Renowned West Bath artist Evelyn Dunphy will be featured in an exhibition of watercolor and still life paintings from next Monday through October 29 in Lancaster Lounge, Moulton Union.
The exhibition is titled "Luminous, Light-filled Landscape and Still Life Paintings," and will display small and large paintings depicting the Maine coast and Katahdin, particularly Katahdin Lake.
The exhibition will also feature still life paintings of dramatic floral arrangements and scenery from a visit to France.
Both forms of art will feature watercolor paints as a medium, with an emphasis on bright pastels to contrast with dark shadows.
Dunphy has been featured in several celebrated art magazines, including Downeast, American Art Collector and International Artist.
Dunphy is also a member of several prestigious artists groups. These groups include the New England Watercolor Society, Allied Artists of America, Transparent Water Color Society, Union of Maine Visual Artists and Pastel Painters of Maine.
Born in Nova Scotia, Dunphy has thought of herself as an artist since childhood and maintained that ever since.
After working with a biomedical research firm in 1999, she decided to pursue her passion as an artist full-time.
Over the past 10 years, Dunphy has devoted considerable time to traveling abroad in order to paint a broader range of topics. She climbed Mount Fugi, traveled the Bush Country and Victoria Falls in Zambia, visited India, and climbed Mount Sirigiya in Sri Lanka.
Dunphy is also inspired by local places in Maine. Some of her exhibition's most compelling work features Baxter State Park.
On Dunphy's website, www.evelyndunphy.com, she explains how the setting inspires her work.
"For 15 to 20 minutes the lights change from blue to lavender, peach, pink and gold on the surface of the mountain. It's based in a rosy glow—unbelievably beautiful," wrote Dunphy.
Dunphy's work featuring Katahdin Lake was featured in Moulton Union in October 2006.
This exhibition sought to spread awareness on the preservation of Katahdin Lake's natural beauty and protection from development into condominiums.
Through painting, Dunphy passionately spreads awareness of environmental preservation.
In 2009, Dunphy was awarded the Natural Resource of Maine's People's Choice Aware for contributions to conservation in Maine, particularly at Katahdin Lake.
Dunphy commented on the issue of wildlife preservation on her website, stating, "During the campaign to save Katahdin Lake from development, a friend commented that using my work in this way was the finest kind of activism. That was my first personal experience of knowing that one person can really make a difference."
Dunphy has been displaying artwork at Bowdoin for the past six years. She first reached out to Administrative Coordinator Bonnie Pardue to display work in Lancaster Lounge in 2004. Her exhibitions have been successfully received every year since.
The College is among another list of collectors of Dunphy's paintings, including L.L. Bean, the Maine Community Foundation, Boston's Trust for Public Lands, Amelia Peabody Charitable Fund, Poland Spring Water, Maine Department of Conservation and the State of Maine Executive Branch.
Her work has also been recognized in many national and international competitions. She was named the 2009 First Resident Artist in Baxter State Park. Dunphy was also awarded the 2007 Edgar Whitney Memorial award for Watermedia, and the 2007 First Prize for Art in the Maine State Parks and Baxter State Park.
A portion of the sales raised from Dunphy's exhibition at the College will fund an early childhood prevention program in Midcoast Maine.
To purchase Dunphy's artwork, contact Bonnie Pardue. The College collects a five percent commission on sales to be reinvested in the room, the artists' supplies and setting of the exhibit.
Dunphy will attend a reception for the exhibition Thursday, October 21 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The reception and exhibition are free and open to the public.