Ogunquit Museum of American Art receives gift of Winslow Homer drawing
OGUNQUIT, Maine – The Ogunquit Museum of American Art has received a gift of a drawing by Winslow Homer, Untitled, referred to as “The Rescue Party.” This is the first drawing by the artist to enter the collection at OMAA. The work was donated by longtime supporters Helen and Michael Horn.
“I always loved collecting old things, things with a history, an attractive patina, or some age to them etc.,” said Helen Horn. “This Homer drawing had been in my family for several generations (for about 70 years). It was obvious that the Ogunquit Museum of American Art would make the perfect home for a drawing of the seacoast by an early Maine artist. My husband and I could not think of a more fitting institution for it.”
The small but dramatic drawing shows three groups of men in heavy weather gear approaching rescue boats. Working along a rocky beach, they leave footprints in the wet sand. Beyond them choppy surf breaks, and in the distance, beneath an ominous sky rendered in heavy strokes, a masted ship lies stranded at a perilous angle. Their high boots, Sou’wester hats and slickers suggest the U.S. Life-Saving Service, the predecessor to the Coast Guard, which was a frequent subject in Homer’s work.
Retaining the uneven edges of a page cut from a sketchbook, ghostly images of erased figures, and slashes of pencil directing the flow of the action, this work provides valuable insight on Homer’s creative process as he reworks the scene to infuse the composition with the desired mood.
“This gift from the Horn family is monumental for the Museum as it experiences a growth stage,” said Amanda Lahikainen, PhD, Executive Director of Ogunquit Museum of American Art. “We are honored that the Horns consider the Museum the right home for this work, and we are excited to share Homer’s drawing with visitors this summer.”
The Rescue Party made its debut at the Ogunquit Museum of American Art when it opened for the season on Sunday, May 1.
3S Artspace awards grant to area non-profit organizations
PORTSMOUTH — 3S Artspace announces the non-profit organizations selected as recipients of their 2022 Community Space Use Grant: Black Lives Matter Seacoast, Soul Models (Kittery), Lovering Health Center (Greenland), Yoga in Action (Greenland), Big Brothers Big Sisters of New Hampshire (Stratham), Continuum Arts Collective (North Berwick, Maine), and the community radio station, WSCA (Portsmouth).
3S Artspace developed the Community Use Grant program at the end of 2020 in direct response to persisting challenges non-profits face in reaching their constituents and meeting fundraising goals for operations during the pandemic.
“We’ve always offered discounted rates for non-profit rentals at 3S, but with so many budgets decimated due to the pandemic, we knew we had to do more.” said Beth Falconer, Executive Director of 3S Artspace. “For our first round of grants, we leveraged our capacity to offer livestream support, since we weren’t yet back to in-person events. This time, grantees are truly awarded use of our space and may choose to offer a hybrid event if it’s beneficial to them.”
3S Artspace will host the grant recipients’ events in the Performance Space at 3S throughout 2022, waiving the room rental fee, and allowing the organizations to focus on reaching their audience and mission goals. The nature of the event is selected by the recipient organization and includes fundraisers, trainings, and outreach events.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of New Hampshire will use their grant to hold an event on Nov. 3 to educate the community about their organization and its impact on youths in New Hampshire.
“Big Brothers Big Sisters of New Hampshire is honored to be selected as a recipient of the 3S Artspace grant. We are thrilled to collaborate with 3S to bring awareness to our important mission to create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth. Together, we can make a difference,” said Nicole McShane, CFRE, Vice President of Philanthropy at Big Brothers Big Sisters of New Hampshire.
Black Lives Matter Seacoast plans to use their grant award to hold a private public speaking training session for members in the family and youth division of their organization this May.
“This grant allows BLM Seacoast to further its mission to empower and advocate for the BIPOC community. We’ll be teaching youth and adults what effective advocacy looks like,” said Tanisha Johnson, Co-founder and board chair of Black Lives Matter Seacoast.
Continuum Arts Collective plans to hold an open mic fundraising event on Nov. 10.
“CAC is very grateful to 3S Artspace and excited about this opportunity to partner with another arts-centric nonprofit to benefit working-class families and their student artists and musicians in Maine and New Hampshire,” said Martin England, Executive Director of Continuum Arts Collective. “Although we’ve partnered with 3S in the past on fundraising events and album release parties for my band The Reconstructed, this is the first time 3S awarded us the Community Use Grant, and we’re over the moon about this prospect. 3S provides a venue that is integral to the development and showcasing of art and music in the Seacoast, and we’re looking forward to filling it with art and music this November. In many ways, it’s a lot like coming home.”
Beth Falconer said, “This program has become something we treasure at 3S. It puts us in touch with the varied and inspirational work of our non-profit colleagues across so many sectors. We appreciate the chance to host them, to help them further their missions, and to learn about how we might engage even further with our amazing community.”
