About the Exhibition

​The Art of Assemblage: Myth, Mystery and Spirituality centers upon the artistic practice of assemblage - artworks made of  found objects - and questions of spirituality. It includes the work of  four contemporary Maine artists: Abbie Read, David Matson, Sally Wagley, and Robert Katz. The  artists employ diverse approaches to assemblage, and represent  different spiritual traditions. The exhibition was organized by artist  and UMA Professor of Art Robert Katz, and is on view from January 23 - March 8.​

The Art of Assemblage: Myth, Mystery and Spirituality includes  artists whose use of assemblages turn the bricolage of found and  re-contextualized objects toward spiritual considerations. The  exhibition is supported by an original essay by Dr. Aaron Rosen,  Professor of Religion & Visual Culture and Director of the Henry  Luce III Center for the Arts & Religion at Wesley Theological  Seminary and Director of The Parsonage Gallery in Searsport, Maine. In his essay, Dr. Rosen wrote, “The artists come  from a range of religious traditions, from Katz’s Jewish upbringing in  Brooklyn and continued study of Jewish sacred texts to David Matson’s  vocation as an Episcopal parish priest.  Despite such different  spiritual journeys, the artists bring a similarly non-dogmatic, playful  spirit to their works, sparking numerous interreligious parallels and  dialogues along the way.”​

In  organizing The Art of Assemblage: Myth, Mystery and Spirituality,  Professor Katz explained the impetus for the show: “I received a  fellowship and was working with found objects that had been accumulating  in my studio. As I began working in assemblage, I was interested in  discussions I was having with people working and using similar   materials as me.” Katz conceived of The Art of Assemblage as  a public continuation of those conversations among artists. The  exhibitions even include approximations of artists’ assemblage studios,  bringing viewers into the creative process that reimagines miscellaneous  things to create a new synthesis of objects, concepts, and even  spiritual connection. Exhibiting artist David Matson explains, “When I  became a priest, my prayer was that I may also be an artist. At the  time, priest and artist seemed to stand at opposing poles. I have since  come to believe that priest and artist fundamentally do the same thing:  in either case, one stands on a threshold between the Worlds.”

Exhibition Essay​

The Art of Assemblage:  Myth, Mystery and SpiritualityMaine  is a good place to gather things.  The seasons here are marked by this  act, from stacking wood to collecting seashells to picking blueberries.   But Maine is also renowned for its antique stores, auctions, yard  sales, and transfer stations, replete with “trash and treasures” to take  the name of one roadside shop.  And while out-of-staters might be  willing to pay top dollar, Mainers seem to value the act of rummaging  itself, regardless of the outcome.

While  the most celebrated assemblage artists—such as Kurt Schwitters, Man  Ray, Joseph Cornell, Louise Nevelson, and Leonardo Drew—have hailed from  all over, there is a case to be made for a special Maine tradition of  assemblage, with its own homespun take on this art form.  Among its many  virtues, this exhibition makes that argument brilliantly, bringing  together—dare I say, assembling—four noted Maine artists, each with an  eye for mysterious objects and ideas, hidden in plain sight.

The  artists come from a range of religious traditions, from Katz’s Jewish  upbringing in Brooklyn and continued study of Jewish sacred texts to  David Matson’s vocation as an Episcopal parish priest.  Despite such  different spiritual journeys, the artists bring a similarly  non-dogmatic, playful spirit to their works, sparking numerous  interreligious parallels and dialogues along the way.  Whether tackling  the prejudices of the canon, as Sally Wagley does, or delving into the  overlapping acts of map and mythmaking, as Abbie Read does, the works in  this exhibition invite responses as personal as the objects they bind  together.  To adapt the words of the great theorist and collector Walter  Benjamin, one could say that for each of these artists, “the whole  background of an item adds up to a magic encyclopedia whose quintessence  is the fate of [their] object…turn[ing them] into interpreters of  fate.”

Aaron Rosen, PhDAuthor, Art & Religion in the 21st CenturyDirector, The Parsonage Gallery, Searsport