Objects/Objectivity

George Mason, Jonathan Mess, Oliver Solmitz

February 4, 2021 – March 6, 2021
View the exhibition online or in person:
www.greenhutgalleries.com/exhibitions-events/objects-objectivity

This exhibition places non-representational sculptural objects made by Maine artists George Mason, Jonathan Mess, and Oliver Solmitz in conversation with each other. The materials are diverse, and the dialogue fascinating.

Greenhut Galleries
146 Middle St
Portland, ME
207-772-2693 
info@greenhutgalleries.com

Hours: Monday - Friday 10am - 5:30pm, Saturday 10am - 5pm, Masks Required

Man-Made: A State of Nature

An Invitational Group Show of Activist Art

February 7, 2019 – March 2, 2019
Opening reception, Saturday, February 9th from 1-3pm

“Likewise, civilizations have throughout history marched blindly toward disaster, because humans are wired to believe that tomorrow will be much like today — it is unnatural for us to think that this way of life, this present moment, this order of things is not stable and permanent. Across the world today, our actions testify to our belief that we can go on like this forever, burning oil, poisoning the seas, killing off other species, pumping carbon into the air, ignoring the ominous silence of our coal mine canaries in favor of the unending robotic tweets of our new digital imaginarium. Yet the reality of global climate change is going to keep intruding on our fantasies of perpetual growth, permanent innovation and endless energy, just as the reality of mortality shocks our casual faith in permanence.” 

- Roy Scranton, 
Learning to Die in the Anthropocene:
Reflections on the End of a Civilization

In February, Greenhut is proud to present an environmentally themed invitational show with a focus on the social and cultural aspects of climate change. With point critical for reversing climate change behind us, but mitigation of future effects still possible, we invited 23 activist artists to submit work that creates awareness, stimulates dialogue, explores ethical issues and implications, comments on or seeks to change human behavior towards other species, and encourages long-term respect for the natural systems with which we coexist. The result is an exciting and eclectic exhibition. Media range from oil paintings to photographs to ceramics, textiles, reclaimed fishing gear, encaustic, wood, plastic, raw coal, bee pollen and more. The thread that binds is the thought-provoking beauty of the objects themselves and the passion each artist brought to this important project. We hope you’ll join us in participating in this urgent conversation.

Man-Made featured artists: Judith Allen, Greta Bank, Stephen Burt, Kate Chappell, Lee Cummings, Michel Droge, Rick Green, Sean Alonzo Harris, Joe Hemes, Adriane Herman, Tina Ingraham, Juliet Karelsen, Jonathan Mess, Amy Peters Wood, Ben Potter, Alison Rector, Carter Shappy, Gail Skudera, Gin Stone, Shoshannah White, DM Witman, Jeff Woodbury, Dudley Zopp

Greenhut Galleries
146 Middle St
Portland, ME
207-772-2693 
info@greenhutgalleries.com

Hours: Monday - Friday 10am - 5:30pm, Saturday 10am - 5pm

MESS FEST AT THE GOOD SUPPLY
End of Season Holiday Party at The Good Supply with Kate and Jonathan Mess

Pemaquid, ME—The season for gathering is here, and The Good Supply has special plans to bring the community together around a “mess” of good art. Presenting both freshly-fired artwork and jewelry by Jefferson-based artists Kate and Jonathan Mess, MESS FEST will be held the weekend of December 15th and 16th from 10am to 6pm at The Good Supply’s seasonally decorated restored barn in Pemaquid.

Highlights of the two-day event include work by 90 Maine artists and makers along with collections by Kate and Jonathan Mess that are brand new to The Good Supply. There will be a special artist reception for Kate and Jonathan beginning at 2pm on Sunday, December 16th. The reception is free for the public, and all are welcome to attend. To help you finish up your holiday shopping, complimentary gift wrapping in seasonal colors will be available, along with a selection of holiday cards. 

Kate Mess will introduce her “Faceted Chain Collection” at the weekend’s event. The hand-forged, geometric, silver and gold jewelry is lightweight, contemporary sculpture that can be worn every day. Compositions are familiar yet abstracted sea life-inspired shapes represented in a handmade chain form—each link is individually bent, soldered, and hammered by hand.

Jonathan Mess will share a collection of new vessels from his “Coastal Series,” including vases, bowls, cups, and mugs typically only offered directly from his studio. Jonathan says, “My work is driven by exploration in ceramic materials, usually in the form of sculpture and wall objects, but every year around this time, I’m inspired to make unique functional vessels for friends and family. This year, I want to share these pieces with my local community of Maine students, friends, and neighbors.”

About Kate Mess

Kate Mess is an award-winning contemporary jeweler, artist, and designer. She muses with enamel, metal, pattern, and ornamentation while taking inspiration from her home: Rugged and gorgeous Midcoast Maine. Making jewelry that pushes boundaries and offers a new definition of adornment, Kate is intrigued by experimentation, clever design, color, pater, and silhouette. Her work illustrates how she values taking time—allowing process to guide and inspire her. 

About Jonathan Mess

Jonathan Mess is a contemporary ceramic artist from Midcoast Maine who allows his art to be given by instinct and experimentation. The freedom in his process unifies his various series, which are energetic, ambitious, and environmentally focused. Using reclaimed materials and unconventional techniques, Jonathan has a unique style that is sought after throughout the state of Maine and beyond. His work is a vehicle for education, guiding viewers to consider waste, recycling, and purposeful art. He is an educator, teaching ceramic and sculpture courses at Lincoln Academy in Newcastle. His work was included in the Portland Museum of Art 2018 Biennial and will be featured at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum 2019 Biennial.

See How It Feels | May 25 – June 15

GVG Contemporary presents See How It Feels, an exhibition of national, emerging artists who employ abstraction to explore the emotive qualities of space, place, and material. The artists’ explorations range from ideas about identity, phenomena, the mental landscape, maps, geography, and the memory of home. See How It Feels is an invitation to experience how space, material, and objects alter mood and transmit feelings through a diverse body of work.

Opening reception: Friday, May 25th, from 5-7pm.

MELTING POINT: MOVEMENTS IN CONTEMPORARY CLAY

Craft & Folk Art Museum‘s first clay biennial focuses on artistic practices that are currently expanding the conceptual, aesthetic, and sociopolitical potential of the ceramic object. Melting Point presents works from both emerging and established artists that push traditional processes of working with clay and question pre-conceived definitions of the ceramic object. These artists choose to work with clay for its technical, conceptual, and metaphoric possibilities and capitalize on clay’s versatility along with the countless glazes and firing techniques available—often viewing the clay, glaze, or kiln as a collaborator in their process. Works in the exhibition include sculptural objects, site-specific installations, and performative works. Curated by Holly Jerger, CAFAM exhibitions curator, and Andres Payan, CAFAM curator of public engagement.

Exhibition artists: Brian Benfer, Susannah Biondo-Gemmell, Ling Chun, Armando Cortes, Patsy Cox, Julia Haft-Candell, Stanton Hunter, Kahlil Robert Irving, Trevor King, Jennifer Ling Datchuk, Linda Lopez, Walter McConnell, Ben Medansky, Jonathan Mess, Kristen Morgin, Wayne Perry, Jami Porter Lara, Brian Rochefort, Anthony Sonnenberg, Emily Sudd, Cheryl Ann Thomas, and Matt Wedel. 

OPENING RECEPTION
Saturday, January 27, 2018 from 6 - 9PM. The reception is free for CAFAM members and open to the public for a $12 entry fee.

EXHIBITION RUNS
January 28 - May 6, 2018

CRAFT & FOLK ART MUSEUM
5814 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323.937.4230
info@cafam.org
www.cafam.org

THE 2018 PORTLAND MUSEUM OF ART BIENNIAL

Opening January 26, the 2018 Portland Museum of Art Biennial features more than 60 works by 25 participating artists, highlighting the diverse perspectives and interests of artists connected to Maine and making a powerful statement about art's impact in this historical moment.

EXHIBITION RUNS
January 26 - June 3, 2018

In agreeing to curate the 2018 PMA Biennial, Nat May, the former executive director of Portland's groundbreaking alternative arts venue SPACE Gallery, wanted to ensure the exhibition raised awareness of the cultural moment in Maine and America, and focus on artists participating in those conversations. To that end, May reached out to several colleagues intricately involved in various circles of Maine's contemporary art scene. These included Theresa Secord, renowned artist, educator, and founder of the Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance, Sarah Workneh, Co-Director of Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture, and Mark Bessire, the Judy and Leonard Lauder Director of the Portland Museum of Art.

Working as a team proved beneficial for the exhibition, as May and his colleagues made studio visits across the state and beyond, talking with artists who have meaningful relationships with Maine. “We’re taking the idea of connection seriously," adds May, "the definition of ‘meaningful’ should pass the straight-face test. But it’s also important to understand that this exhibition, though regional by nature, should not be defined by regionalism. Our border is permeable, and our world in Maine intricately connected to the world beyond our state lines.”

One focus for the group is artists who have never been represented at the PMA before, including past Biennials, exhibitions, or in the museum's collection. These may be artists who have shown extensively elsewhere or who are relatively unknown, but it is important to May to use the Biennial to bring artists and artworks to the PMA for the first time.

"The works are exceptional, thought-provoking, challenging, and inspiring," states May, "but I want to get away from the idea that the Biennial should be a 'best of Maine' show. The many excellent works that deserve to be seen exceed the exhibition's capacity, and our challenge was to select which works and artists will benefit from the attention, consideration, and thought from the PMA audience and the visitors to the exhibition."

PORTLAND MUSEUM OF ART
7 Congress Square
Portland, ME 04101
(207)775-6148
info@portlandmuseum.org
www.portlandmuseum.org

MATERIALITY: THE MATTER OF MATTER

You begin with the possibilities of the material. –Robert Rauschenberg

The question of how and why an artist uses materials has long been a topic of consideration in art history. Today, many artists are looking to this question and seeking to find a balance between what they use to make work and the concepts behind them. Providing agency to the materials themselves, artists are looking at materials as a means of communication, whether they are expanding on traditional media and narratives or utilizing everyday objects to construct new forms. Exploring these concerns in their work, the artists included in the exhibition, all with ties to Maine, are also considering why they choose to work with certain matter in our current material culture and social climate, and the role that these materials play within it.

Artists included in the exhibition are Jackie Brown, Stephanie Cardon, Lisa Kellner, Adam Lampton, Jonathan Mess, Gelah Penn, Emilie Stark-Menneg, Aaron T Stephan, and others.

Center for Maine Contemporary Art
21 Winter Street
Rockland, Maine 04841
207.701.5005
www.cmcanow.org

Symbiosis: Creative Exchange Between Kate & Jonathan Mess

July 22 - September 3, 2017
Opening Reception: July 22, 2017, 5-7 PM

Artist couple Kate & Jonathan Mess will present Symbiosis, an exploration of the similarities and differences in their work and the way their practices intertwine, at The Good Supply in Pemaquid. Though their studio endeavors have been closely linked since they met in graduate school in 2006, this is the couple's first dual exhibition.

"The Messes represent the best of contemporary art and craft here in Maine," says Center for Maine Contemporary Art director Suzette McAvoy, "living a full professional and family life and making work they believe in." Read more about Kate and Jonathan's work and life together in the current issue of Down East Magazine, "Making Art, Making a Life," written by Edgar Allen Beem and photographed by Molly Haley. 

The Good Supply
2106 Bristol Road
Pemaquid, ME 04558
207.607.3121

Intimate Abstractions: Ceramic Invitational curated by California College of the Arts Professor Nancy Selvin.

ANDREW CASTO
MARY ALISON LUCAS
NATHAN LYNCH
KARI MARBOE
JONATHAN MESS

OPENING RECEPTION
Saturday, July 15, 2017  2 – 5 pm

EXHIBITION RUNS
July 13 - August 19, 2017

PATRICIA SWEETOW GALLERY
480 23rd Street
(between Telegraph & Broadway in Oakland)
Oakland, CA 94612
1-510.788.5860
www.patriciasweetowgallery.com

VINCENT HAWKINS
JONATHAN MESS
LAURENCE OWEN
NINA ROYLE
MATTHEW DAVID-SMITH
MARK SURRIDGE

PRIVATE VIEW
9th FEBRUARY  6.00 PM - 8.00 PM
8 DUKE STREET, ST JAMES'S, LONDON SW1Y 6BN

EXHIBITION RUNS
9th FEBRUARY - 25th FEBRUARY

OPEN
MON-SAT 11.30 AM - 6.30 PM
(SATURDAY 25th CLOSING AT 3.00 PM)
SUN 11.30 AM - 5.00 PM

Visceral is co-curated by Mark Surridge painter and lecturer and includes a series of prints, paintings and sculptural ceramics that explore abstraction and materiality. The exhibition includes cleverly abstracted works by Surridge, Vincent Hawkins, Laurence Owen, Nina Royal and Jonathan Mess and Matthew David-Smith.

Art can sometimes hit hard, slap you around the face and take you by surprise. The raw power of a gestural brushstroke,  the alchemy of mixing materials or the haptic manipulation of clay can make the experience of appreciating art more visceral, more real.

Imagine a work of art as having a tone of voice, some voices may convey impact and immediacy while others are like whispers, as sensitive as litmus paper on the stain of human consciousness. The intuitive artist is working with internal logic mechanisms able to create works of art that have the ability to touch our heart-felt emotions and euphoric feelings. The act of looking is like an archaeological dig excavating, unpicking layer upon layer of visual material - a materiality to enliven the human senses.

Intuitive abstract artists make paintings and sculptures that tap into our psyche-from the gut rather than the intellect.  Howard Hodgkin describes the end result of his creative process, "When I finish a painting, it usually looks as surprising to me as to anyone else.”

CONTACT
Coates & Scarry, info@coatesandscarry.com, +44 (0)754 0793 264

December 9, 2016 to March 12, 2017

cont{R}act earth —First Central China International Ceramics Biennale, Henan Museum,  Zhengzhou City, China, curated by Wendy Gers

The First Central China Ceramics Biennale, Cont{r}act Earth, is a rich and expansive survey of contemporary art from leading international artists and designers. This Biennale is grounded in contemporary artistic investigations of our Anthropocene age, the earth, and relationships with our environment.

Installations engage with the two central themes of the Biennial. ‘Contact’ refers to the materiality of clay, and ‘Contract’ suggests a sense of obligation – as guardians of our natural and cultural heritage.

Works in clay, glass, still and moving images, and mixed media, are presented. They dialogue with the central themes of the Biennale, exploring the transition from mud to form, sound, innovative ways to combine glass and clay, ecologically engaged projects, global ceramics legacies legacies and relationships between nature and technology.

The exhibition presents 42 installations by 50 artists from 20 countries. Five international guest Artists in Residence worked with key partners in Henan province to produce ambitious projects that engage with local culture and history.

http://ccicb.chnmus.net/en/ntzy/201612/05/content_400385.htm

December 8, 2016 - January 18, 2017

Featuring artwork by Jaynie Crimmins, Alice Hope, Jonathan Mess, Constance Old, and Joanne Ungar, curated by Ruth Sutcliffe and Sallie Baldwin.

Flinn Gallery
Greenwich Library
Second Floor
101 West Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830

October 1 + 2, 2016, 10am - 4pm

Artist couple Jonathan and Kate Mess will host their second annual open studio featuring Jonathan’s contemporary ceramic sculpture and wall objects and Kate’s handcrafted contemporary enamel and precious metal jewelry at their renovated barn home on scenic route 213 in Jefferson.

Jonathan Mess creates experimental works using reclaimed ceramic materials. Art critic Daniel Kany writes, “Mess’ slabs usually act like the unruly child versions of paintings. Their lines are wild, and their surfaces are varied and thickly textured with glazes, slips, fissures and irascibly independent materials that refused to be melted into line. In terms of ceramics, Mess’ casual boldness is remarkable.” He was awarded the Maine Arts Commission’s 2015 Contemporary Craft Fellowship and more, and his work shows nationally and internationally.

Kate Mess creates contemporary jewelry and occasional objects that are bold and edgy in both form and concept. Her work ranges from colorful enameled collections inspired by her coastal Maine environment, to eye-catching handmade wire chains designs, to delicately textured custom bridal jewelry. She designs and makes all jewelry by hand in her Midcoast Maine studio, and her work has exhibited both nationally and internationally.

Jonathan & Kate Mess Studios
2 Ames Lane
Jefferson, ME 04348
www.mainecraftweekend.org/2016-events-by-region/mid-coast-events/

ABOUT MAINE CRAFT WEEKEND:
Maine Craft Weekend (MCW), a statewide tour of Maine craft studios, breweries, businesses and events, is an opportunity for the public to explore the life and work of craft artists and craft brewers in Maine. MCW is a public, educational, community oriented, family friendly weekend October 1 + 2, 2016. MCW is scheduled in conjunction with American Craft Week, a nationwide event promoting craft events each October. Modeled after Maine Maple Sunday and Buy Local Saturday, this self-guided tour features participants all over the state who are not regularly open to the public or who have planned special MCW events and demonstrations at their locations. Plan a route to include a pottery wheel lesson and a glass blowing demonstration in the morning, swing by a brew pub for lunch, wrap up the day perusing a craft show and start all over again on Sunday!

Maine Craft Weekend will be even better in 2016 thanks to a $41,000 grant from the Maine Office of Tourism intended primarily for marketing the event. In 2015 this website and other MCW marketing promoted over 200 sites and 540 individuals throughout Maine, drawing local and out-of-state visitors directly to the sources of Maine craft and craft brews. We plan to increase the number of sites and visitors in 2016!

Maine Craft Weekend is produced by The Maine Crafts Association with Event Partner, the Maine Brewer’s Guild, and Organizational Partner, The Maine Department of Economic and Community Development’s Maine Made Program. These statewide organizations have successfully branded and promoted quality Maine Craft, Maine products, and craft beer, respectively; Maine Craft Weekend invites the public into these dynamic studios and businesses to see the magic behind the products they produce.

Examples of participating sites include individual potters’ home studios, craft galleries, glass blowing studios, outdoor installation sites, non-profit craft organizations, craft-based schools, craft beer breweries and craft beer brewery-restaurants. Events will vary by type of location and will include open studios, demonstrations, tastings, exhibitions, sales, tours, kids’ projects and other creative and interactive activities.

The public interested in visiting sites during Maine Craft Weekend can visit www.MaineCraftWeekend.org to learn about participants and events and use the interactive MCW map to plan their route!

STEVE BARTLETT
SARAH BOUCHARD
TOM BUTLER
HEATHER CHONTOS
LUC DEMERS
TOM GAINES
JT GIBSON
JUNG HUR
JEFF KELLAR
PETER KIRKILES
FREDERICK LYNCH
JONATHAN MESS
MUNIRA NAQUI
DAVID RAYMOND
WILLIAM ZINGARO

Show runs: July 7th - August 4th
Artists' Reception: Thursday, July 14th, from 6 - 8pm
Location: COREY DANIELS GALLERY, 2208 Post Road, Wells, Maine
FMI: Sarah Bouchard, 207.646.5301, sarah@coreydanielsgallery.com

Featuring artwork by Meghan Brady, Jessica Buckley, Amanda K. Hawkins, Jonathan Mess, Jean Noon, and Andrea Sulzer.

Engine
128 Main Street
Biddeford, ME 04005
Opening Reception: Friday, March 25th, 2016 from 5:00 - 7:00 PM