| PERSONAL: Born Bruce Edward Babb in Falmouth, Maine, 1939. Attended Falmouth High School and the University of Maine at Orono, earning a BS in Chemistry in 1961. Worked for Great Northern Paper Co. in Millinocket, Maine until 1963 when he and his wife Julie moved to Rochester, NY to work for Eastman Kodak Company as a research chemist. Bruce and Julie moved back to Maine in 1992 after his early retirement from Kodak. They now have two daughters and three grandchildren. |
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ART EDUCATION:
Self
taught in marquetry over a period of about twenty years.
MARQUETRY - THE
FINE ART OF VENEERING:
Marquetry
is an ancient art, combining both great skill and design. It involves
the careful and intricate placement of small pieces of veneers
to form patterns. The woods are from all over the globe and yield
an astonishing array of colors, grains and textures. Some bear
exotic names like "Movingue" and "Padouk";
others are from our own familiar forests - oak, ash, cherry, walnut,
maple and birch.
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Bruce has developed this art form in a very exciting and original way, starting out with antique quilt patterns and translating them into wood, often leading into his own wonderful, unique designs, many of which are fanciful interpretations of nature. Each piece is one-of-a-kind, and each is laborously hand cut, assembled and finished in his Pemaquid, Maine stidio with obviously tremendous skill, precision and meticulous care. The works are finished with at least six coats of varnish and hand-rubbed to a beautiful, deep and lustrous shine. Because the wood is usually thought of as a functional medium, as in |
In addition to art pieces, Bruce also makes chess boards, backgammon boards and dominoes and jewelry boxes. He has also worked in tandem with cabinet makers to produce tables of heirloom quality.
SHOWS AND AWARDS:
2005
Mar - Apr -- Dual show with Julie Babb - Waldo Theatre, Waldoboro,
ME.
2000, 1999 -- Brookline Art Center Craft Show
1998 July -- Tenth Anniversary Exhibition, Round Top Center for
the Arts
1997 to present -- Exhibit - Thomas Moser Showroom - Madison Ave.
New York City
1997 -- Directions - The Maine Craft Guild shows - Bar Harbor,
Falmouth and Augusta, Maine
1997 Summer -- Exhibition of Maine Woodworkers - Victorian Stable
Gallery
1997 Summer -- Maine Coast Artists - Juried craft show
1996 Fall -- Portland Craft Show - Juried by Maine Crafts Association
1996 Summer -- Guest artist - Pemaquid Group of Artists
1996 - 1998 -- Continuing exhibit Thomas Moser Cabinetmaker showroom,
Portland, Maine
1996 -- One-man show, "The Fine Art of Marquetry" -
Miles Memorial Hospital
1994 -- Solo show - First National Bank of Damariscotta
GALLERIES AND RETAIL
OUTLETS:
The
Stable Gallery, Damariscitta, ME
Pemaquid Art Gallery, Pemaquid Point, ME
Island Artisans Galleries, Bar Hatbor and Northeast Harbor, ME
Callamuse Gallery, Round Point, ME
Archipelago Gallery, Rockland, ME
Kern's Collection, Chestertown, MD
ASSOCIATIONS:
Round
Top Center for the Arts
Pemaquid Group of Artists
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