Annual art sale to continue online, raising critical funds for student scholarships while supporting emerging and established artists
June 10, 2020 - Maine College of Art & Design (MECA&D) is pleased to present the 2020 COLLECT Online Summer Art Sale, a fundraiser in support of MECA&D’s Student Scholarship Fund. This online event, which is free and open to the public, includes an auction of select pieces and is a unique opportunity to discover emerging artists, view new work by established artists, and build or add to art collections without leaving home.
“Now more than ever, we need art and artists to bring us together,” said MECA&D President Laura Freid. “In these disruptive and confusing times, art helps us to reflect on and shape our lives. COLLECT is the College’s largest fundraiser of the year, and it helps to keep MECA&D affordable for our students while at the same time supporting working artists and giving aspiring collectors the chance to own original works of art.”
The art sale features a unique, diverse, and unexpected array of original work in a variety of genres with a range of sizes, prices, and media, including furniture, sculpture, jewelry, paintings, prints, photography, textiles, drawings, and more.
This year’s COLLECT Online Art Sale features an Online Preview running through June 18th, where visitors can browse the COLLECT Online Summer Art Sale gallery and sale platform to view the entire selection of artwork available for purchase in this year’s sale. The three-day event will kick-off on Thursday, June 18th at 5:15pm with a virtual Connect @ COLLECT Cocktail Reception. Free and open to the public, guests will be treated to live toasts from Governor Janet Mills; Portland Mayor Kate Snyder; co-founders of Indigo Arts Alliance Daniel and Marcia Minter, Hon. DFA ’19; art collector Kate Malin; COLLECT artist Katherine Bradford; Congresswoman Chellie Pingree, and other honored guests.
The sale will open promptly at 6:00pm on Thursday, June 18th and run through 6:00pm on Sunday, June 21st. There will be an auction from 6:00pm - 9:00pm on June 18th featuring 14 pieces of work from selected artists. Participants will be able to view and purchase more than 700 pieces of work by 140 MECA&D alumni, students, faculty, and friends. Ranging in style from traditional to contemporary, the sale incorporates some of the finest art generated by artists from New England and beyond. Visit shop.meca.edu to view the COLLECT Online art sale platform.
The 2020 sale includes pieces by Angela Adams, Ebenezer Akakpo '01, Cat Bates ’09, Don Best ’79, Katherine Bradford, Julie Crane ’86, Nicole M. Duennebier '05, Linden Frederick, Meg Hahn ’17, Séan Alonzo Harris, Connie Hayes ’80, Alison Hildreth ’76, Drew Hodges, Ayumi Horie Salt ’92, Anne Ireland ’94, Margaret Lawrence ’93, Jocelyn Lee, Daniel Minter, Tessa Green O’Brien MFA ’16, Celeste Roberge ’79, Lewis Rossignol ’17, Dietlind Vander Schaaf, Brendan Ripken Shea ’18, Shoshannah White, and many others.
Maine College of Art & Design, a nationally recognized college of art and design anchored in the heart of Portland’s vibrant Arts District, provides scholarships, state-of-the-art facilities, robust programming, and vital opportunities to hundreds of students each year, giving them the tools they need to become successful artists, designers, visionaries, creators, and citizens.
This year’s event is sponsored by J.S. McCarthy Printers, The Hanover Insurance Group, People’s United Bank, Northern Benefits, Headlight Audio / Visual / Video, Wright-Ryan, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, USI Insurance Services, Porta & Co., Press Hotel and Union Restaurant, the Law Offices of Joe Bornstein, Portland Museum of Art and Plant Office. The exclusive media sponsor is Decor Maine.
For more information, contact ligo@meca.edu. Digital images available upon request.