For Carol Chase Bjerke ’65, time spent at Bates set the stage for her artistic career. Carol was a visual artist and educator whose work is anchored in her love of mountains and rock walls, intertwining with self-expression, communication, healing, and change themes. Now, thanks to a recent gift from her husband, Lee Bjerke, her work continues to inspire and teach as part of the Bates Museum of Art’s collection. 

Already, Carol’s multimedia art has been used in ways that carry forward her legacy as an artist-educator. It was recently featured in the exhibition ARRAY: Recent Acquisition Series. Students in K-12 schools in the Lewiston / Auburn area have viewed and discussed her original work, which includes a series of Leaf Poem monographs on gelatin silver photographic paper that connect landscape and poetry.

When Carol embarked on her Life Boat series, also now in the Bates Collection, she brought together the power of art and healing. Describing the collection in 1997, she wrote, “Somewhere amidst the enormous number of thoughts and images that crowded my mind in the hours following my first cancer diagnosis was the childhood memory of rowing a boat.” Work from this series complements works by other artists dealing with these issues and are used regularly in a museum collaboration with the Maine College of Health Professions. Students use the museum’s collection to practice deep-looking sessions when they spend time developing observation and communication skills across health care disciplines.

Carol’s memory will also live on through the Carol Chase Bjerke ’65 Financial Aid Fund, which Lee established in her memory through a combination of current gifts and an estate commitment. The fund is truly a shared tribute to Carol. 

Thanks to the generosity of her family, Carol’s legacy will continue through a gift of art, which generations will enjoy, and an endowed scholarship that will allow future Bates students to embark on their own creative journey for years to come.