During the month of June, the library will display watercolors of artist lobsterman, Jack Merrill of Islesford as well as a collection of Ukrainian Pysanky Eggs by Southwest Harbor resident and librarian Kate Pickup McMullin.
Jack began drawing and painting when his two children were young, hoping to spark their interest. When the urge to start painting again returned, “I wanted the challenge of a difficult medium, which I was told watercolor was, figuring I could branch out from there. But watercolor continues to capture my soul. I love both its depth and opaqueness. Painting, as conflicting as it sounds, is both intense and relaxing at the same time, taking me away from everyday stresses. I thoroughly enjoy it and hope you enjoy the results, too.”
After graduating 1975 from Antioch College (Marine Biology and English), Jack started lobstering on Little Cranberry Island out of his own 32’ wooden boat, “Kingpin”. Jack has been an active member of the Maine Lobstermen Association since the early 1980’s – including over 20 years as Vice-President. He also has served as an advisor to the University of Maine Lobster Institute since its inception in 1987. In addition to fishing, Jack has coached baseball, basketball, and hockey for over 60 youth sports teams, and occasionally gives readings and publishes some of his poetry. He also appeared as a character in Trevor Corson’s book, “The Secret Life of Lobsters”. See more of Jack’s work at https://islesfordartists.com/jack-merrill.
Kate Pickup McMullin started making Ukrainian Pysanky Eggs after taking an online class with artist and ArtWaves MDI instructor Erica Qualey in April 2021. With “pandemic time” on her hands, Kate came to love the total immersion of the process, from marking the egg with pencil dots to set up the geometric framework, to waxing over a color, dropping it into another color, then waxing over that color repeatedly until finally holding the wax-blackened egg over a flame for the melting and reveal. Kate loves decorating eggs with her daughter Kieu who is the expert on melting and polishing. “No matter what lines and designs I start with, the end result is always a mystery until the final step. For me, each egg is a journey and an opportunity to discover beauty through process.”
For inquiries about the exhibits, email programs@swhplibrary.org or call (207) 244-7065.
Image: Low Moon by Jack Merrill