On Saturday, October 8, the Farnsworth Art Museum will open a new exhibition to the public entitled Art of Disaster. The exhibition, which features paintings, photographs, prints, and three-dimensional works, will be on display in the museum’s Crosman Gallery through April 23, 2017.

Flood, fire, earthquake, drought…few things fuel the collective imagination more than the subject of disaster. This exhibition, drawn primarily from the Farnsworth and several local collections, explores the universal world of natural and human-originated disasters. Works by Washington Allston, Leonard Baskin, Augustus Buhler, Jonathan Fisher, Winslow Homer, James Hope, Waldo Peirce, and N.C. Wyeth may be included. They depict a host of disasters—crashes, drowning, explosions, floods, fire, hurricanes, shipwrecks and war; the calamity of the aftermath: harrowing rescues, untold death and destruction, the physical and psychological toil; and finally, the cleanup and recovery.

The opening will be celebrated at a free community event on Friday, October 7, from 5 – 8 p.m. The event will feature treats, interactive photo displays and a variety of "Pumpkin Disasters". The opening event is part of the first annual Maine's Pumpkin Trail, a partnership between the Farnsworth, Maine Maritime Museum, Boothbay Railway Village and the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta, and is sponsored by First National Bank. The primary media sponsor of the exhibition is Maine Home + Design.