Little also writes for regional and national publications including Art New England and Art in America. He contributed an essay to the catalog for the exhibition Bernard Langlais: Independent Spirit<\/em> at the Portland Museum of Art in 2002. At Bates, Little will focus on Langlais’ current exhibition in the context of his greater oeuvre. The exhibition Medium and Abstraction<\/em><\/a>, curated by Erin Gilligan ’09, focuses on a selection<\/a> of Langlais sculptures from the 1950s and ’60s that show a particular influence of the New York avant-garde. The inclusion of wooden assemblages by Louise Nevelson and portraits of Langlais imply a larger context of influence for his work, which Little will discuss.<\/p>\n Langlais, born in Old Town, Maine, in 1921, embarked on an art career at a young age. His early work is predominantly paintings and collages. In 1956, Langlais and his wife bought a summer cottage in Cushing, Maine. While completing renovations, Langlais began experimenting with wood, and developed his self-proclaimed “painting in wood” technique. He is most famous for whimsical animal sculptures and tableaus created with a fusion of painting and wood carving.<\/p>\n Also featured in the museum are the exhibitions<\/a> Landscape Drawings from the Marsden Hartley Memorial Collection<\/a><\/em> and Our Positive Bodies: Mapping Our Treatment, Sharing Our Choices<\/em><\/a>. The Hartley exhibition showcases ink and graphite drawings by this famed artist born in Lewiston, Maine, who wished to have a memorial collection in his hometown.<\/p>\n Marsden is known as a pioneer of American modernist painting in the early 20th century. Our Positive Bodies<\/em> originated in Nairobi, Kenya, and focuses on “body mapping,” a palliative process through which life-sized silhouette self-portraits of women affected by AIDS are used to divulge feelings and memories.<\/p>\n The Langlais and Hartley exhibitions close on Oct. 3, while Our Positive Bodies<\/em> remains up until Dec. 11. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and closed on major holidays. Admission is free.<\/p>\n
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