ROCKLAND- CRAFT Gallery’s introductory 2019 show “Birds: A Spring Migration” opens on May 22 and continues through June. It features rare bird paintings by Camden artist Antonia Munroe.

Since 2014 Antonia Munroe has traveled to India to study techniques of Indian miniature painting, particularly those developed by the 17th century Mughal painter Ustad Mansur and his contemporaries. While paintings of this period were typically painted on paper, Munroe paints on panels prepared with gesso and clay. Working with hand ground pigments, she builds layer upon layer of paint, using the traditional delicate brushes made from the underside hairs of a squirrel’s tail. Indian miniature paintings are often surrounded by elaborate painted borders.

Unable to resist an enduring fascination with block-printed textiles, Munroe fills the borders and backgrounds of her paintings with her original stenciled motifs. The resulting images are not mere portraits of rare birds; they are idolized exotic creatures of nature, often perched on a flowering branch amidst a forest of subtle yet dazzling patterns. 

Munroe’s paintings are part of CRAFT’s “Birds: A Spring Migration,” a group show. Using the many skills found in fine craft, Munroe is an appropriate leader in this show with Julie Crane, David Jacobson, Peggy Johnson, Berri Kramer, J.R.Pyne, Jacques Vesery, Fiona Washburn and Dan West.

Whimsical or serious, Idealized or stylized, The artists offer their interpretations of birds, feathers, nests and eggs in various mediums. CRAFT Gallery will be open for Rockland’s First Friday evening Art Walk on June 7. Meet  the artists and enjoy live music in our brick courtyard. CRAFT Gallery is located  in a charming 19th century yellow carriage house  in the courtyard at 12 Elm Street in Rockland. It is next to the Caldbeck and Gautschi Galleries and across from The Farnsworth Art Museum. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and Sunday by chance. 

For more information please call (207) 594-0167 and visit www.craftonelm.com.