To mark the state of Maine’s bicentennial year, Ogunquit Museum of American Art is showcasing locally-active artists who have played significant roles as educators and founders of Maine’s influential visual and cultural heritage.

The View From Narrow Cove: Bicentennial Oqunquit (through October 31) includes works by Ogunquit-associated artists and a reinstallation of permanent collection works by the Ogunquit Art Colony’s founding father, Charles Woodbury. The museum website states, "Woodbury’s  legendary Ogunquit Summer School of Drawing and Painting is distinguished for having provided classes, tutorials, and lectures for professional and novice artists from across the nation. Over the course of thirty-six summers, Woodbury enrolled hundreds of students in his classical art training program. One of the nation’s first private art schools, Woodbury accepted women as serious students of art.  

This installation traces the spirit of Maine Moderns...and highlights the extensive influence of Woodbury’s associates and students within the context of American art history. The installation features selected favorites from the permanent collection as well as recent acquisitions, including paintings, prints, drawings, sculpture, and archival materials." 

Charles Woodbury: Open Studio is another installation that reimagines Woodbury’s workspace as it appeared between the 1890s through the end of his life. The original Woodbury studio–now a  summer rental property  near the Ogunquit Museum of American Art –overlooks  Perkins Cove.   

A  living history installation within  the framework of  the museum's permanent collection, Charles Woodbury: Open Studio  provides a comprehensive narrative,  assembling artifacts, furnishings, paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, and memorabilia from Woodbury’s studio, representing the artist’s long-range  influence on generations of students  and the community.

Check out Woodbury's studio with OMAA Curator and Collections Manager Ruth Greene-McNally on YouTube, here. See also Part 1 of the series.