12 MARINER / 2016 - ISSUE 3
Castine Current
I
nspired by the ocean, Clint Fulkerson’s painted
mural Coastal Strata begins at the ground
level of southwest end of the ABS Center for
Engineering, Science and Research, sweeping and
swirling upward adjacent the stairwell in brightly
hued stripes that crest and roll as they reach the
top floor. Fulkerson also painted a mural on the
third floor, Blue Nebula #3, inspired by maps,
biology, fluid mechanics and technology.In the ground level central corridor, Caleb
Charland’s dark blue aluminum panel installa-
tion Community Constellations, Maine Maritime
Academy with LED lighting that evokes stars in
the night sky, comes to life when triggered by a
motion sensor as you approach the area.
Along the second floor front hallway, Eric
Hopkins’s Passages, mixed media works of paint-
ed wood, some of which are from the schooner
Bowdoin deck, will represent the exchange of
energy between land, water and sky from dawn
to dusk.
To be completed and installed by May 2017,
the three installations were selected from more
than 50 proposals by a committee of MMA staff,
arts professionals and the building architect,
and fulfill the 1979 Maine Percent for Art law,
which requires an amount equal to one percent
of the construction budget for new and renovated
buildings that receive state funds be used for
art purchases (or $50,000 for state schools and
colleges).All three Maine-based artists have received
critical acclaim. Among other notable work,
Fulkerson recently completed a mural for the en-
gineering department of Facebook in New York
City. A solo exhibit of Charland’s images in New
York “...show us that disciplined experimentation
can lead to magical results,” stated the Wall Street
Journal. Eric Hopkins is one of America’s eminent
artists, best known for his aerial perspectivepaintings of sea, sky and islands.
As part of the process for creating his installa-
tion, Charland visited the academy and involved
90 members of the MMA community to create
handprints by placing “small dots of ink on their
hands anywhere lines crossed,” he says. “I then
scanned their hands to make the images. In
post-production, I made the images into nega-
tives. So the black dots become white like stars.
The skin color and lines appear to transform into
a night sky.”
The goal for selecting the artists and their
installations is to expose students and others to
“modern art in a modern building,” says Susan
Loomis, Academic Dean, professor of humanities
and communications and one of the committee
members.
“We sought artwork that is innovative and
complements the work in science and technology
at the heart of the building’s purpose. It weds
content and form in a stunning manner.”ART WORKS FOR THE ABS BUILDING
Installations by three Maine artists brighten and inspire.Art by Clint Fulkerson dramatically enlivens two locations in
the building. (Top photo by Chase Davidson)Caleb Charland and a detail from his installation that uses handprints to create star points of light. (Photo, right, by Billy Sims)