The Maine Museum of Photographic Arts is showcasing the work of 23 women artists in a groundbreaking exhibition that celebrates the significant contributions women have made to photographic arts. "Women in Print: A Celebration of Works on Paper" features more than 70 prints on display, potentially a record number for the gallery space.
Among the featured artists is Joyce Tenneson, now considered one of the leading photographers of her generation. Her career began in the 1970s when she was the only woman in the photography department at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Despite getting along with her male colleagues, they felt her work was "too female," prompting her to move to New York where her career flourished. Today, her work has been published and exhibited worldwide.
Denise Froehlich, the museum's director and curator, emphasizes that women have been at the forefront of photography and have shaped the art form in important ways. She notes an increasing number of women teaching and graduating from photography departments and workshops, with a majority of her collectors being women. "People come from all over the world to study and make photographs in Maine, and a lot of them are women," Froehlich said. "It's like the who's who of who's great in the state."
The exhibition presents an expansive range of styles and subjects. Artists are exploring themes including trees and nature, landscapes, figurative work, motherhood, food, cultural heritage, nudism, and the human body. Tenneson observed that most of the work contains personal and autobiographical exploration, though the results vary dramatically from artist to artist. "I feel very excited about the fact there is this confluence of women who are really working in an area that wasn't really seen as important for many years," she said.
June Kim, a Korean American artist who teaches at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, represents the diverse approaches featured in the show. Her work often features her four huskies and explores the connection between humans and animals. She appreciates the exhibition's range, saying, "I like the idea of people being able to experience photography in more than one way or think about it in a more expansive way. It's not just this one thing."
Karen Olson of Hope, Maine, recently became a forest therapy guide, leading walks and workshops based on sensory experiences. This process influenced her body of work in the exhibition, which incorporates earth pigments, beeswax, watercolors, delicate Japanese paper, and digital tools. Her layered approach reflects the multifaceted nature of her experiences with the natural world. "It's not just one static thing. I see this sunset or I see this tree, and it's that I want to depict that experience, the feeling that I have," she explained.
Tenneson is presenting her relatively new "Sacre Bleu" series, where she adds gold and blue pigments to bring spiritual energy to nature scenes. She prefers to stay with projects for extended periods, finding this particular work especially fruitful. "I feel that I came upon this marriage of gold and blue, and it is something unique that I am enjoying continuing to find new ways of excitement about it," she said.
Froehlich made an innovative curatorial decision for this exhibition: most works are displayed unframed, using magnets to affix prints directly to the walls. This approach allows visitors to examine the works up close and appreciate the craftsmanship. "You can get up close, and you can see everything," she said. "We're really geeking out about it. I have pulled on the tables the incredible portfolios and prints, so we're wearing cotton gloves, and we're touching everything."
The museum regularly opens portfolios for visitors to examine available works, as all pieces at the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts are for sale. This hands-on approach has generated enthusiastic responses from guests and collectors, leading Froehlich to celebrate prints specifically with this exhibition. Without glass barriers, the viewing experience becomes intimate, with visitors spending more time studying the works and asking questions about different processes.
The exhibition showcases various paper types and techniques. Jeanne Hutchins uses heavy paper with raw edges, displayed next to Olson's nearly translucent Japanese paper. Froehlich points out details like where printing plates contacted paper in Christine Higgins' work and the distinctive appearance of Tenneson's signature. "You're reminded of the beauty of the medium," she noted.
Several artists combine photography with other mediums. Kim paints on top of her photographs, often featuring her huskies during drives on Mount Desert Island or road trips. She adds vivid colors to black-and-white prints, creating works like "Alien Dog," where a husky's head protruding from a car window is transformed into a spaceship through brushstrokes. "I don't like the idea of anything being so precious," Kim said. "So I think that act of painting on this print that's supposed to be precious is kind of scary but it's kind of a relief."
The exhibition nearly didn't happen at all. In October, a building leak caused water damage for hours before maintenance crews discovered the problem. "We lost art. We lost books," Froehlich said. The flat files remained mostly unaffected, providing some relief. However, as the museum's only full-time employee working with an annual operating budget of just $150,000, Froehlich has been motivated to search for a larger space.
The current location offers barely 600 square feet of exhibition space, limiting possibilities for film installations, workshops, or on-site printing and framing. When dozens of people attend artist talks or openings, some must crane their necks from the doorway. Froehlich is actively engaging with donors and exploring options for relocation. "We're onto something," she said. "We just have to stay alive."
Despite cramming as many pieces as possible onto the walls, Froehlich remains conscious of works she couldn't include due to space constraints. "Imagine the difference it would make for our artists," she said, envisioning the possibilities a larger venue could provide.
The exhibition runs through September 27 at the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts, located at 15 Middle Street A2 in Portland. The museum is open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free admission. A panel discussion is scheduled for September 19, featuring artists Astrid Reischwitz, Jeannie Hutchins, Tara Sellios, Susan Theodora White, Christine Higgins, and Lisa Mossel.
