March 29, 2024
BANGOR DAILY NEWS (BANGOR, MAINE

Classical artist to present workshops in Danforth

American and Canadian artists of all ages are being offered a very special experience in connection with the Danforth International Art Show, which runs from July 26 to Aug. 7 at the Danforth Union Hall.

We have learned from Bangor Art Society member and Danforth resident Stan Whiteman that classical realist Carol Lee Thompson of Baltimore, Md., who is trained in the methods of the old masters, will present two workshops in July in Danforth.

One is a weeklong workshop that runs July 12-16 at a cost of $140 per person. The other is a weekend workshop July 9-11 that costs $100 per person.

Whiteman said Thompson graciously “set a very low cost” in agreeing to come to Danforth, and that the fees will cover that cost.

Thompson teaches the Method Maroger, which is based on the work of the late restorer Jacques Maroger, who was employed by the Louvre in Paris and was president of the French Restorers, among other assignments.

After fleeing Europe in 1939, he came to the United States and was appointed professor at the Parsons School of Design. He later taught 20 years at the Maryland Institute College of Art. He continued to teach, paint and experiment until his death in 1962. Thompson is a former Maroger student and teacher.

Thompson’s workshops will cover — among other things — temperature, texture, composition, surfaces, highlights, varnishing and other techniques that Maroger discovered lent luminosity to the works of the old masters.

The workshops are limited to 10 people each, so if you want to attend, you should contact Whiteman as soon as possible. Whiteman has suggestions for lodging in the area as well as further information about the programs.

To teachers and professionals, Whiteman says, “after taking this workshop, you will know how the old masters painted and will be able to use those materials and teach students how to properly start” works of their own. And, he promises, “even if your method is impressionistic, you’ll still be a better painter.”

Whiteman also wants area artists to be thinking about entering the Danforth show, which includes Canadians and many artists from “around the East Grand Lake region.” There is no entry fee for the show.

To learn more about the Thompson workshops, or how to enter the Danforth International Art Show, call Whiteman at 448-7273 or 448-7211, or write him at P.O. Box 99, Danforth, 04424-0099. His e-mail address is whi2@eastgrand.net.

Last October, residents of this area were treated to a lecture-recital by concert pianist-composer Dr. Lee Mitchell of Delaware and Switzerland. Mitchell, whose music is based on the Jewish tradition, appeared at All Souls Congregational Church in Bangor as part of the series featuring the Arlan A. Baillie Steinway Grand, a 1916 piano restored in memory of the late Curtis and Ruth Hutchins.

Mitchell is returning to Bangor and will present a piano master class at 2 p.m. Saturday at All Souls. The event is free and open to the public.

All Souls music director Kay Bither told us that “anyone who is interested can attend” and listen to the work of several students who will play pieces they have prepared for Mitchell’s comments.

The eight students participating represent the studios of Baycka Voronietsky of the University of Maine, Patricia Stowell of Orono and Paulina Glazman of Bangor.

“The public is invited to attend at no charge,” Bither said of the event, which is also a part of the Steinway series.

The Bangor Garden Show is just around the corner: It runs April 9-11 at the Bangor Auditorium and Civic Center.

Many people are already planning to attend, and others are buying tickets not only to the show, but also the Preview Night 6-8 p.m. Thursday, April 8.

Garden Show co-chairman Irv Marsters and co-chairwoman Karen LaPlante cordially invite any and all to attend the preview and want you to know that tickets for that event are $25 each.

Tickets for the show are $6 for adults, $2 for students, and free for children under age 5.

Advance tickets are available in Bangor at the Bangor Historical Society on Union Street; the Holiday Inn on Main Street; the Bangor Convention and Visitors Bureau in the Chamber of Commerce building on Main Street; downtown at Best Bib and Tucker; in the Broadway Shopping Center at Libby’s Hallmark Shop, and at the Auditorium and Civic Center office at Bass Park.

Preview night tickets can also be obtained by calling the Bangor Beautiful office at 990-1201.

On a related note, Bangor Garden Show volunteer coordinator Bonnie Spather reminds readers that volunteers are needed to work the show Saturday, April 9, through Sunday, April 11, and wants those potential volunteers to know that they “may choose their hours and possibly their stations.”

Spather said that “all volunteers are encouraged to attend orientation at 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 7, at the Bangor Auditorium.”

If you can help make everything go more smoothly for this fresh breath of springtime coming to Bangor, please call Spather at 884-7272.

In answer to many queries, no, “Scratchy Piggy” — the tattered but much-loved Piglet owned by 2-year-old Jessie Andrews and lost during a February visit to a Bangor restaurant — has never been found.

But Jessie’s parents, Allan and Jo Andrews of Blue Hill, knew they had to exhaust all avenues — including a newspaper plea — to try to find “Scratchy Piggy.”

The couple very much appreciate the help of all who demonstrated their concern for their little girl and her lost toy, especially the staff of Wendy’s on Union Street in Bangor, who kindly helped search for the toy when it was first lost, and later answered the calls of Jessie’s grandmother when she regularly checked to see if the stuffed toy had turned up.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; 990-8288.


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