhibition offers a window into some of the thinking and making practices of the College’s esteemed faculty.
“The Faculty Triennial allows viewers the opportunity to reflect on the vital conversations and learning that our community of makers inspire, along with highlighting the wealth of experience, expertise, and unique perspectives that faculty bring to the classroom and our community,” said Julie Poitras Santos, Director of Exhibitions at Maine College of Art & Design.
Artists in the exhibition include: Elana Adler, Tabitha Barnard ’16, Philip Brou, Tracey Cockrell, Jeane Cohen, Kyle Patnaude, Joshua Reiman, Rachel Somerville, Benjamin Spalding MFA ’17, and Ling-Wen Tsai.
For more information about the exhibition, please visit the ICA website.
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ART AT MAINE COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN
The Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), cultivates engagement and dialogue regarding contemporary visual art practices, aiming to foster discourse regarding the critical conversations of our time, and to enhance understanding of visual culture. Located in stunning galleries in Maine College of Art & Design’s landmark Porteous Building, the ICA presents an exhibition calendar of ambitious work by living artists, operates as a learning laboratory for students, and a center for public programming regarding contemporary art that engages with the local, national and global art community.
Hosting five exhibitions each year accompanied by a dynamic series of public events and artist talks, the ICA also supports Maine College of Art & Design graduate student exhibitions and events. We are dedicated to working across platforms collaboratively and thinking with others to inspire creative action, reimagine our future, and create compassionate communities together through visual art.
Open Wednesday–Sunday, 11:00pm–5:00pm, and Thursdays until 7PM. The ICA at MECA&D is always free. meca.edu/ica - instagram.com/icaatmeca - facebook.com/mainecollegeofart
COVID-19 Policies: For the health and safety of our staff and visitors, we ask that all visitors to the ICA social distance and agree to wear a mask at all times while inside the ICA, regardless of vaccination status. If you are feeling unwell please stay home and plan your visit for a later date.
ABOUT MAINE COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN
Maine College of Art & Design (MECA&D) has been activating students of all pursuits to make art, make an impact, and inspire change since its founding as Portland School of Art in 1882. Located in Portland's thriving Arts District, students have access to state-of-the-art facilities, 24-hour-a-day studios, a 10:1 student-to-faculty ratio, and a community-based Artists at Work program—making MECA&D the right-sized school in the right-sized city for every student who wants to make their mark and be seen. MECA&D offers BFA Majors and Minors, Graduate Programs, Continuing Studies, Pre-College, and includes the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies and the Institute for Contemporary Art. Follow us at @mecaart.
MEDIA CONTACT
Jacqui Walpole
Director of External Relations
jwalpole@meca.edu