News

Opening July 2

We are excited to be opening the Wendell Gilley Museum to the public for tours on Tuesdays and Thursdays, beginning July 2. Admission will be by reservation only, as we are limited to 10 people in the building at a time in accordance with the best guidance for the prevention of Covid-19. Museum hours on those days are 10am to 4pm, with the last reservation at 3:30pm.

To make a reservation, email reservations@wendellgilleymuseum.org. While in the museum, face coverings are required and we ask that you maintain a distance of six feet between you and other people; that's about the wingspan of an adult bald eagle.

O Solo, Bee-O!

Some bees just like to be alone. Mason bees and leaf-cutter bees are non-stinging solitary bees that nest in cavities. You can help them find a home by building a bee house with a kit from the Wendell Gilley Museum. In these bee houses, the cavities are 5-inch-deep drilled holes — deep enough, we hope, to be safe from a woodpecker tongue.

Our kit involves a little hammering and as much painting as you want. This is a great family project. Kits are $12 … plus send us a picture or video of your completed project. To order, email director@wendellgilleymuseum.org with your name and mailing address. If you are local, we have a no-contact pick-up system. You can send us a check at Wendell Gilley Museum, PO Box 254, Southwest Harbor, ME 04679 or, make a donation through our website HERE.

Learn & Do ONLINE

Visit our Learn & Do page for lots of fun and inspiring online art projects, created by local artists. You'll find videos about using clay, collage and collotype printmaking to create your own birds, as well as a download-able project to make mythological bird gods and goddesses! Image: Thunderbird mythological bird project by Erica Rosso. Expand to read more...

Over the course of the next month, we will be adding new projects from local and Maine artists including Ranee Levasseur, Allison Maurias, Rebekah Raye, Carol Shutt, Sherrie York, and of course, museum artist Steve Valleau. So check back often! We'll also be offering small, socially-distanced classes outside in our new tent - check the Events page for details of these.

New Addition to the Flock

Welcome Melinda Rice-Schoon!

We are excited to welcome Melinda to our flock at the Gilley. Melinda has worked with other Mount Desert Island non-profits, including the Seal Cove Auto Museum and the Jessup Library, and she brings a rich background in communications and public programs. Melinda will help us continue to grow our programs and spread the word about the exciting things going on at the Gilley. We are already enjoying her enthusiasm - welcome Melinda!

Gilley Members Gallery

Member's Gallery

Our members have been getting creative! Visit our Exhibits page and our Member's Gallery to see some of their wonderful work. Bee Houses and Collages based on our online offerings (learn more on our NEWS page), carvings, and more. More fabulous art coming soon...

Migratory Bird Day and Artist Sherrie York

Sharing this wonderful post about Migratory Bird Day and Printmaking from our friend, artist Sherrie York. She designed the poster for World Migratory Bird Day this year. Check out her video about her printmaking process. As Sherrie says - "Birds and Art just go together"!

Birds & Bees Nature Craft Projects

Check out our new Mason Bee Houses. Easy to make, fun to decorate - a great way to get creative, and to get outside and learn more about bees. Watch a video about the Bee Houses by our museum artist, Steven Valleau here and See pictures of completed houses here. Kits are for local pick up or delivered by mail and include the materials you need. Read more about the kits, and how to order below - and learn more about Solitary Bees below too.

TO ORDER: Mason bee kit $5 plus... a picture or video of your completed project. Write to us at director@wendellgilleymuseum.org with your name (or artist's name) and mailing address. If you are local, we have a no-contact pick-up system. You can send us a check at Wendell Gilley Museum, PO Box 254, Southwest Harbor, ME 04679 or, you can click here to make a donation through our website.

Because of demand, we can only able to ship 3 kits per order, though we will be able to fulfill extra orders within a week. When you are finished, send us a photo of your completed Bee House to
Director@wendellgilleymuseum.org

LEARN MORE
The Mason Bee house is a good place to start learning about bee habits. Mason bees and Leaf-cutter bees are non-stinging solitary bees (safe for kids) that nest in cavities. In our houses the cavities are 5” deep drilled holes (hopefully safe from a woodpecker tongue). Our kit involves a little hammering and as much painting as you want. Over the growing season careful observation reveals the simple craftsmanship of these tiny masons.

Watch a Video to learn more about Solitary Bees (Mason Bees)
Watch a video to learn more about differences between Honey Bees and Mason Bees
Watch a video about the Bee Houses by our museum artist, Steven Valleau here and See pictures of completed houses here.

The Bird Mobile kits are coming soon! 5 bird cutouts that can be strung from sticks or better yet, driftwood sticks if you can go beachcombing. Collect four sticks that you like and hang five local yard birds from the line. Wooden bird blanks (shapes), fittings and paints and a paintbrush included. People local to Southwest Harbor can borrow a wood burner to decorate their projects from our sanitized craft bin.
Bird Mobile $20

Contact us at director@wendellgilleymuseum.org

Crazy, Creative Collage!

Below are some excellent online videos and ideas by local artists to get you inspired. Each project is very different, and as you'll see from all of their work, collage is a super fun art form that you can do with scissors, glue, and anything you can glue down. The results can be beautiful and sometimes surprising and can send a positive message.

A few of the artists below took inspiration from the collage book Beautiful Blackbird by the wonderful Maine artist Ashley Bryan. You'll also find a video of Ashley reading his - which is the best way to experience it! Click "expand" for more.

Ashley Bryan inspired collage with artists Erika and Sienna Rosso

Video Workshop - Collage with Erica and Sienna Rosso (20 mins)

Video of Ashley Bryan reading Beautiful Blackbird (10 mins)

[Note: this online program replaces the April 3 Family workshop].

Beautiful Blackbirds - Collage Inspired by the Blackbird and the Raven.
Slideshow by artist Maria Charette (3 mins)

Art Corner - Fun Collage lesson with artist Allison Maurais.
Youtube video that features artist, art teacher, and summer Gilley staff demonstrating a really fun collage technique with minimal materials. (10 mins)

Exploring Collage with artist Carol Shutt
A series of Facebook videos that really get creative with ideas for collage, with artist and former school teacher Carol Shutt.

Collage 1 :: Collage 2 :: Collage 3 :: Collage 4 :: Collage 5

Be like a Magpie!

Collect all kinds of cool, colorful and textured papers to use for making collages. Magazines, wrapping paper - even paper bags can have cool textures and patterns. And what about buttons, feathers, and sequins? Anything that catches your eye and can be glued down (or otherwise attached) is fair game for making a collage, and you might consider including words, letters or symbols also, to express an idea, or get your viewer thinking...

If you feel like you are short on collage-making materials, let us know at director@wendellgilleymuseum.org with your name, artist's ages and mailing address, and we will mail some your way. And PLEASE SHARE your art by sending us pictures with the artist's info (and even an artist statement) and we will post in an online gallery.

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January 2020