Relax and unwind with watercolors and a glass of wine or sparkling water.  Artist Erika Rosso will help students paint a landscape inspired by Acadia, demonstrating each step for students.  Class is suitable for all levels of painters, ages 21 and older.  

Enjoy a birding expedition through William Shakespeare’s plays and poetry with artist Missy Dunaway whose independent art project “The Birds of Shakespeare”  will catalog every bird mentioned in Shakespeare's plays and poems. Dunaway will be at the Gilley on Tuesday, Oct. 10 for a 5:30pm reception and a 7pm presentation as the museum’s October People-Nature-Art presenter.

Each month, Dunaway releases a painting of one bird with an accompanying essay that analyzes how the species features in Shakespeare’s world.

People-Nature-Art is a monthly series that brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach to nature. Each session for 2023 is sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

Join Missy Dunaway, the Gilley’s October People-Nature-Art presenter, for this special painting workshop to create realistic feathers. According to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, it is illegal to collect feathers from birds that are migratory and native to the United States territories. Let’s collect feathers lawfully—as paintings! In this lesson, Dunaway will guide you through an approachable step-by-step process to create a realistic painting of feathers using acrylic-ink on paper. Appropriate for all skill levels, including children, beginners, and experienced artists. Materials provided. Registration required.

A great variety of birds, during autumn, head south to escape dwindling food resources and the onslaught of winter. The majority of migrants pass over Mount Desert Island at night, unseen. But we can witness the passage of day-flying water birds — cormorants, common eiders and other sea ducks, loons, northern gannets, gulls, and more — by looking for them from shoreline vantage points. Join Seth Benz, director of bird ecology, for an introductory workshop and field experience. We'll begin indoors at the Gilley Museum for a water bird migration primer, then carpool to the Seawall Picnic Area to see water birds on the move. Dress for the weather and bring binoculars, your curiosity and your questions!

Forty years ago, the Maine Loon Project was launched to help protect Maine’s iconic loons. Run by Maine Audubon, the project works with residents and partners statewide to promote healthy lakes, clean water, and quality habitat for loons and to understand trends in their population over time.

Join us at the Gilley to discover more about the history, status and future of this project – and how you can help!

Presenters will be Billy Helprin of Somes-Meynell Wildlife Sanctuary, Tracy Hart of Maine Audubon, and David Lamon of Audubon Fields Pond.

No fee, but registration required.

Paint a colorful elephant in acrylics on canvas, inspired by the museum's exhibit of elephant photos by Peter Beard and animal sculptures by Dan Falt.

Artist Erika Rosso will walk students through creating their own acrylic painting modeled after one of her watercolors. All materials provided as well as tea, seltzer and juice for this family friendly paint 'n' sip suitable for all experience levels, and those age 5 and older.

Students will each receive their own canvas to create a painting of an elephant adorned with color and jewels. Paintings will be created using acrylics so wear clothing that you don't mind getting messy!   

Relief prints are one of the most versatile and low-tech methods for creating repeating or multiple images, and you can learn the basics in just a few hours. Award-winning printmaker Sherrie York will guide you through the process of designing, carving, and printing a single-color image using the most basic tools and materials. Where you go from there is up to you! All materials provided. 

It’s printmaking playtime with award-winning Maine printmaker Sherrie York! A single-color block print is fun, but what happens if we play with repeating patterns, overlapping images, and color? Let’s find out! We will take time in the morning to design and carve two different relief printing blocks, and in the afternoon we will experiment with combining them to create something new. Some experience with carving relief blocks is helpful, but not necessary. Bring some ideas for small, square formats. All materials provided. There will be a break for lunch (not provided).

Make a wall hook from clay inspired by the Gilley’s exhibit “Nature’s Masterpiece: Elephant Photographs of Peter Beard,” which will be in the museum’s special exhibits gallery until Nov. 4. Kathie Pratt will lead you through the process, including baking it in the over, and you’ll have something to take home with you at the end of the workshop. All materials supplied.

This is an evening class for adults only; wine will be provided along with non-alcoholic beverages.

Carve a barn swallow in this 8-week class under the guidance of the Gilley's master carver, Steve Valleau, beginning on Oct. 21 and running through Dec. 16. There will be no class the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

This in-person class takes place at the Gilley from 9am-noon. Class size is limited and registration is required.

Carve a barn swallow in this 8-week class under the guidance of the Gilley's master carver, Steve Valleau, beginning on Oct. 21 and running through Dec. 16. There will be no class the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

This online-only class takes place at the Gilley from 1-4pm. Class size is limited and registration is required.

Come paint with local artist Erika Rosso and learn to work with masking fluid and watercolor to create your own painting of snow falling on rooftops at night. Erika will guide students step by step to create their painting, demonstrating how to apply washes and how to use masking fluid. Suitable for ages 5 and older.  Snacks and non-alcoholic beverages provided.

This is a wonderful class for beginning watercolor painters or for anyone wanting to experiment with the more playful side of watercolor.  Local artist Erika Rosso will guide students through several different exercises and paintings to explore the movement of paint and water on paper. 

Wear clothes you don't mind getting messy!  Suitable for ages 10 and older.

Paint a colorful elephant in watercolor, on the last day of the museum's exhibit of elephant photos by Peter Beard and animal sculptures by Dan Falt.  

Artist Erika Rosso will walk students through a step-by-step process. All materials provided as well as tea, seltzer and juice for this family friendly paint 'n' sip suitable for all experience levels, and those age 5 and older. All materials provided.

When tracking wildlife with automated radio telemetry over vast distances, the challenge of deploying enough receivers to get detections grows exponentially. To remedy this, data can be shared between all researchers so that essentially everyone is sharing receivers. This greatly expands the potential for this technology, but it comes with the added responsibility of coordinating projects, detection data and metadata – that’s where Motus comes in. The Motus Wildlife Tracking System is an international collaborative network of researchers that use automated radio telemetry to simultaneously track hundreds of individuals of numerous species of birds, bats, and insects. The system enables a community of researchers, educators, organizations, and citizens to undertake impactful research and education on the ecology and conservation of migratory animals. Come find out about how MOTUS is being utilized in Maine in this talk by Maine Audubon's David Lamon. Maine Audubon is one of the MOTUS participants in Maine.

Join award-winning writer Annaliese Jakimides Nov. 11 for a writing workshop designed to help students unlock their creativity and leave with some works in progress—and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection, and some exciting new exhibitions  -- "Nature's Masterpiece: Elephant Photos of Peter Beard" and "Huck's Ducks" the decoy defenders of waterfowl everywhere.   This event is suitable for writers of all experience levels and ages. Space is limited and registration is required. Annaliese will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path. Ekphrastic writing can be analytical, deep and playful—but more than anything, Jakimides notes, “it provides an endless stream of possible entries into writing.” 

John K. Putnam, a full-time nature and landscape photographer based on Mount Desert Island, will be the November People-Nature-Art presenter at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Tuesday, Nov. 14. There will be a 5:30pm reception followed by a presentation at 7pm that will be offered in-person as well as livecast online. All events are free but registration is required.

From 2006 to 2014, Putnam worked as a photographer in New York City producing work for publishing companies and magazines as well as photographing high-end events, all while spending every vacation traveling and photographing across five continents, 20 states, and more than 30 national parks. He moved to Mount Desert Island in 2015.

People-Nature-Art is a monthly series that brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach to nature. Each session for 2023 is sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

Join art teacher Kathie Pratt to make a bird pendant or bead from polymer clay to make your very own necklace. Kathie will walk you through the steps, and you will bake off your creation and have a chance to paint it before you leave. Suitable for ages 5 and older.

Printmaker and mixed media artitst Sara Tabbert – a past Acadia National Park artist in residence – joins us from her home studio in Fairbanks, Alaska as December’s People-Nature-Art presenter at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Tuesday, Dec. 12 in an online-only presentation at 7pm. Free but registration is required.

Tabbert’s large-scale public art commissions can be found throughout Alaska and her work is housed in public collections through the state and far beyond. In early 2020, the Alaska State Museum presented a solo exhibit of her recent work.

 She has been awarded grants from the Rasmuson Foundation and the Alaska State Council on the Arts. In addition to residencies in the United States, Canada, Argentina, and Italy, Tabbert has been an artist-in-residence through the National Park Service in Denali, Zion, Isle Royale, the Chilkoot Trail, and Acadia National Park. She has been selected as a 2024 resident fellow in the Windgate ITE program at the Center for Art in Wood in Philadelphia.

​People-Nature-Art is a monthly series that brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach to nature. Each session for 2023 is sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

Gather as a community and enjoy the creative spirit of MDI at the Wendell Gilley Museum for the Museum's annual Community Open House & Art Show on Sunday, Dec. 17, from 1 to 4 p.m.. Admission is free and light refreshments will be served.

We will have a special one-day-only exhibit of art created at the Gilley in 2023, everything from bird drawings by third-graders to bird carvings by long-time carvers. There will be felted fish and birds made of butternut, linocut prints and pencil drawings, paintings and more.

This exhibit will include a special section devoted to work produced as part of the Fall HandWorks Festival collaboration with ArtWaves this year.

Free and open to all.

Woodcarver and naturalist Wayne Robbins seeks to share his passion for the sea and to inspire faithful stewardship of the Earth’s fragile ecosystem through his art.

He joins the Gilley as the first People-Nature-Art presenter of 2022 on Tuesday, Jan. 11 at 7pm via Zoom.

He says that the sea’s breathtaking beauty and its infinite varieties of flora and fauna are constant reminders that we must respect and help sustain the lifeblood of our planet. 

Raised on the coast of Maine, he was inspired as a youth to capture the essence of nature in wood. His appreciation of the innate beauty of wood helps him design pieces that maximize the beauty and grace of both the medium and the subject. He chooses from a variety of native and exotic woods. By selecting a wood that complements his subject, a synergy results that informs and guides his creative process. Then he uses various combinations of oils and waxes to give the sculpture an “almost wet” look.  Each sculpture is unique and identified for its species, numbered, dated and signed by the artist.  His work is in private and public collections worldwide.

Have ‘Fun with Feathers’ in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 2 p.m. in a special hands-on family program. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. $5 per person. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration is required. Sign up at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/events

Join Chris Maynard of Featherfolio online on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 7pm for February’s People-Nature-Art, the Wendell Gilley Museum’s signature monthly series that explores the connection between nature and art.

Mr. Maynard carves feathers into intricate art pieces. Pairing his artistic sense and scientific knowledge, he uses surgical tools to sculpt feathers while striving to respect their natural form. His message is one of beauty and appreciation of life. In grand installations, and in shadowboxes, he positions them so their shapes are enhanced as they cast shadows.

Unlike a painter’s palette, the choice of colors in feathers is quite limited. Mr. Maynard mostly keeps the natural colors and patterns of each feather. He gets his feathers from aviaries and all are legal to possess.

He believes feathers can represent flight, transformation and a bridge between our present lives and dreams.

Mr. Maynard’s work is in museums and private collections in North America, Asia, Europe, and Australia and has been featured in print and online around the world.

Gordon Longsworth and Michael Good have been collaborating for years with the Geographic Information System (GIS) laboratory at College of the Atlantic to create maps and field guides that connect bird data to a map, integrating location with descriptive information like habitat or tree cover. This helps scientists to better understand patterns, relationships and geographic context, and birdwatchers to find specific species.

Join us for a free online event on Friday, March 11 at 7pm as Mr. Longsworth and Mr. Good join us to share the results of this years-long project and break down the data for us. There is no charge to attend but registration is required. You will receive a Zoom link after you register.

A passion for the natural world resonates through the fictional landscapes created by fantasy author Kristen Britain and science fiction author Julie Czerneda, and that passion has even influenced the makeup of those worlds. Join these longtime friends online via Zoom with the Gilley on Tuesday, March 22 at 7pm, as they discuss how their own connection to nature has influenced their novels and their writing lives. Kristen is a former U.S. National Park ranger and Julie is a Canadian biologist who started out writing nonfiction. There is no charge, but registration is required. A Zoom link will be sent after you register.

The seasonal shift of birds from wintering areas to summer breeding territories is well underway during the month of April.  This mini-course is offered as a sequential program combining classroom presentations with a field excursion each week.  April, at our latitude, is a month of anticipation for returning birds. It is also a time of exodus for species that have spent their winter with us.  By early May some bird species have begun nesting, others are establishing territories, and still others are migrating through our neighborhoods.  We’ll immerse ourselves in the bird world for 3 hours each week using slides, videos, museum specimens, select readings and field observations.  While each week is designed to build upon the previous week’s experience, course content will be accessible enough that each week alone will be a learning experience.  Join the flock, get in on the joy of anticipating and appreciating Acadia’s birdlife.

Gather up some watercolor paper, paints and brushes (whatever you have on hand), and explore the "Vocabulary of Watercolor" in this online workshop with award-winning nature artist Barry van Dusen. You’ll learn how, with a combination of materials and techniques, you can add variety, interest and sparkle to your watercolor paintings.

You'll cover the basics of wash, glazing and dry-brush (along with some other useful but less common techniques) and explore some color mixtures that are especially useful for painting nature subjects. Using step-by-step examples and a simple demonstration, Barry will help you demystify the wash sequence by applying the concepts of shadow pattern and local color.  And, of course, you'll have fun.

The seasonal shift of birds from wintering areas to summer breeding territories is well underway during the month of April.  This mini-course is offered as a sequential program combining classroom presentations with a field excursion each week.  April, at our latitude, is a month of anticipation for returning birds. It is also a time of exodus for species that have spent their winter with us.  By early May some bird species have begun nesting, others are establishing territories, and still others are migrating through our neighborhoods.  We’ll immerse ourselves in the bird world for 3 hours each week using slides, videos, museum specimens, select readings and field observations.  While each week is designed to build upon the previous week’s experience, course content will be accessible enough that each week alone will be a learning experience.  Join the flock, get in on the joy of anticipating and appreciating Acadia’s birdlife.

The Gilley's signature monthly speaker series continues in April—National Poetry Month—with naturalist and poet Kristen Lindquist. People-Nature-Art brings creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore the impact of nature on their art and creativity.

Lindquist is a Pushcart-nominated poet and naturalist living in Camden. She has published two full-length collections of poetry: Transportation, which was a finalist for the Maine Literary Award, and Tourists in the Known World. Garrison Keillor has shared three of her poems on “The Writer’s Almanac.” An avid birder, Lindquist guides for the Acadia Birding Festival and wrote a natural history column for years for her local paper. She currently maintains a daily haiku blog and occasionally teaches haiku workshops.

Build a bee house for non-stinging Mason bees and leaf-cutter bees in this special workshop. In these bee houses, the cavities are 5-inch-deep drilled holes — deep enough, we hope, to be safe from a woodpecker tongue. This is a great family project. Space is limited. This is an in-person event led by the Gilley's carver-in-residence, Steve Valleau.

Build a bee house for non-stinging Mason bees and leaf-cutter bees in this special workshop. In these bee houses, the cavities are 5-inch-deep drilled holes — deep enough, we hope, to be safe from a woodpecker tongue. This is a great family project. Space is limited. This is an in-person event led by the Gilley's carver-in-residence, Steve Valleau.

The seasonal shift of birds from wintering areas to summer breeding territories is well underway during the month of April.  This mini-course is offered as a sequential program combining classroom presentations with a field excursion each week.  April, at our latitude, is a month of anticipation for returning birds. It is also a time of exodus for species that have spent their winter with us.  By early May some bird species have begun nesting, others are establishing territories, and still others are migrating through our neighborhoods.  We’ll immerse ourselves in the bird world for 3 hours each week using slides, videos, museum specimens, select readings and field observations.  While each week is designed to build upon the previous week’s experience, course content will be accessible enough that each week alone will be a learning experience.  Join the flock, get in on the joy of anticipating and appreciating Acadia’s birdlife.

Join Swan's Island neighbors, painter Gary Hoyle and poet Gary Rainford, as they share a new collaborative project of five new paintings and poems, each artist inspired by the other's work.

This is a free online program. Registration is required.

Gary Hoyle’s sculptures and painting have been exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the United States, as well as at the Amori Prefecture Museum in Japan. His fanciful dinosaur illustrations toured the United States in "The Dinosaur Show" sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Smithsonian Institution. In 2008 he was Artist in Residence at the Climate Change Institute where he developed a cartoon series on global warming.

Gary Rainford is the author of two poetry collections, Salty Liquor and Liner Notes. His suite of poems, We Are Here, was an honorable mention selected by Betsy Sholl for The Gabriel Zimpritch Memorial Poetry Prize.  His poems, he says, are shaped by tides, saltwater, and music.

The seasonal shift of birds from wintering areas to summer breeding territories is well underway during the month of April.  This mini-course is offered as a sequential program combining classroom presentations with a field excursion each week.  April, at our latitude, is a month of anticipation for returning birds. It is also a time of exodus for species that have spent their winter with us.  By early May some bird species have begun nesting, others are establishing territories, and still others are migrating through our neighborhoods.  We’ll immerse ourselves in the bird world for 3 hours each week using slides, videos, museum specimens, select readings and field observations.  While each week is designed to build upon the previous week’s experience, course content will be accessible enough that each week alone will be a learning experience.  Join the flock, get in on the joy of anticipating and appreciating Acadia’s birdlife.

Our signature monthly series continues in May with Jonathan Meiburg, journalist, musician, and author of "A Most Remarkable Creature," an enthralling look at the caracara, a clever, social South American bird of prey that puzzled Charles Darwin. The book twines natural history and human history, with insights and lessons that go far beyond the subject birds.

This is a free online program. Registration is required.

People-Nature-Art brings creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore the impact of nature on their art and creativity.

May is prime time to spot warblers on Mount Desert Island. Join the Gilley on two warbler walks led by Rich MacDonald, a field biologist, guide, birder, naturalist, and writer. His birding-related travels have taken him all over the world, including Antarctica, but he calls Mount Desert Island home and birds here year-round. Meet at the Gilley. Cost is $7 per person, per walk.

The Gilley is honored to be teaming up with Island Readers & Writers to remember the late Ashley Bryan with an interactive story time and art collage activity. Join us at the Gilley on Saturday, May 14 at 9:30am. Lisa Herrington, IRW's Program Assistant, will offer a speical story time featuring Ashley's Beautiful Blackbird followed by Erika Rosso leading a fun collage art activity reminescent of Ashley's iconic work. Participants will make their own beautiful birds to take home.

This program is free and recommned for children older than 4 and their adults. Registration is required online through IRW's website HERE.  ​

Beautiful Blackbird is a picture book adaptation of a tale from the Ila-speaking people of Zambia that celebrates community and individuality. Long ago, the many colorful birds of the world had no markings on their beaks or feathers—until they appeal to Blackbird, the most beautiful bird of all.

Ashely, who passed away earlier this year, was an acclaimed author, painter, printmaker, illustrator, puppet maker and storyteller whose career spanned more than six decades. He was a special friend of both IRW and the Gilley.  

May is prime time to spot warblers on Mount Desert Island. Join the Gilley on two warbler walks led by Rich MacDonald, a field biologist, guide, birder, naturalist, and writer. His birding-related travels have taken him all over the world, including Antarctica, but he calls Mount Desert Island home and birds here year-round. Meet at the Gilley. Cost is $7 per person, per walk.

Join naturalist Rich MacDonald at the Wendell Gilley Museum to build a birdhouse and learn about the birds who will live there in this two-hour workshop. Learn about the life history and ecology of some of the other bird species that might visit your birdhouse, and how best to site your creation to entice birds to use it. The class is for people 10 and older and anyone younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult.  

Class size limited to 10.

Materials provided and you take home your birdhouse that day!

Fee: $35 per person

The Wendell Gilley Museum is pleased to be a sponsor of the Acadia Birding Festival, and hosts to the festival’s speakers and book-signing event. Celebrate the ecological wonders of the birds of the Gulf of Maine at the Acadia Birding Festival. Explore Mount Desert Island and its birds through a variety of field trips and lectures. Greet warblers on morning walks, head out to sea to get a look at pelagic birds, and observe peregrin falcons at an active breeding site. Learn from experts in person and online through inspirational and informative talks. Register directly through the Acadia Birding Festival at www.acadiabirdingfestival.com.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join us to make art with feathers. Feathers can be a paintbrush or be painted, they can be the subject of the media for your special art. We provide the feathers, paint, yarn, glue and art paper. You bring your creativity. Art teacher Erika Rosso joins us for this special session to help your creativity soar. Registration required. Class size limited. All ages welcome. This is a terrific family activity. We will work in our outdoor classroom at the Gilley. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Aug. 10 & Aug. 24  9-11am   --  Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

Join Miss Amanda from the Southwest Harbor Public Library at the Wendell Gilley Museum for a special bird-themed story time and craft.  1pm.

No registration required and no fee.

Children should bring at least one adult with them.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

The Gilley is excited to welcome the 2022 winner of the prestigious Maine Duck Stamp Contest – her fifth win! – as our featured presenter for People-Nature-Art in June. Rebekah Lowell is a painter, illustrator, and children’s book author with a passion for the natural world. Her first book, “The Road to After,” was published in May. It’s a novel in verse for middle-graders and is the kickoff book for the Southwest Harbor Public Library’s Summer Middle Grade Book Club. Her debut picture book, “Catching Flight,” is set to be published by Doubleday Books for Young Readers next year.

There is no charge for this event, but registration is required. Please sign up for either the in-person event or the livecast, and mention in the Notes which you are signing up for.

“As children, we have a sense of wonder that often fades as we grow—but my passion is to keep that youthful spirit of discovery alive through the process of observing and creating,” she says. “My heart continues to be amazed by the natural world we live in and I want to share this through the words and images of my work. By teaching others to love nature, we encourage empathy, and in that we are saving the world.”

Rebekah won the duck stamp contest (known officially now as the Maine Migratory Waterfowl Contest) hosted by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in 2022, 2020, 2017, 2014, and 2011. When she is not in her studio, you can find her outside—birding, gardening, nature journaling, rescuing birds for Avian Haven, and raising butterflies – often with her daughters, who she homeschools at their home in Biddeford.

She has a BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA in Children’s Literature and Illustration from Hollins University. She is the winner of the Margaret Kates Award in Art and the Ruth Sanderson Award-Illustrator’s Spotlight, and was a 2016 winner in the Kentucky National Wildlife Art Exhibit of the Fifth Third Bank Award.

People-Nature-Art is the Gilley’s signature monthly program that brings creative types of all kinds to the museum to explore the impact of nature on their art and creativity. This program will be offered in person, and livecast. Please indicate in the Notes section whether you will be attending in person or online.

Have Fun with Feathers in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on June 23 in a special hands-on workshop. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join the Wendell Gilley Museum and artist Erika Rosso for a watercolor class outdoors.

This class is suitable for beginner to intermediate painters but does require curiosity and a willingness to experiment! Erika has a positive and experimental teaching style that builds confidence in budding artists, making it joyous to learn and create. This is a class for adults but also accepts mature students aged 12 and older. Registration is required and space is limited.

Classical music is for the birds … and that’s a good thing! On Friday, June 24, the Wendell Gilley Museum hosts a special evening of music in the main gallery with members of the Fermata Chamber Soloists led by violinist Thomas Cooper, and his sister, the noted soprano Sarah Joyce Cooper. Among the pieces they will perform are selections from Louis Beydts’ “Chansons pour les oiseaux” (Songs for the Birds). The concert begins at 7 p.m., and there is no fee to attend, but reservations are required. The concert also will be livecast. Reservations for the in-person event and the livecast are two different events.

Please sign up for either the in-person event or the livecast, and mention in the Notes which you are signing up for.

The music selection is inspired by the Gilley Museum’s permanent collection and special exhibits, which feature birds as the subject for carvings, paintings and block prints by Wendell Gilley, Steven Valleau, Hank Tyler, Sherrie York, David Sibley, and David Speiser, among others.

Fermata Chamber Soloists is a Boston-based nonprofit organization intent on changing the culture of classical music with experiential, community-oriented events that are fun, intense and informal while retaining the highest level of artistry. In addition to Thomas Cooper, who is co-founder of Fermata Chamber Soloists, the quartet will include cellist Alex Fowler; violist Daniel Orsen; and violinist Jessica Tsang.

Learn from a master of the Eastern Woodland Flute, Hawk Henries, and make your own flute from bamboo using only hand tools – carving knives, files, sandpaper and fire in this all-day workshop on June 25. All tools and materials will be  provided. The workshop will be tailored to each participant’s level of experience, and beginners are welcome. Hawk will teach in a relaxed setting, allowing everyone to ask questions and talk about their experience as they learn the art of flute-making.

Space is limited and registration is required.

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress, and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions, with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.
 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop on Wednesday, June 29, from 9 to 11am taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

We’re teaming up with the Southwest Harbor Public Library on July 27 at 1pm for a special Birds and Books at the library! Learn about feathers and make some Loon art.  Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult.

Workshop size is limited and registration required, but since this event is happening at the library, please sign up directly with them HERE. 

Join us to discover the special adaptations that allow birds to survive life in Maine. Through using our curiosity, problem solving skills, senses and imagination we will better appreciate how and what birds eat, build a nest, stay warm, protect themselves, find a mate, move about, and use their senses. Some things may surprise you! Let's explore this interesting and amazing group of animals that share our planet and lives.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join us to make art with feathers. Feathers can be a paintbrush or be painted, they can be the subject of the media for your special art. We provide the feathers, paint, yarn, glue and art paper. You bring your creativity. Art teacher Erika Rosso joins us for this special session to help your creativity soar. Registration required. Class size limited. All ages welcome. This is a terrific family activity. We will work in our outdoor classroom at the Gilley. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Have Fun with Feathers in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on June 23 in a special hands-on workshop. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Don Rambadt creates one-of-a-kind sculptures from metal, and birds are his inspiration and primary subject matter. "I sculpt because I enjoy the challenge of manipulating space,” he sayd. “I've chosen birds as my subject matter because they fascinate me to no end.” The Gilley is the honored owner of several of his pieces. Now we welcome their creator back to the Gilley as our July presenter for People-Nature-Art. Join us as Don delves into his process, his inspiration, his ongoing work, and more. “I have been fortunate to be able to combine my lifelong curiosity towards the natural world with a creative path that allows me to explore my own vision of what is interesting and beautiful,” he says. And that makes him the perfect person to join People-Nature-Art. We hope you’ll join us, too, for this very special event.

When you register, please let us know in the Notes field whether you will attend in person or online.

Aug. 10 & Aug. 24  9-11am   --  Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

Join Miss Amanda from the Southwest Harbor Public Library at the Wendell Gilley Museum for a special bird-themed story time and craft.  1pm.

No registration required and no fee.

Children should bring at least one adult with them.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join us for this special Saturday carving class for beginners on July 16^th – it’s the only Saturday class this summer. Learn from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult. Class size is limited.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Have Fun with Feathers in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on June 23 in a special hands-on workshop. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join the Wendell Gilley Museum and artist Erika Rosso for a watercolor class outdoors.

This class is suitable for beginner to intermediate painters but does require curiosity and a willingness to experiment! Erika has a positive and experimental teaching style that builds confidence in budding artists, making it joyous to learn and create. This is a class for adults but also accepts mature students aged 12 and older. Registration is required and space is limited.

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress, and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions, with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.
 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Aug. 10 & Aug. 24  9-11am   --  Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

We’re teaming up with the Southwest Harbor Public Library on July 27 at 1pm for a special Birds and Books at the library! Learn about feathers and make some Loon art.  Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult.

Workshop size is limited and registration required, but since this event is happening at the library, please sign up directly with them HERE. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join us to discover the special adaptations that allow birds to survive life in Maine. Through using our curiosity, problem solving skills, senses and imagination we will better appreciate how and what birds eat, build a nest, stay warm, protect themselves, find a mate, move about, and use their senses. Some things may surprise you! Let's explore this interesting and amazing group of animals that share our planet and lives.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Have Fun with Feathers in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on June 23 in a special hands-on workshop. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Join us to make art with feathers. Feathers can be a paintbrush or be painted, they can be the subject of the media for your special art. We provide the feathers, paint, yarn, glue and art paper. You bring your creativity. Art teacher Erika Rosso joins us for this special session to help your creativity soar. Registration required. Class size limited. All ages welcome. This is a terrific family activity. We will work in our outdoor classroom at the Gilley. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Explore the beauty of Maine’s birds through the lens of noted photographer and birder David Speiser, who delves into his exhibit “Birds in Focus” in a presentation at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Tuesday, Aug. 9 at 7pm. This program happens both in-person and online. Indicate when you sign up whether you’ll be attending in person or via Zoom. There is no charge to attend. Sign up at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/events

How does an exhibit come together? From choosing a theme, deciding on a photo finisher, space concerns, cost, and – most importantly – which images should be displayed? The audience can be the curators! We’ll look at images of the same species and decide which would be a great choice and why. We’ll discuss the artist’s decisions and see if they match up.

David Speiser has been pairing his technical skills and his love of birds for more than 25 years to capture portraits of birds in the field worldwide. His knowledge, talent and keen eye have create amazing works that capture moments of incredible intimacy in the lives of their avian subjects. He leads trips and teaches photography classes for New York City Audubon. His images have been featured at the Central Park Zoo in New York City, the Royal Botanical Gardens of Ontario, in Audubon Magazine, Birder’s World, Birdwatching, Living Bird, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, in many National Parks and National Wildlife Refuges, and on a U.S postage stamp. He is a member of the Advisory Council for New York City Audubon and a former member of NYC Audubon’s Board of Directors. See his work at: www.lilibirds.com.

Aug. 10 & Aug. 24  9-11am   --  Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Have Fun with Feathers in person at the Wendell Gilley Museum on June 23 in a special hands-on workshop. Draw feathers. Use a magnifying glass to see them up close. Learn about their structure and function. Use a feather to draw or paint your own work of art.

Workshop size is limited and masks are required. Children younger than 7 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Join us to discover the special adaptations that allow birds to survive life in Maine. Through using our curiosity, problem solving skills, senses and imagination we will better appreciate how and what birds eat, build a nest, stay warm, protect themselves, find a mate, move about, and use their senses. Some things may surprise you! Let's explore this interesting and amazing group of animals that share our planet and lives.

Artist James Eric Francis, Sr. explores an indigenous sense of place in the landscape, along with art that expresses that sense of place, in a presentation at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Friday, Aug. 12, at 7p.m.  This program is free but registration is required. When you sign up, please indicate whether you will attend in person or online.  

Mr. Francis is a multi-media artist, painter, graphic artist, photographer and filmmaker. He is also a researcher, and serves as the Penobscot Nation’s tribal historian. He says that Penobscot culture and an indigenous perspective on landscape and nature infuses all of his artwork.

Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Museum and Archives commissioned him and two other indigenous artists to create contemporary art for its permanent museum collection in an exhibit called “American Indians and Conservation,” which opens this year at the Service’s National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

The piece he created in acrylic on canvas commemorates the reestablishment of Atlantic salmon in the Penobscot River watershed. “Each dot that I painted represents one salmon that was able to go into the Penobscot watershed,” he says. The piece also includes a fishing spear as a cultural connection between the salmon and the Penobscot.

Mr. Francis grew up on Indian Island, the reservation of the Penobscot Nation near Old Town, and studied history at the University of Maine, then earned a Master of Fine Arts from UMaine in Intermedia Fine Arts.

Master Carver Floyd Scholz is the Wendell Gilley Museum’s People-Nature-Art speaker for August. He will be at the museum Tuesday, Aug.16 at 7pm to share his journey from NCAA decathlon champion, to working as a logger, to being featured in magazines as diverse as Smithsonian Studies in American Art and People Magazine, the latter of which dubbed him “one of the world’s true Renaissance men.” This talk will happen in person, and be live cast simultaneously; registration is required. People-Nature-Art is the Gilley’s monthly speaker series that explores the space where art and nature interact.

The following day, Wednesday, Aug. 17, he will give a four-hour demonstration of his much-lauded airbrush painting technique beginning at 10am. People are welcome to attend all or part of this demonstration, but registration is required.

There is no fee for either of these events.

Much like Wendell Gilley himself, Mr. Scholz began carving as a hobby while making a living doing something else. "Since 1968 I've had the pleasure of pursuing what has become my life-long passion of transformation—taking a block of wood, and with careful planning and carving, transforming it into a beautiful bird,” he says. Mr. Scholz “quit his day job” and became a full-time carver in 1983.

He is a five-time U.S. National Champion bird carver, and won the World Master’s Best in Show Championship in 2005, and his work has been chosen for the international juried art show Birds in Art at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Museum. In 2014 he was named a Living Legend by the prestigious Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art.

Master Carver Floyd Scholz gives a four-hour demo of his airbrush painting technique at the Gilley on Wednesday, Aug. 17, from 10am to 2pm.

"The art of bird carving is not 'wooden taxidermy,'" Mr. Scholz says. "Bird carving is sculpture in its highest and purest sense."

Mr. Scholz replicates a dazzling array of feather colors, patterns and plumage variation as part of his work. From the cryptic patterning found throughout the body of a great horned owl, to the brilliant blue of a male bluebird, he says bird artists are faced with the daunting challenge of replicating this on the hard surface of the carved, wooden bird.

He invites you to challenge yourself to learn more about this "most important aspect of the art form by joining me for an in-depth demonstration of dynamic color theory, and procedure including airbrush demonstrations."

The demo will include the importance of surface preparation and proper color application to bring forth the beauty and subtlety of a bird`s plumage. All aspects of the art form including design, carving, texturing and most importantly the painting process will be covered in great detail. Special emphasis will be placed upon the versatile application and magic of airbrushing.

Questions welcome.

No fee, but registration is required. You may attend all or part of this demo. 

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Aug. 10 & Aug. 24  9-11am   --  Bring a little bit of the outdoors indoors with this Nature Journaling Workshop taught by artist and nature-lover Erika Rosso. Gather tips and techniques for capturing your memorable moments. All materials supplied. This is a terrific family activity; children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration required and class size is limited.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Join the Wendell Gilley Museum and artist Erika Rosso for a watercolor class outdoors.

This class is suitable for beginner to intermediate painters but does require curiosity and a willingness to experiment! Erika has a positive and experimental teaching style that builds confidence in budding artists, making it joyous to learn and create. This is a class for adults but also accepts mature students aged 12 and older. Registration is required and space is limited.

Join us to discover the special adaptations that allow birds to survive life in Maine. Through using our curiosity, problem solving skills, senses and imagination we will better appreciate how and what birds eat, build a nest, stay warm, protect themselves, find a mate, move about, and use their senses. Some things may surprise you! Let's explore this interesting and amazing group of animals that share our planet and lives.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving on Tuesdays and Thursdays from our master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom. Last class for the season is Tuesday, Sept. 13.

No classes on: June 30, August 16 or August 18

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress, and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions, with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.
 

Cheryle St. Onge is a fine art photographer whose work is deeply connected to the natural world, with a focus on the crossover of art and science, and photography's ability to distill our sense of time and curiosity. She makes pictures predominantly with an 8 x 10 view camera and considers her work a collaborative process. She has been named one of the ‘Top 50 Photographers’ in the country by Time Magazine.

She joins the Gilley online as the September People-Nature-Art presenter on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 7pm.

Her photographs are in many private and public collections, including the University of New Mexico Art Museum, the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, the Cassilhaus Collection, and the Guggenheim Foundation.

Her photographs have also been widely exhibited, most notably at London’s National Portrait Gallery, Princeton University, Griffin Museum, University of Rhode Island, Massachusetts College of Art, Rick Wester Fine Arts, and with the American Institute of Architects traveling exhibition. She has received numerous awards and residences, among them a 2009 John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, a Critical Mass Finalist Exhibition Award, Polaroid Materials Artist Support Grant, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology Graduate Fellowship.

She divides her time between Durham, New Hampshire, and coastal Maine. 

Award-winning artist Barry van Dusen joins us in person for a special two-day painting workshop Sept. 24-25. 

Combining a lifelong interest in nature with a formal art education, Barry has developed a style that acknowledges the importance of science and biology while maintaining the primacy of artistic expression. His paintings have been described as a unique blend of impressionism and realism, and his exhibition paintings always arise from direct personal experience. Built upon a foundation of fieldwork and strong draftsmanship, they are carefully planned but freely executed in a direct and painterly manner. 

The first day of this workshop happens at the Gilley Museum from 9am to 3pm with an hour for lunch; it will be an intensive teaching day. The second day, students will move outside to paint live animal subjects at the Acadia Wildlife Center from 1 to 4:30 p.m.; students will have more time this day to work independently, with tips and assistance from Barry.

Cost is $100 for this two-class session for non-members, and $80 for museum members. Lunch is not included. If you want to sign up for one day only, please contact Director of Engagement Melinda Rice-Schoon directly at mel@wendellgilleymuseum.org.

Mr. van Dusen is an internationally respected wildlife artist whose career has taken him all over the world. His work is frequently chosen for Birds in Art, the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's prestigious annual juried art show; in 2014 he was chosen by that museum as a Master Wildlife Artist. He is a full member of London's Society of Wildlife Artists, and his work is regularly exhibited worldwide. His articles and paintings have been featured in Bird Watcher's Digest, Birding, and Yankee magazines, and he has illustrated a variety of natural history books and pocket guides in association with the Massachusetts Audubon Society.

He prefers to work in the field, even with difficult subjects such as wild birds. Over the years, he has filled countless sketchbooks with hundreds of drawings done on location. Birds, he says, were his gateway to a passion for nature.

In 2020 he was one of two artists to provide illustrations for the book "Birds of Maine," the first comprehensive overview of Maine’s avian inhabitants in more than seven decades. For another book published in 2020, "Finding Sanctuary: An Artist Explores the Nature of Mass Audubon," he provided all the text as well as the illustrations, based on his visits to all 60 Mass Audubon sites over more than four years.

Printmaker Sherrie York, the artist behind Moments & Reflections, the exhibit currently in the Gilley’s Special Exhibit Room, will be with us in person at the museum on Friday, Sept. 30 at 7pm to share insights, talk about her artistic process, and share stories from her artist’s journey. Join us before the presentation for a reception honoring Sherrie and her work from 5:30 to 6:45pm.

This talk is free and open to all, but registration is required. It will be livecast simultaneously. When you sign up, please indicated whether you will be attending the presentation in person or online, and if you'll be attending the reception in person.

In her linocuts, she strives to represent the interactions of living things, both as a moment in time and as a reflection of the wider experience of life on earth.

As a printmaker she has pushed the linocut medium to be uncharacteristically realistic, treating the application of color as a watercolorist might, with special interest given to strong rhythms and patterns between a subject and its environment.

Her linocuts have been chosen for national and international exhibitions, including the multiples times for the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Museum’s prestigious Birds in Art, and the Society of Animal Artists’ Art & the Animal. Her work is also collected in numerous museum, corporate and private collections.

She is also a naturalist and educator, who works with the Acadia Birding Festival and Maine Audubon.

Join Maine printmaker Sherrie York at the Gilley on Wednesday, Oct. 18 from 10:30am to 1:30pm, in a class to create vibrant one-color prints using EZ carve, a printmaking material that is softer and easier to use than linoleum blocks. Materials will be provided – just bring an idea for a simple nature image you'd like to turn into a woodblock-style print. Space is limited and participants must be at least 10 years old. 

Cost is $35 per person for non-members, and $28 for members. Registration is required.

Sherrie is an award-winning artist whose work is frequently chosen for Birds in Art, a prestigious annual juried art show. Her work has also been featured in other national and international exhibitions, including the Society of Animal Artists’ Art & the Animal, and in 2019 a major exhibition of her work was hosted at the Museum of American Bird Art in Massachusetts.

She has been an invited artist on projects of the international Artists for Nature Foundation and has been Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park, the National Audubon Society, and the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. Her work is in many museum and corporate collections.

Join Maine printmaker Sherrie York at the Gilley on Wednesday, Oct. 18 from 10:30am to 1:30pm, in a class to create vibrant one-color prints using EZ carve, a printmaking material that is softer and easier to use than linoleum blocks. Materials will be provided – just bring an idea for a simple nature image you'd like to turn into a woodblock-style print. Space is limited and participants must be at least 10 years old. 

Cost is $35 per person for non-members, and $28 for members. Registration is required.

Sherrie is an award-winning artist whose work is frequently chosen for Birds in Art, a prestigious annual juried art show. Her work has also been featured in other national and international exhibitions, including the Society of Animal Artists’ Art & the Animal, and in 2019 a major exhibition of her work was hosted at the Museum of American Bird Art in Massachusetts.

She has been an invited artist on projects of the international Artists for Nature Foundation and has been Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park, the National Audubon Society, and the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. Her work is in many museum and corporate collections.

Michael Boardman is a master naturalist and a masterful artist who finds inspiration in wild places. “Where the wild things are – that’s what gets my creative spark going,” he says, “places that are pristine enough to support communities of life that don’t walk around on two legs. Places where you can feel humbled and unimportant.”

He will bring his passion, vision, and talent to the Gilley as the museum’s October People-Nature-Art presenter, on Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 7pm. This program will be in person, and livecast simultaneously. There is no fee to attend, but registration is required. Please indicate when you sign up whether you will attend in person or online.

For more than 20 years he has field-sketched, drawn and painted animals from Baxter State Park to Eastern Africa, and what he calls “fortunate alignments” have allowed him to connect his artwork with science and conservation. He says the combination of art and science is essential to his work. His training as a Maine Master Naturalist gives him insight into the interconnected nature of wildlife and landscape, and this comes through in his work. Michael works mostly in watercolor in the field, painting when time permits or field sketching when not.

He was the Visiting Artist at Baxter State Park in 2010; the Artist in Residence at Acadia National Park in 2012; in Glacier Bay National Park in the summer of 2015 for the Voices of the Wilderness residency; and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2019.

Join the Wendell Gilley Museum and Seth Benz from Schoodic Institute for a citizen science exploration at Sieur du Monts in Acadia National Park on Saturday, Oct. 22, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. No prior field experience is necessary. This is a learn-by-doing event where your efforts will contribute vital data toward understanding the changing biodiversity of Acadia National Park.

The morning will include a discovery walk on easy trails, and learning to gather data about plants, insects and birds using iNaturalist, Nature's Notebook, and eBird. These are popular tools that make science and data collection accessible to everyone. And October is an important month for plants and wildlife as they migrate and transition for winter.

Seth Benz is Schoodic Institute's Bird Ecology Director. Registration is required and there is a $10 fee per person. Space is limited.

Printmaker Sherrie York returns to the Gilley on Saturday, Nov. 5 to teach a full-day workshop using multiple colors. The class is 10am to 4pm, class size is limited, and registration is required.

Materials will be provided – just bring an idea for an image you'd like to turn into a woodblock-style print. This is a workshop suitable for adults. The cost is $70 per person for non-members, and $56 for members.  

Sherrie’s art is currently on display in the Gilley’s Special Exhibits Gallery in an exhibit called Moments & Reflections and will be on display through Dec. 17.

She is an award-winning artist whose work is frequently chosen for Birds in Art, a prestigious annual juried art show. Her work has also been featured in other national and international exhibitions, including the Society of Animal Artists’ Art & the Animal, and in 2019 a major exhibition of her work was hosted at the Museum of American Bird Art in Massachusetts.

She has been an invited artist on projects of the international Artists for Nature Foundation and has been Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park, the National Audubon Society, and the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. Her work is in many museum and corporate collections.

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress, and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions, with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.
 

The Wendell Gilley Museum welcomes former Maine Poet Laureate Stuart Kestenbaum as the museum’s November People-Nature-Art guest, on Tuesday, Nov. 15 at 7pm in this program is an online-only event. It is free and open to all, but registration is required.

Stuart Kestenbaum is the author of six collections of poems; a book of brief essays on craft and community called “The View from Here”; he compiled and edited “Visualizing Nature” a set of deeply personal essays on nature, ecology, sustainability, climate change, and philosophy by a wide range of contributors that honor nature's power to heal, inspire, guide, amaze, and strengthen.

He has written and spoken widely on craft making and creativity, and his poems and writing have appeared in small press publications and magazines. He served as Maine’s poet laureate from 2016-2021 and hosted “Poems from Here” on Maine Public Radi,  and was the host/curator of the podcasts Make/Time and Voices of the Future.

He was the director of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine for over twenty-five years, and was elected an honorary fellow of the American Craft Council in 2006. More recently, working with the Libra Foundation, he has designed and implemented a residency program for artists and writers called Monson Arts.

A second class has been added! The morning class is full but there are spots available in the afternoon (1-4pm class) .

Make a Fantastical Felted Fish with Cristy Benson at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Saturday, Dec. 3. There are two sessions: 9am-Noon and 1-4pm. All materials provided. $15 for non-members and $12 for members.

A second class has been added! The morning class is full but there are spots available in the afternoon (1-4pm class) .

Make a Fantastical Felted Fish with Cristy Benson at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Saturday, Dec. 3. There are two sessions: 9am-Noon and 1-4pm. All materials provided. $15 for non-members and $12 for members.

Catherine Danae sculpts animals with needle and felting wool. She calls herself  ‘a maker who loves the outdoors,'”  and she will be the December People-Nature-Art presenter for the Gilley on Tuesday, Dec. 13 at 7pm in an online-only program.

“The beauty of nature is the endless colors and textures,” she says. “I am surrounded by inspiration, and try to show my passion for the outdoors in my work.” An avid fan of fishing, she frequently depicts fish in her sculptures, with birds and prehistoric creatures also making frequent appearances.

In addition to the art aspect of her creations, she hopes interacting with often hard-to-touch creatures opens the door to talk about conservation.

Ms. Danae lives in Pennsylvania and runs a business called Rod and Needle. She has had artist residencies at Petrified Forest National Park, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, and Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.

This program is free but registration is required at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/events

It will be recorded, but access to the recordings is a members-only benefit.

Create your own holiday or seasonal cards by carving and printing with linoleum blocks, here at the Wendell Gilley Museum in a workshop on Friday, Dec. 16 from 9am to noon. This class is for adults and teens; the fee is $20 for museum members and $25 for non-members. The Gilley’s own Juliana Ramirez — artist and field biologist — will guide you through the process of making multiple, festive, one-color printed cards using EZ Carve, a printmaking material that is softer and easier to use than standard linoleum blocks. All materials will be provided, but bring an idea for a simple image you'd like to turn into a woodblock-style print. Class size is limited.  

Gather as a community and enjoy the creative spirit of MDI at the Wendell Gilley Museum for the Museum's annual Community Open House & Art Show on Sunday, Dec. 18, from 1 to 4 p.m.. Admission is free and light refreshments will be served.

We will have a special one-day-only exhibit of art created at the Gilley in 2022, everything from bird drawings by third-graders to bird carvings by long-time carvers. There will be felted fish and birds made of butternut, linocut prints and pencil drawings.

This exhibit will include a special section devoted to work produced as part of the Fall HandWorks Festival that was a collaboration with ArtWaves this year. It will feature baskets, felted rugs, knitting and more.

This is also the last chance to see the exhibition in the Gilley’s Special Gallery of the stunning linocut prints of award-winning Maine artist Sherrie York.

Masks will be required inside the museum.

Rebekah Raye is surrounded by nature in her Maine home, and it inspires the artwork she does every day. "It doesn’t seem to matter where I am," she says, "the sight of an animal, near or far calls my attention. They are consistently in my dreams and daily thoughts. It is a celebration of their lives with us that I wish to interpret and share. I am compelled to paint them, sculpt them and love them." 

We are excited and honored to have her with us as the first People-Nature-Art speaker of 2023. Join us in person or online for a wide-ranging conversation with Rebekah Raye, a painter and sculptor who also writes and illustrates children's books including "The Very Best Bed" and "The Secret Pool."

        This monthly series brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. All 12 programs in this year’s series are proudly sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. 

    “At Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, we take great pride in partnering with area nonprofits doing important work to keep the community engaged. Wendell Gilley Museum is a wonderful example of this. We are excited to support this special artist series and look forward to the positive impact throughout the region,” says Lisa Parsons, Senior Vice President Regional Marketing .

Get started with bird carving in this workshop from master carver Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this skill with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create.

Class size limited to 4. Students must be at least 12 years old.

In this class, conducted online via Zoom, students will be carving a preening pintail duck in basswood under the guidance of carver-in-residence Steve Valleau. Cornell’s All About Birds describes northern pintails as elegant ducks, with males that are intricately patterned. Seen in Maine during migration, they head to the prairie pothole region of the Great Plains, as well as Canada and Alaska to nest as soon as the ice breaks up. Large groups congregate in wetlands, lakes, bays, and even waddle through agricultural fields eating grains during the winter.  

Students will receive blanks that have been roughed out, and all the materials needed for this carving will be provided.

Fee for the class is: $90 for members or $110 for non-members, plus a $30 materials fee for everyone. For students whose materials must be mailed, there will be an additional $18 fee for shipping. Local students may pick up their materials at the museum.

This class is offered on Saturday afternoons from 1 to 4pm via Zoom, from Feb. 4, 2023 to March 25, 2023. 

Saturday, March 11

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress—and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.  

Help kick off the Great Backyard Bird Count with Seth Benz of the Schoodic Institute and the Wendell Gilley Museum on Friday, Feb. 17 from 9 to 11 a.m. at the museum at 4 Herrick Rd. in Southwest Harbor. We’ll cover how to participate in this global event; watch observations roll in from around the world; and we’ll contribute our own observations from Southwest Harbor. This event will combine indoor and outdoor components. No fee, but registration is required at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/events/

Launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, the Great Backyard Bird Count was the first online citizen-science project to collect data on wild birds, and to display results in near real time. These observations help scientists better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations. Birds Canada joined the project in 2009 In 2013, participants began entering data into eBird, the world’s largest biodiversity-related citizen science project.

Get started with bird carving in this workshop from master carver Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this skill with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create.

Class size limited to 4. Students must be at least 12 years old.

Did you know that there has been an international treasure hunt happening since 1854?  Nowadays thousands of people around the world participate in the global joy that is letterboxing!

Letterboxing is one part mystery, one part treasure hunt, one part art project, and many parts fun for all ages.  Join Matt from Camp Beech Cliff:

-Learn about what Letterboxing is

-How to participate

-Make a personal logbook

-Learn about stamp carving

-Look at many types of stamps

-Find a Couple of special stamps to start your own letterboxing journey

All supplies will be provided, and this will begin indoors and then make its way outside.

Australian artist Kate Gorringe-Smith works in contemporary and traditional print media in 2D and 3D form and installation. Her art investigates our relationship with the environment: the threats we create vs our connectedness with it. Kate’s work often references migratory shorebirds to illustrate the environmental connections that link us individually and globally. For her "Overwintering Project" she has asked artists to find, visit, and forge a connection with their local migratory shorebird habitat, then create art prints in response to those visits. Join us for a fascinating talk from Down Under.

This monthly series brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. All 12 programs in this year’s series are proudly sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. 

“At Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, we take great pride in partnering with area nonprofits doing important work to keep the community engaged. Wendell Gilley Museum is a wonderful example of this. We are excited to support this special artist series and look forward to the positive impact throughout the region,” says Lisa Parsons, Senior Vice President Regional Marketing Manager.

Tuesday, Feb. 28 @ 5:30pm ONLINE 

Join the Southwest Harbor Public Library and the Gilley for the first event of Reading with Wings, a pilot program to jointly host author events. We’ll be joined by Steve Burrows, a journalist and birder who combined those two skillsets to write the Bird Murder Mysteries.  The first book in that series, “A Siege of Bitterns,” won the Crime Writers of Canada award for Best First Novel, and was selected as one of the Globe & Mail’s top 100 books of the year. The seventh Birder Murder mystery, “A Foreboding of Petrels,” was published in September 2022. He will join us online for a conversation with the directors of the library and the museum on Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 5:30. This program is free but registration is required. To learn more the author and his books, visit www.steveburrows.org

Flock to the Gilley for a fun and informative few hours with Seth Benz, the bird ecology director at Schoodic Institute. Seth will delve into research and share current sightings and insights. Bring your own questions and curiosity, a favorite bird-related reading, or your latest observations. Depending on weather, the group might go for an optional bird walk outside.

There is no fee for this program, but a museum entrance fee is required. For museum members, museum entry is free. For non-members, the entrance fee is $10 per visit but a one-time Winter Pass is available for $25 and is good through April 30. If you would like to buy a winter pass, you can do so at the museum the day of the program.

RESCHEDULED FOR MARCH 10

Join us for a celebration of Ashley Bryan's Beautiful Blackbird, an adaptation of a tale from the Ila-speaking people of Zambia about appreciating one's own heritage and discovering the beauty within. This program is in cooperation with our friends at Island Readers & Writers. After reading the story together, we will make our own artistic interpretations of the story with cut paper and other materials. For ages 5 and older. This event has been rescheduled due to the Feb. 23-24 storm.

Friday, March 10, 130-3:30pm

Learn simple watercolor techniques to bring your paintings to life.  Led by Erika Rosso, students will be playing with the unpredictability of watercolor and using salt, wet washes, and dry brushing to achieve different effects.  Students will also go over the process for more planned works, learning how to draft and prepare for a more detailed watercolor painting.  Students are encouraged to bring a photo of a bird they would like to paint, however we will also have pictures available for you to look through.

Saturday, March 11

This workshop is designed to help you unlock your creativity and leave with some works in progress—and to have some fun along the way. Get inspired by pieces from the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions with writer and artist Annaliese Jakimides. Her prose and poetry have been published in magazines, journals, and anthologies; broadcast on NPR and Maine Public; and included in art venues such as ArtWord at the Portland Museum of Art. She will provide some background about this type of writing — ekphrastic writing — plus techniques, and prompts to get you going. But ultimately you choose your path.  

RESCHEDULED for Saturday, March11, 10:30am-Noon IN PERSON

Family Fun! Work together to make a painting filled with rainbow birch trees and black-capped chickadees with local artist Erika Rosso. You'll learn a playful approach to watercolor, using salt for special effects and a palette knife for texture. Sip on hot chocolate and cider while creating your art. Suitable for ages 6 and older. Fee: $25 for a family of up to 3 people & $5 for each additional person in the group.

This class was originally planned for March 4 but was rescheduled due to weather.

Get started with bird carving in this workshop from master carver Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this skill with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create.

Class size limited to 4. Students must be at least 12 years old.

Flock to the Gilley for a fun and informative few hours with Seth Benz, the bird ecology director at Schoodic Institute. Seth will delve into research and share current sightings and insights. Bring your own questions and curiosity, a favorite bird-related reading, or your latest observations. Depending on weather, the group might go for an optional bird walk outside.

There is no fee for this program, but a museum entrance fee is required. For museum members, museum entry is free. For non-members, the entrance fee is $10 per visit but a one-time Winter Pass is available for $25 and is good through April 30. If you would like to buy a winter pass, you can do so at the museum the day of the program.

Take some time to truly engage your senses with Camp Beech Cliff's Matt Cornish as he leads participants on a short Sensory Walk to be active, connect with familiar surroundings in new ways, and see what can be discovered in nature. Our five senses can enhance our experiences of the natural world if we take the time to let them.  We’ll gather at the Gilley at 10:30am on Saturday, March 18, and head to the Causeway and back again, stopping along the way to give each of our senses a chance to shine. 

Join the Southwest Harbor Public Library and the Gilley for the second event of Reading with Wings, a pilot program to jointly host author events. We’ll be joined by David George Haskell an award-winning biologist whose most recent book, “Sounds Wild and Broken: Sonic Marvels, Evolution’s Creativity, and The Crisis Of Sensory Extinction,” was longlisted for the PEN/E. O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award and was an editor’s choice in the New York Times Book Review. He will join us online for a conversation with the directors of the library and the museum on Tuesday, March 21, at 5:30 p.m. This program is free but registration is required. For more information about this author, visit dghaskell.com

Create a painting of mountains in the moonlight with local artist and teacher Erika Rosso in this step-by-step class. You’ll learn how to apply masking fluid, how to use salt for special effects, and how to make a watercolor wash. Suitable for all levels. In-person only at the Gilley. Sip on wine, tea or seltzer. Fee: $25 for members and $30 for non-members.

Bob Duchesne will bring his unique perspective as a birder, birding guide, and journalist to the Gilley for this in-person People-Nature-Art event. He writes widely about birding in Maine, including a weekly birding column for the Bangor Daily News. He served six terms in the Maine House of Representatives, chairing the Environment and Natural Resources Committee and the Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Committee. Currently he serves on Maine Board of Environmental Protection.

This event includes an in-person reception at 5:30pm at the Gilley followed by an in-person presentation, which will also be livecast via Zoom. There is no charge, but reservations are required. When you sign up, please indicate whether you will attend remotely or in person.

This monthly series brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. All 12 programs in this year’s series are proudly sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. 

“At Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, we take great pride in partnering with area nonprofits doing important work to keep the community engaged. Wendell Gilley Museum is a wonderful example of this. We are excited to support this special artist series and look forward to the positive impact throughout the region,” says Lisa Parsons, Senior Vice President Regional Marketing Manager.

Join Miss Chrissy from the Southwest Harbor Public Library at the Wendell Gilley Museum for a special story time at 2:30pm. Join us for nature stories and some art fun too! She'll be sharing "Birds" by Kevin Henkes & "Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt" by Kate Messner. Then we’ll do some art of our own. Free and open to all.

Dive into the whimsical world of artist Starla Michelle to create a beautiful peacock painting with Erika Rosso on canvas with acrylics. Erika will lead you through a step-by-step process and you’ll leave with a canvas painting of your own. This class uses acrylic paint, so wear old clothes or bring a smock. Suitable for ages 7+.  Fee: $20, members & $25 non-members.

Paint a simple landscape with mountains, a sunset and islands with Erika Rosso in this step-by-step class. Each step will be demonstrated and explained, making for a fun and approachable class for beginning painters. Suitable for all levels. Sip on wine, tea or seltzer. Fee: $25 for members and $30 for non-members.

Get started with bird carving in this workshop from master carver Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this skill with students at the museum for 37 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create.

Class size limited to 4. Students must be at least 12 years old.

Flock to the Gilley for a fun and informative few hours with Seth Benz, the bird ecology director at Schoodic Institute. Seth will delve into research and share current sightings and insights. Bring your own questions and curiosity, a favorite bird-related reading, or your latest observations. Depending on weather, the group might go for an optional bird walk outside.

There is no fee for this program, but a museum entrance fee is required. For museum members, museum entry is free. For non-members, the entrance fee is $10 per visit but a one-time Winter Pass is available for $25 and is good through April 30. If you would like to buy a winter pass, you can do so at the museum the day of the program.

Join Miss Chrissy from the Southwest Harbor Public Library at the Wendell Gilley Museum for a special story time at 2:30pm. Join us for nature stories and some art fun too!Then we’ll do some art of our own. Free and open to all.

For National Poetry Month, this former Maine Poet Laureate joins us for an afternoon of his verse and an exploration of its connections with nature. This will be followed by a book signing and reception. This event happens in-person at the Gilley, but will be live-streamed as well. Please note: Recordings of live-streamed events are available only to Museum members. Free but registration required. Free.

A California native who continually studied and refined her art skills while making a career of teaching English around the world, Leslie Moore is a full-time poet and printmaker who takes her inspiration from the natural world. Her book, What Rough Beasts, features both art forms. At the Gilley she’ll explore the alchemy that helps her poetry and prints spring from her connection to nature. This event will be livecast via Zoom. Please note: recordings are available only to museum members. We will begin at 5:30 with a reception and book signing, followed by the program at 7pm. Please indicate which you will be attending when you sign up. There is no charge to attend.

This monthly series brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. All 12 programs in this year’s series are proudly sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. 

“At Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, we take great pride in partnering with area nonprofits doing important work to keep the community engaged. Wendell Gilley Museum is a wonderful example of this. We are excited to support this special artist series and look forward to the positive impact throughout the region,” says Lisa Parsons, Senior Vice President Regional Marketing Manager.

Build a bee house for non-stinging Mason bees and leaf-cutter bees in this special workshop. In these bee houses, the cavities are 5-inch-deep drilled holes — deep enough, we hope, to be safe from a woodpecker tongue. This is a great family project. All materials provided. Participants must be at least 7. This is an in-person program.

Flock to the Gilley for a fun and informative few hours with Seth Benz, the bird ecology director at Schoodic Institute. Seth will delve into research and share current sightings and insights. Bring your own questions and curiosity, a favorite bird-related reading, or your latest observations. Depending on weather, the group might go for an optional bird walk outside.

There is no fee for this program, but a museum entrance fee is required. For museum members, museum entry is free. For non-members, the entrance fee is $10 per visit but a one-time Winter Pass is available for $25 and is good through April 30. If you would like to buy a winter pass, you can do so at the museum the day of the program.

Get started with nature journaling in this workshop at the Gilley on Saturday, April 29, from 10:30am to noon. Scientists, artists, and outdoor enthusiasts all utilize nature journaling, a skill that is accessible to anyone. Using real scientific practices and artistic abandon, participants will walk away with a small nature journal of their own. All materials will be provided. This workshop will be taught by Camp Beech Cliff's Matt Cornish.

“Nature journaling is a wonderful way to engage observational skills, curiosity, and creative thinking,” he says “Regardless of age, people need nature. People also need the time and space to slow down, notice the world around them, and hopefully experience wonder.”

The class meets in person at the Museum. Cost is $10 for museum members and $15 for non-members. Registration required.  

Learn from this award-winning and internationally renown wildlife artist, in a class with an emphasis on color and using washes. This class happens online, but with a twist. Barry will be on the big screen at the Gilley and you can choose to paint in person at the museum, or take the class online from home.

Fee: $30 for members and $40 for non-members.

Painter Mary Brooking celebrates what she sees in nature and aims to create spaces that interact with human senses on a primitive level and test the balance between reality and abstraction. She employs reduction rather than embellishment, distilling elemental truths about the places she paints through interactive color, texture and form.

Brooking will be online with the Wendell Gilley Museum on Tuesday, May 16, as the museum’s People-Nature-Art presenter in an online-only program that begins at 7 p.m. There is no fee to attend, but registration is required.  

Most, but not all, of her work is inspired by Maine landscapes and she works exclusively in acrylics. “I use many layers of paint," she says, "often obliterating elements as the painting progresses, challenging myself always to distill and reduce the image to its exact essence and nothing more.”

She will discuss her process, inspiration, evolution as an artist, and connection to the Maine landscape in a conversation with museum director Sean Charette. A mid-career artist who lives and works in Westbrook, her paintings are in ollections in the United States, Canada, France and New Zealand. She has exhibited widely in Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Ohio and New Mexico, and exhibits regularly at Casco Bay Artisans in Portland, Maine and Art 3 Gallery in Manchester, New Hampshire. 

This monthly series brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. Each session for 2023 is sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Artist Erika Rosso leads a Misty Mountains Paint ‘n’ Sip on Thursday, June 8 from 6 to 8 p.m. Participants will create a painting inspired by Japanese artist Higashiyama Shinkichi that weaves together layers of mountains fading into the mist. Sip on wine, tea or seltzer as part of this adults-only evening class, which is suitable for artists of all levels who are at least 21 years old.

All materials and beverages will be provided. Each step will be demonstrated and explained, making for a fun and approachable class. The cost is $25 for museum members and $30 for non-members. Spaces are limited.

The Wendell Gilley Museum and YWCA of MDI are proud to host American Voice in Poetry and Song III, an exploration of the expressive range of African American composers including Margaret Bonds and John. W. Work III, and poets including Langston Hughes, in a free concert at St. John Episcopal Church in Southwest Harbor. There will be a reception with the performers at the Gilley Museum afterward. This event is free and open to all, but registration is required.

Boston-based Convergence Ensemble will perform this music and poetry through a historic lens along with a discussion of societal issues surrounding social justice and representation in the world of classical music  The performers are singer Davron S. Monroe, poet and literary performer Regie Gibson, and pianist Rachel Gibson.

Convergence Ensemble is a nonprofit organization that presents unusual chamber music programming by supporting a diverse group of musicians. It was founded on the belief that the arts are interdisciplinary—that art, poetry, dance, literature, and music inform one another. The organization prides itself on working not only with musicians but also poets, writers, and literary performers.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Artist Erika Rosso leads a Magical Whales & Sailboat Paint ‘n’ Sip on Friday, June 16 beginning at 10:30 a.m. This workshop is suitable for painters age 7 and older. Students will paint wet on wet, work with salt, and learn to use masking fluid to create a watercolor of a humpback whale and sailboat, all while sipping on tea, coffee, seltzer or hot cocoa. Families and individuals welcome.

All materials and beverages will be provided. Each step will be demonstrated and explained, making for a fun and approachable class Spaces are limited.

A modern master of bird carving, Mark McNair, shares his art at the Gilley as part of the our free monthly series, People-Nature-Art. On June 20, he and his two carver sons will share stories, visuals and their inspirations in a presentation that begins at 7p.m. at the Gilley. This will be followed by a public reception with the artists. There is no charge to attend either event, but registration is required. The presentation will also be livestreamed; please indicate whether you will attend in person or virtually when you sign up.

The following day, June 21 from 1 to 3 p.m., they will give an in-person carving demonstration at the Gilley. No fee and no registraton required for this.

Mark McNair specializes in waterfowl and shorebird decoys, weathervanes, and related folk art. His work is held in numerous prominent decoy collections both public and private, including the Shelburne Museum in Vermont, the deWitt Cottage in Virginia Beach, and The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art in Salisbury, Maryland.

Sons Ian and Colin are also active carvers: Ian in Exmore, Virginia, where he is a partner in High ‘N Dry, a company specializing in industrial grade chest waders;  and Colin in Boston where he also works for Copley Fine Art Auctions

These special events, like all the museum's People-Nature-Art offerings in 2023, are sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

A modern master of bird carving, Mark McNair, and his son Ian McNair who is also a professional carver, will share insights and observations at the Gilley during a live demonstration of their art on Wednesday, June 21, from 1 to 3 p.m. This is a rare opportunity in Maine to connect with top U.S. carvers. No fee and no registration required.

Mark McNair specializes in waterfowl and shorebird decoys, weathervanes, and related folk art. His work is held in numerous prominent decoy collections both public and private, including the Shelburne Museum in Vermont, the deWitt Cottage in Virginia Beach, and The Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art in Salisbury, Maryland.

He has been carving and making decoys for more than half a century. After leaving his alma mater, Rhode Island School of Design, in the 1970s, he worked with antiques and carved wooden signs in his native Connecticut. During this time he was introduced to antique decoys by the Voorhees family and quickly took to the craft. He and his wife, Martha, now live and carve on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, between the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean.

Of their three children, sons Ian and Colin are also active carvers. Ian carves in Exmore, Virginia and is a partner in High ‘N Dry, a company specializing in industrial grade chest waders. Colin also works for Copley Fine Art Auctions, in Boston.

This special event is part of the McNairs' visit to the Gilley as part of the free monthly People-Nature-Art series in 2023 sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank and Trust.

Join watercolor artist Erika Rosso for a three-hour plein air painting workshop at Lopaus Point in Bernard on Friday, June 23, from 9am to noon. Erika has a unique style of teaching that encourages watercolor students to play and experiment with their art. Participants should bring their own plein air set-up, including an easel or small pop-up table and chair. Driving directions and a list of needed class materials will be sent when you sign up. Sets of painting materials will be available with advance request.

This is an in-person class and registration is required at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/calendar. The fee is $35 for Museum members and $42 for non-members. Class size is limited.

Rosso’s work has been exhibited at Blum Gallery in Bar Harbor, Radiant Light Gallery in Portland and at the Cornerstone Gallery in Southwest Harbor. She lives on Mount Desert Island with her family of four, 12 chickens, a dog named Patten and one pet mouse. 

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Paint your favorite animal, or even a pet, in a watercolor painting class with local instructor Erika Rosso at the Gilley.

Experiment with the techniques of dry brushing and applying washes in select areas to bring your painting to life. Students should bring a photo to work from that is large enough to show detail and to inform their painting. Painters of all levels can attend, although some past painting or drawing experience may be helpful. Materials will be provided.

This is an in-person class and registration is required. Class size is limited.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Come play with watercolors in this daytime paint ‘n’ sip and create your own nighttime mountain landscape. Local artist Erika Rosso will guide students through painting a beautiful landscape under the night sky with mountains and a tree silhouette. Learn how to do a watercolor wash, use salt for stars, and apply masking fluid. Suitable for participants of all skill levels age 7 and older.  Families and individuals welcome. Cocoa, tea and seltzer for sipping will be provided, along with all art materials. Registration is required and class size is limited.

All materials and beverages will be provided. Each step will be demonstrated and explained, making for a fun and approachable class.  

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Author and naturalist Susan Hand Shetterly will delve into what she calls “the landscape of home” on Tuesday, July 11 at at 7pm at the Gilley as the museum’s People-Nature-Art presenter for July. There will be a book signing immediately afterward. The presentation happens live at the museum and will be simultaneously livestreamed. As always, People-Nature-Art presentations are free and open to all, but registration is required.

People-Nature-Art is a monthly series that brings artists, writers, carvers, and creative types of all kinds to the Gilley to explore how nature and art interact in their work, and how their art impacts their own approach nature. Each session for 2023 is sponsored by our friends at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust.

In her newest book, “Notes on the Landscape of Home,” Shetterly explores in a series essays what it is to live in a Down East coastal town and to pay attention, over time, to what it offers of land, water, wildlife, and neighbors, taking her cue from Henry David Thoreau and Wendell Berry, who advocate for the virtues of staying in one place, believing that as we delve deeper into the landscape of home, we learn to read the world. 

A resident of Surry, Shetterly has lived on the coast of Maine for most of her life. She writes about wildlife and wild lands, has worked as a wild bird rehabilitator. She is an award-winning writer of books and articles for magazines and newspapers. Among the many things she has written about are the reestablishment of the bald eagle population in Maine, the reintroduction of the American turkey, the turkey vulture’s northward trend, shorebird migrations, the bluefin tuna and the humpback and right whales in the Gulf of Maine, counting alewives along a stream in her town in the spring, seaweed cultivation in a bay and the rebirth of a forest.

This interactive program will use demonstrations, slides, children’s books and field guides, hand lenses and other activities to get a better understanding and appreciation of birds.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

This interactive program will use demonstrations, slides, children’s books and field guides, hand lenses and other activities to get a better understanding and appreciation of birds.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

On Thursdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel offers drop-in nature activities including – Origami Bird Making, Loon Magic, and Fill the Bill. No fee and no registration necessary. Just drop by between 10:30-11:30am and 12:30 to 1:30pm.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Experience nature with all of your senses, guided by Maine Master Naturalist Karen Zimmerman, author of “Nightwalk: Using all your senses to explore the natural world.” You’ll take a walk through woods tothe beach, stopping along the way to savor and explore with each of your senses. Family friendly.

Karen is a Maine Master Naturalist and teaches classes and workshops about natural history and nature drawing.

Learn how to apply watercolor washes in small sections, and how and where to use dry brush technique in this class at the museum with local watercolor artist Erika Rosso.

This workshop is suitable for anyone with a little watercolor experience who is looking to dive into more detailed work. Bring your own picture of a flower or look through materials at the museum to find your subject. Rosso will guide you step by step through the process of painting your own botanical illustration. All materials are provided, although you are welcome to bring your own.

Registration is required and class size is limited.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

On Thursdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel offers drop-in nature activities including – Origami Bird Making, Loon Magic, and Fill the Bill. No fee and no registration necessary. Just drop by between 10:30-11:30am and 12:30 to 1:30pm.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Fields, trees and the sea! Join watercolor artist Erika Rosso for a three-hour plein air painting workshop at Cable Crossing on Friday, July 21, from 9am to noon. Erika has a unique style of teaching and encourages watercolor students to play and experiment with their art and to let go of expectations so that they can explore boundaries within their paintings.

Participants will need an easel or small pop-up table and chair plus paints. Driving directions and a list of needed class materials will be sent when you sign up. Sets of painting materials will be available with advance request. Please email us at mel@wendellgilleymuseum.org.

This is an in-person class and registration is required. The fee is $35 for Museum members and $42 for non-members. Class size is limited.

Rosso’s work has been exhibited at Blum Gallery in Bar Harbor, Radiant Light Gallery in Portland and at the Cornerstone Gallery in Southwest Harbor. She lives on Mount Desert Island with her family of four, 12 chickens, a dog named Patten and one pet mouse. 

Join us at the Gilley for a celebration of Avian Artistry: Treasures from Maine Collections, a special show comprising more than 100 pieces from 50 donors.

The show’s guest curator, Carl Little, will be on hand to answer questions and offer insights.

He says: “In selecting the work for this exhibition, I sought to present a wide array of bird species and an equally broad range of formats: ceramics, paintings, sculpture, a wood relief, prints, carvings, fabric, photography—even a handmade book. You’ll find geese made from tamarack twigs by Cree artists, an eagle’s-eye view of Edo, Japan, by Ando Hiroshige (1797–1858), and a pair of Eurasian jays made from majolica.

In addition to a bounty of historical work, the exhibition showcases the work of a stellar sampling of contemporary Maine artists, from Ashley Bryan, David Driskell, Father Paul Plante, and Bernard Langlais to Carol Shutt, Susan Amons, Siri Beckman, and Amy Pollien.

  As you view the avian artistry in this show, please take time to study the many ways the artists represent feathers, talons, beaks, and bodies, from the real to the imagined. I guarantee you will be amazed.”

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

If you feel overwhelmed by color and options when you start to think about painting, then this class is for you. Artist Erika Rosso will help students simplify their palette and offer them ways to refine their work by using limitations.  This is a great class for any level of painter, although having some experience in watercolor is helpful.  All materials will be provided, but artists are welcome to bring their own.

This is an in-person class at the Wendell Gilley Museum, and registration is required. The fee is $25 for Museum members and $35 for non-members. Class size is limited.

Rosso’s work has been exhibited at Blum Gallery in Bar Harbor, Radiant Light Gallery in Portland and at the Cornerstone Gallery in Southwest Harbor. She lives on Mount Desert Island with her family of four, 12 chickens, a dog named Patten and one pet mouse. 

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Everything you need to know about feathers! How they are built, what they do, and what different types of feathers birds have. We will finish by making feather prints. Fun for kids and adults!

Everything you need to know about feathers! How they are built, what they do, and what different types of feathers birds have. We will finish by making feather prints. Fun for kids and adults!

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

On Thursdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel offers drop-in nature activities including – Origami Bird Making, Loon Magic, and Fill the Bill. No fee and no registration necessary. Just drop by between 10:30-11:30am and 12:30 to 1:30pm.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

This interactive program will use demonstrations, slides, children’s books and field guides, hand lenses and other activities to get a better understanding and appreciation of birds.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

This interactive program will use demonstrations, slides, children’s books and field guides, hand lenses and other activities to get a better understanding and appreciation of birds.

On Wednesdays, Museum Educator Cynthia Ocel leads hands-on Wednesday Wonder Nature Workshops including Awesome Owls, Fabulous Feathers, and Survival of the Fittest. They’re fun for kids and adults, and you’re bound to learn something you didn’t know before.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Come get your feet wet and step into the magical world of watercolor with local artist Erika Rosso.  Erika will be guiding students to create a watercolor portrait of a colorful Maine puffin.  Class is suitable for all levels and ages, families and individuals welcome. 

All materials supplied as well as tea and non alcoholic beverages.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.

Cost: $35 for non-members or $28 for members (a 20% discount off the regular price). To become a member, visit our membership page HERE.

Class size limited to 4.

Learn carving with the Gilley’s master carver, Steve Valleau, who has been sharing this art with students at the museum for 38 years. This 1.5-hour class, suitable for beginners, comes with a kit that includes a bird blank and paints. Tools are available to borrow. Learn the basics of this classic American art form, and leave with something you create in our outdoor classroom.

Students must be at least 11 years old; those 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.