Weekender: New England Contemporary Art Outside Boston

June 2, 2016

The summer months are a great time for discovering what New England has to offer outside of Boston. Every state has beautiful wilderness, historical cities and towns, and a rich arts culture. Here are six museums we recommend you visit on your weekend trip:

 

Connecticut

 

Courtesy of the Aldritch Contemporary Art Museum

Courtesy of the Aldritch Contemporary Art Museum

 

The Aldritch Contemporary Art Museum

Ridgefield, CT: A beautiful colonial town at the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains.

The Aldritch Contemporary Art Museum have 9-month exhibitions best enjoyed in the summer due to their outdoor sculpture garden. Currently they are host to four solo exhibitions all centered around the idea of place. David BrooksKim JonesPeter Liversidge, and Virginia Overton present site specific commissions ranging from drawing to sculpture and performance.

 

Maine

 

Image courtesy of Portland Press Herald

Image courtesy of Portland Press Herald

 

The Center for Maine Contemporary Art

Rockland, ME: A historical lobster-fishing town home to many young artists.

The Center for Maine Contemporary Art is opening their brand new facility in Rockland, ME in the last week of June. The building has a striking sawtooth design by architect Toshiko Mori, and moves the museum to a central location in downtown Rockport, walking distance from the Farnsworth Art Museum and Wyeth Center. Their inaugural exhibitions will feature altered photographs by Rollin Leonard, small-scale oil paintings by Alex Katz, and site-specific installations by Jonathan Borofsky.

 

Massachusetts

Richard NonasImage Courtesy of Mass MoCA

Richard Nonas
Image Courtesy of Mass MoCA

 

The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art

North Adams, MA: An artistic and musical hub located in the northwest corner of the Berkshire Mountains.

The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA) is a sprawling manufacturing plant turned museum, currently home to nine unique contemporary exhibitions. Richard Nonas' exhibition of existing and site-specific sculpture, The Man in the Empty Space, currently spans through Mass MoCA's Building 5, a window-lined warehouse nearly a football field's length.

 

New Hampshire

3S Artspace

Portsmouth, NH: The nation's third-oldest city on the mouth of Piscataqua River, which divides New Hampshire and Maine.

The 3S Artspace is a contemporary gallery in Portsmouth, NH. Along with art, they are also host to musical performances and film screenings. Open through end of June, Welcome to the Bobhouse by Rachelle Beaudoin is comprised of new pieces, performances and video in a mobile studio space.

 

Rhode Island

 

Image courtesy of RISD Museum

Image courtesy of RISD Museum

The RISD Museum

Providence, RI: The capital of Rhode Island, situated at the mouth of the Providence River, and home to Rhode Island School of Design and Brown University.

The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Museum has a diverse collection of art and is distinguished by its relationship with RISD, one of the top art and design schools in the country. Their current exhibition is features the 1990's runway opus of fashion designer Todd Oldham, comprised of 65 full ensembles.

 

Vermont

 

Cal LaneImage courtesy of courtesy of Burlington Center for the Arts

Cal Lane
Image courtesy of courtesy of Burlington Center for the Arts

 

Burlington City Arts

Burlington, VT: A picturesque mountain valley ski town on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain.

The Burlington City Arts (BCA) has three floors of contemporary gallery space that foster Burlington's relationship with arts and community. The BCA is currently exhibiting metalwork by Cal Lane, geometric painted sculptures by Clark Derbes, and a duo show with Nissa Kauppila and Erika Lawlor Schmidt, which plays on the balance between matter and space.

 

Thursday, June 2, 2016: Puloma Ghosh

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Abigail Ogilvy

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