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WORKING HARBORS

On September 2nd, between 5-7PM I will be having an opening to celebrate my new oils and watercolors from Monhegan and Down East of Maine's fishing communities at work, at the Gleason Fine Art gallery. They are located at 31 Townsend Avenue, Boothbay Harbor, ME 04538. Dennis Gleason is a certified member of the Appraisers Association of America and has shown exceptional fine art on the coast of Maine since 1985. I hope all of you that I have come to know over the years will come out to see my work - Michael E. Vermette.

My newest studio work is "Mohegan Lobstermen Waiting on the Market". It is an oil on heavy linen and is 34 x 46 inches. You can view it in person at my opening Reception on September 2nd, 5-7 PM at Gleason Fine Art, 31 Townsend Avenue, in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. The show is entitled: Working Harbors", and it features many of my larger figurative oils and watercolors from Mohegan and Down East of Maine's fishing communities at work.

I painted this image 4 times now in watercolor and oil painting mediums with slightly different compositions for each. My first and second paintings in this series were both verticals in watercolor and in oil. I included only the two seemingly iconic older lobstermen. But then, years later, I painted a larger horizontal elephant size watercolor of all three, which gave an interesting contrast between the older lobstermen working with the younger sternman. This year, in its final statement, I included the woman sitting on the steps of what is now the Barnacle Cafe on Mohegan Island. She is in the distance totally unaware of the lobstermen watching her through the traps. They were talking about the lobster market prices and when the best time would be to sell their lobsters, so that they could get the best price. So I named the painting, "Waiting on The Market".

When I think about it, you are always watched when you're on Mohegan Island by the locals. They may not have police on duty, but they don't need to. Very little escapes their eyes and there is little that they are not aware of. You might say the local fishermen preside over the populations that explode in the summer months while business continues to thrive as usual in this small island fishing village..

"Paint The Town" Fresh paint Auction

The "Paint The Town" fresh paint auction in Waldoboro had some great features and some disappointing ones. The good points included the venue, food, and quality of art. The disappointing aspect was that their seemed to be too many causes that would benefit from the proceeds, it wasn't juried, and a low percentage of the buyers from all these organizations who would benefit did not show up. Those who did, bought from artists who were familiar to them, not necessarily quality art. Subsequently, Lowest reserves were offered and not much above for most paintings and some were passed over because they didn't meet the reserve.

The location of the event took place at the beautifully and newly restored estate of Natalie Masse, who was the Coordinator, at 995 Main Street in Waldoboro, Maine.

When I arrive at 7:00 am to drop off one of my completed and framed paintings, I was also thankful to pick up my wonderfully prepared "brunch box". There was coffee and muffins, maps and staff there to help us out with locations. When I returned in the afternoon, I dropped off my freshly painted work in the carriage house by 3:00 PM. The carriage house was the place where the viewing of art and catering took place separate from the auction tent. Then I picked up my admission packet which included a brochure of participating artists.

Elaine and I hung around, viewed the work, and listen to the live band who were fantastic, playing a mix of light rock and blues on the electric guitar and drums. The reception, started at 5:00 PM and went for about an hour. The food was outstanding and featured lobster hor d'oeuvres, fresh vegetables, deserts and a bar with a complementary ticket for artists to receive one glass of wine.

There was plenty of street, library and post office parking. The auction event took place in a huge tent with plenty of seating. The work was brought out individually over from the carriage house by members of the Waldoboro Volunteer Firemen's Association. The auctioneer was the association's chief whom many of the locals seemed to know very well.

The proceeds of the auction went to the artists, the Medomak Valley Land Trust, Waldoboro Public Library, and the Fireman's Association.

All of this was good and is in keeping with what they did in the year's wet paint auction. But what was disappointing to me was the fact that some works were framed and others were not. There seemed to be buyers there who only bid on paintings by artists that they were familiar with in the area. There was a very dramatic thunder storm that poured buckets of water over the tent with waterfalls flooding over the side. It was very dramatic. But that wasn't what disappointed me the most.

When the works are framed the pieces will naturally go for greater margins based on the frame or the painting and frame as a total package. The problem with this for me is that the artists were barely compensated for their materials let alone the expense of the frame. When the art collectors and the supporters of these organizations benefiting do not show, it makes it difficult to sell works; especially if the notable artist isn't well known in the region. This is the auctioneer's job to introduce the artists, but none of the artist biographies were read to the buyers that day. So many works sold for really little money when they should have gone for a much higher price. But to their credit, they did not sell works that did not meet the artist's low reserve prices, like they did last year. In fact most of the paintings sold just at or a little above low reserve prices. Although the participating artists were not juried into the event, there was still about 20 artists at different skill levels and reputation.

I was fortunate to sell both of my works including "The Angelique docked at Castine Harbor, Maine" that I painted at the Castine Plein Air Festival 2016 and "Dry Docked at Friendship Harbor, Maine" the painting I made on the day. In the end a week or so later the artists all received a formal thank you letter, but it didn't include how much we raised for these organizations. The nearest I could tell from my notes before deductions, they raised between 6 to 7 thousand dollars. And that would be before the artists all claimed their percent.

The other interesting thing that happened was that some artists were able to enter a framed painting without painting en plain air on the day. They didn't show up for the auction either. In fact for some, it turned into an opportunity to participate in a wet art auction without participating in the wet paint plain air event. This may be a new option in this auction. These dry paintings, some obviously painted weeks or even year's before in the studio, were represented without the artist being there. They actually sold for a higher price than even some freshly painted pieces of the day. The "Paint The Town" Fresh Paint Auction seems to be getting better, but in my opioion, it still needs some work. If I do participate next year it may only be at that capacity of dropping off a painting. Especially since it seemed OK that artists who were well known didn't show up to the event. After all, wasn't this supposed to be a plain air event? Just a little confusing and just saying.

WET PAINT ON THE WESKEAG LIVE AUCTION!

The 3rd Annual "Wet Paint On the Weskeag!" auction was a great success. The auction benefited the excellent work of the Georges River Land Trust and the artists who participated. The auction proceeds were split evenly between the artists and the GRLT. The auction took place at the Kelpie Gallery which is owned by Lauren Lewis and Susan Baines who direct the event and were major organizers of the live auction.

In 2014, lauren and Susan wanted to give back to their community surrounding the Weskeag region, so they turned to the Georges River Land Trust with the idea of the wet paint live auction. The auction raise $6000.00 with 15 artists participating back then and is getting increasingly better each year. This year they had many wonderful features too, such as, two very qualified judges who juried 30 artists into the event. They printed a colored brochure of the plain air paintings and their artist biographies. They had lead Sponsor's such as Bangor Savings Bank and On The Water In Maine; Auction Sponsors such as Eastern Tire & Auto and Shepard Motors; and Support Sponsors including Brooks Trap Mill, Spruce Head Fisherman's Co-Op and Schooner Bay Taxi.

This was my second year I was selected as one of their plain air painters and the first year my good friend Nora West participated. She also sold her painting in the auction well above her lowest reserve. It seemed to be a smaller version of the Cape Elizabeth Land Trust wet paint auction, and is going in the right direction. This live auction is quickly becoming one of the best live auctions in the mid-coast region of Maine. They sold tickets to the event and there was a wonderful caterer as well as Tom Luther and Frank Mauler's music to create the event's ambience. Best of all, there were two very entertaining and experienced auctioneers whom I would consider among the best in the state for selling art, Bruce Gamage and Kaja Veilleux from Thomas Place Galleries.

Because of the weather, artists were allowed to paint on alternative days during the week and the quality of the art was really outstanding. That following Sunday the auction took place with a showing of the paintings in the Kelpie Gallery. Because the artists were juried into the wet paint auction there were big name artists who drew high auction prices in the thousands. I am proud to say that my wife Elaine and I witnessed a very entertaining bidding war over my painting (above) "The Weskeag Marsh from the Buttermilk Road Thomaston, Maine", which sold in the upper two thousand dollar range! It was the highest bid of the night. I also won the Georges River Land trust honorable mention cash award and was able to meet one of the judges whom it turns out is also an artist.

The buyers of my painting who won the auction bid were very nice people. They summer in this area each year and have a beautiful cottage overlooking the Saint George River. They also have a heart for the Weaskeag Marsh. After buying my painting they went to find the area where it was painted. All the works sold well above reserve prices and non of the works were framed, because as the Kelpie Gallery directors said, "They wanted all the work to be seen and purchased on an equal par". I agree, this seems to be working well for them and the artists. And as it worked out for me, after meeting the new owners of my painting, I was also able to visit them at their lovely cottage and sell them the beautiful gold leaf frame I purchased for the painting separately.

I will definitely come back next year if I am selected as one of their plein air painters in 2017. They have a clear focus of who they want to support. In this auction they are not shy to state it. They support artists and the Georges River Land Trust. To me that is a worthy enough cause to have a wet paint art auction in itself and both artists and patrons of the Georges River Land trust were both in full attendance. We have loads of fun, made new friends, and help to support two great causes at the same time. My closest calculation of what was raised that night from the sales of the paintings alone was $16,000.00 in about an hour! That was before the 50% split between the GRLT and the artists. And also that figure didn't include ticket sales. There were 30 artists juried in from all over Maine and they came as I did; to support the programs GRLT has established to preserve the lands and waterways under their protection.

PAINTING KATAHDIN WITH THE MAINE YOUTH WILDERNESS LEADERSHIP STUDENTS IN BAXTER STATE PARK!

You Provide the Fire and I'll Provide the Sacrifice

"Everyone is an artist, since everyone is capable of having an artistic experience", wrote the famed philosopher John Dewey. And I believe it. Everyone at some time or another will experience the need to express and respond visually to what they are most passionate about. That fire that begins within is usually started by a direct visual encounter with nature and can produce amazing results. That is, if it is allowed the time and place to be nurtured and brought out. That is what I tried to offer the Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program students who were selected from a rigorous application process from 10 different high schools in the State of Maine. But I knew reaching that goal with highly intelligent and motivated students was not going to be easy. It was going to cost me something. There is a sacrifice that is required, that actually helps release the fire and passion that causes these students to open up. This responding to what's inside, we all can do, when we're alone with nature.

This is the story of this year's 2016 MYWLP students who came to Katahdin Lake to encounter and paint in watercolor Katahdin in Baxter State Park. It is also the story and those who sacrificed to make it all possible.

Holly Hamilton, the Maine guide who was our host at the Katahdin Lake Wilderness camps perhaps described it the best when she shared how entertaining it was to witness, "how guests come to the camps and decompress." She said to the students, "Guest usually come here all wound up from their busy lives. They are all caught up in a fast paced place that they are trying to get away from. Then within a few days, they begin to breath and slow down to fully appreciate this place." She said, "That is what makes it all worth while for me. In fact, If you are going to run a business like this, you are going to have to put others and their enjoyment before your own"

But what is the All she speaks of in the worth it? It is the sacrifice that usually goes unnoticed or is just under the surface and behind the scenes. I began to think about this when I noticed a small sign beside the road on my way to Baxter State Park. There was a single word written boldly on a cardboard sign with an arrow pointing down that said "Bump". Only seconds later, I held my breath as I completely cleared a rock that had noticeably breached the tar that could have taken out my whole exhaust system. I took a sigh of relief as I cleared it and immediately slowed down. That prepared me for the next sign which said "Hole" with an arrow pointing down. I steered around that crater! 

All this made me think of the preparations and difficulties involved in pulling this workshop off. Like weeks ago, when I raised the finances to equip the students with quality watercolor art supplies, palettes and easels to get them off the ground. I used my prize certificates from my second place winnings of the Castine Plein Air Festival 2016, to match the generous donations supplied by our sponsors including: Judson's Art Outfitters, Blick Artists Supplies, and Jack Richeson Artist Supplies. I simply told them that I had a winning coupon or certificate and would they donate to the MYWLP students if I threw in my winning prizes. They all agreed. And so we purchased new brush holders, one more new easel, watercolor brushes, paints and watercolor paper. There was enough for each student and their councilors to paint two 11 x 14 inch watercolor paintings each. Some of these companies gave 5 times the supplies if I donated 1/5 th of the total price in cash. That was a sacrifice of finance on my part. It was also a sacrifice of time preparing all of the supplies, getting them here on time and cleaning last year's palettes, and brushes so this year's students could begin with a clean slate.

Yet another sacrifice was made by the Friends of Baxter who payed for an overnight stay for me at the Katahdin Lake Wilderness Camps. I stayed the night before the students would actually hike into the camps the next day. They also flew the gear in and out of Katahdin Lake so that the students and I wouldn't have to bring it in ourselves. Also I would be rested and prepared for their arrival at the Camps the following day. I would be refreshed and ready to go. The workshop could begin immediately and that is what happened. This sacrifice made by the Friends of Baxter greatly supported me to share my own passion and fire for this place. Let me explain.

At the dinner table the night before the students came I heard a story of the previous instructor before me, who's name I will not mention. This highly qualified painter and plein air teacher attempted to walk in with the MYWLP students and their councilors at Avalanche Field. The students and instructors carried in all the equipment the same day of the workshop. The students and counselors hiked so fast that the older instructor tried to keep up with them. Subsequently the instructor who was left behind tried to hurry to catch up only to slip on a wet log and fall face down into the mud covering the whole front clothing with dark brown wet trail muck. The instructor proceeded to press on anyway and teach despite the embarrassing dirty cloths. Talk about sacrifice! That instructor got through it because as the instructor admitted, "What else could I do?" Thank you Friends of Baxter that I didn't have to keep up with this year's hikers and teach after doing a face plant in the mud.

So I appreciate the sacrifice that the Friends of Baxter made for me this year so that I could be ready for the students instead of tired and worn by the hike in. On that day It was raining and he trail was wet and slippery. So I took it slow and by the time I reached the camps the weather cleared. I was allowed time to paint two small watercolors that I would use the next day to motivate the painting experiences of the students at the lake. In fact, the parted that night so that I could see the stars. So early the next morning I arose at 5 am to capture the Alpine Glow of the first light upon the very top of Katahdin. It was stunning! The students liked that painting too and it gave me the opportunity to explain why having the ability to paint rapidly is a useful tool. The Alpin Glow, for example, only lasted 15 to 20 minutes, the exact time I would give them to paint their first quick study called a "Quicky" as named by renowned watercolorist Elliot O'Hara. Painting visual aids by producing the paintings in the places that the students might choose to paint was another sacrifice. But an enjoyable one.

But an unexpected difficulty arose. The Katahdin Air Service had a scheduled inspection the day of my hiking into Katahdin Lake. I not only left the student's art equipment with the flight service, but I packed my extra cloths in another duffle bag with the paper and painting boards to be flown in. For the first time ever, I reached the camps and the supplies and equipment had not arrived yet. Usually he flies over me when I hike in. I was wet and my hiking boots soggy from the wet trail hike in. On top of it all it was muggy. So I waited and waited in my wet cloths until 6PM when the plane finally came. It seemed the inspector left on the electric panel of the plane after the inspection and worn down the battery, delaying the flight a few hours. It took that long to charge the batteries. This was another sacrifice although I didn't let it stop me from painting two small watercolors in wet boots and cloths.

Then there was Holly Hamilton and her camp chief who produced an extraordinary buffet for the students, councilors and me for lunch. There wasn't a sound for the longest time as the students enjoyed the wholesome food in the main lodge. And just as the students thought that the watermelon was desert, Holly brought out desert squares that like everything else, was made from scratch. She went on to explain how the food was brought in days ahead of time and prepared hours before they arrived. She explained that many people have the romantic idea of wanting to live out here in the wilderness, but very few people actually know the work it entails. The Katahdin Lake Wilderness Camps, for example, is the only Campsite in Baxter State Park that exists totally off the grid. You arrive there either by float plane or by hiking 3.8 miles from Avalanche Field in Baxter State Park. Everything has to be brought in or grown in the garden at the camp's upper pasture. This is a sacrifice on their behalf involving time and personal resources. Holy Jokes, " The day we get out to mow the lawn is a good day. There is so much preparation to do before the guests arrive to make sure they have a good time!"

Why am I siting all the sacrifices that went into the success of the watercolor workshop? Because sacrifice brings forth the fire of the spirit. The central figure of the Hudson River School of landscape painting Frederick Church knew this. He hired Penobscot Indian guides that not only guided him right through where the camps are located today, but made the sleeping shelters and cooked his food on his schedule. The famed regional watercolorist James Fitzgerald referred to the Katahdin Lake Sporting Camps in it's payday as, "An oasis in the wilderness!". And the world renown Marsden Hartley was inspired with the idea of creating a portrait of Katahdin for years after visiting Katahdin Lake only once.

So let's talk about the same fire these master's experienced that I hoped these students would gain as a result of all this sacrifice by others.

The students began by watching a demonstration by myself of a "Quicky" or rapid study. This involves making a 15-minute study that I do to try and capture the light, mood and important shapes of the painting's subject. I chose one of the students to be my timer as they all watched my demonstration intently. Throughout the demonstration I noticed the couple I had supper with the night before at the main cabin. I jokingly told the class to not mind them, that they just want to buy my painting after it was done. Actually they were watching my demonstration, then after, they were going to say good bye to me since they were hiking out soon. When the 15 minutes were up I stopped and spoke to them about emphasizing the mountain by making it darker at the top and lighter near the bottom. I also stressed that watercolor painting was like organizing the pieces of a puzzle to make an image. Each element such as water, sky, trees, beach, reflections, and mountains were all pieces of a whole picture that interlock.

Then I had them set up their easels, many of them for the first time. Just as we were ready to start we got a notice that the float plane was going to land and that the students would have to move their easels to one side of the beach for safety reasons. We watched the plane from Katahdin Air Service land and tie up at the dock. A passenger boarded, and flew out over the tree line just as quickly as it came with the loud roar of the engine. The plane got smaller and smaller and more faint as it flew midway to the height of the Katahdin and around the corner of tall trees towards Millinocket Lake. After that they set up their easels once again and they were all ready to begin painting as I gave a "ready, set, go!" count down.

Then two amazing things happened. The students and councilors alike were opening up on paper and pouring out what was inside them for color, drama, mood even beautiful subtleties of watercolor wash lines, color and texture. The other thing that became almost a distraction, is the painting sale. The couple watching on at a distance, to my amazement, actually did buy my painting that I painted in 15 minutes just as they were leaving! They asked me how much; and I said, "perhaps the cost of a cup of coffee?" But they gave me all the change they had left which was $60.00!

I couldn't tell which experience the students were more impressed with, the painting sale or their own excellent painting experience. I asked them to bring their paintings over to the overturned row boat and on it's hull we had our first group critique. There was something excellent in every painting that I pointed out to each of them and that made my job easy as a supportive fellow painter. Then I told them about the painting sale and how important it is to try and capture your subject quickly. I informed them after talking with their councilors that by the day's end, Ice cream was on me! And I gave the councilors the money from the sale to buy ice cream for everyone at the end of their program.

They went to lunch after that and during lunch Holly gave her informative presentation on the history of the Katahdin Lake Wilderness Camps. Her talk was loaded with important and fascinating facts about the positive and negative effects sporting camps had on Baxter State Park in the past, particularly with over hunting the Caribou populations. She fielded many important questions including one that led to a discussion of the protection of this camps and their future that currently has a 25 year lease. By the time the lease is up these very students and their generation will decide the fate of Katahdin Lake Wilderness camps. Suddenly their importance was keenly felt and it was a powerful moment. I asked them to do me a favor. To remember the Katahdin Lake Camps and to always remember that "Beauty Can Save The World". Just as it did when 28 artists got together to help raise money and awareness so that the camps could be saved and Katahdin Lake could become the crown jewel of Governor Baxter's dream.

After a lunch to march on. The students chose their canoes and kayaks and loaded them up with art supplies. They all immediately went to the very beaches Frederick Church, Marsden Hartley and James Fitzgerald painted Katahdin from after putting on their life jackets, selecting their paddles and setting out. I told them that they could use their pencils once again to draw from since the quickie lesson didn't allow them to do so. They would have about two to three hours to complete their last painting. I informed them that they had two instructors today. I was only one of them. The second one was the spirit. If they got stuck, because I couldn't be with them, I instructed them to listen to that voice and do what was inside of them. I paddled to the farthest beach and made a final study with a group of students within an hour. Then I checked on each of the other students to see their progress and offer pointers. As you can see the results were terrific. Each artist painted as long as they were given the time to paint and just arrived back in time for the Flight service to land once again, load up the art supplies and fly off with the equipment. But they would always have their two paintings that they all proudly packed out with them.

To conclude, the sacrifices made for these students was well worth it for me and everyone who made it all possible. Sacrifices really do produce fire, passion and the ability for others to open up inside. This is what I witnessed in these students. And I hope I have shared enough evidence that the spirit of nature they experienced in their programs was released in their paintings. What was inside came out on paper at Katahdin Lake. Their personalities and hidden beauty came out when they made the choice to open themselves up to express a beauty that became powerful and wonderfully empowering. It was encouraging for me to watch as an instructor and inspiring even for an old painter like me who has been painting for over 40 years of my life. 

I overheard a student say to another student, and I'll close with this,"That's amazingly beautiful! How did you do that?" and I replied for the humble student seemingly caught off guard without words to explain, "It was In him!" So take a second look at the paintings these students made. They not only represent skillfully rendered paintings, but inner beauty that is the very evidence of what's inside each and every one of them. It is the very real ability to change their world in a beautiful way!

May you know this week that beauty changes the world around us and that the sacrifice is always worth it,

Michael E. Vermette

Watercolor Instructor of The MYWLP students