CARLO … and his Merry Band of Artists (NR) and UMVA Portrait Pop Up Gallery!
August 8
7 PM
Lincoln Theater is pleased to present a special Film Screening and Art Gallery event! Filmmaker Richard Kane (Truth Tellers, Imber’s Left Hand, I Know a Man… Ashley Bryan) will be joining us for a special screening of his documentary film Carlo… and his Merry Band of Artists followed by a talkback. The film will be screened alongside a Pop Up Portrait gallery from the artists of Union of Maine Visual Artists (UMVA).
CARLO … and his Merry Band of Artists will premiere at the Maine International Film Festival in Waterville, Maine, this July 2024 (TBA). Carlo Pittore, an exuberant, larger-than-life figurative artist and activist is discussed by a small group of friends and fellow artists who gathered at a late afternoon al fresco picnic to assess Carlo’s impact. He died in 2005 at the age of 62. Says art author Edgar Beem, “The conversation is so casual and honest it’s almost as though Carlo had just stepped away from the table for a moment rather than for all eternity.” His advice to young artists to strike out, follow their dreams, and “Do It” was palpable… as was the love for him and the hurt he sometimes caused. Memories and perspectives clash. Carlo painted nude models while singing and dancing to Verdi’s opera at his Academy of Carlo Pittore creating works often compared to Lucian Freud and Alice Neel. Fearing the AIDS epidemic he fled New York in the late 80s. Jonathan Katz, a founding figure in queer art history, said he didn’t think Carlo’s interest in female nudes was a cover for his homosexuality. He found them beautiful. The film captures Carlo’s ambition for artistic greatness, his infectious personality, his struggle with sexual identity, and complicated legacy. (CARLO … and his Merry Band of Artists features scenes with nudity and is not suitable for audiences members under 15 years of age)
The UMVA Portrait Pop-Up – The Union of Maine Visual Artists, in conjunction with The Lincoln Theater, proudly presents the UMVA Portrait Pop-Up, which will take place in the Lincoln Theatre second floor lobby. The 2D exhibition of Portraits in a variety of mediums runs from July 30th to August 17th, and features notable works by current and former members of the UMVA, including the late UMVA founder Carlo Pittore. Pittore is the subject of Maine Masters film, “CARLO… and his Merry Band of Artists,” which will be shown at the Lincoln Theater on August 8th at 7 PM.
The UMVA Portrait Pop-Up will be curated by Ann Tracy, Cynthia Hyde and Emily Sabino. Works will be for sale, and will benefit UMVA artists as well as The Lincoln Theatre.
UMVA, founded in 1975, is a non-profit organization that promotes and advocates for the visual arts, artists, and all arts supporters. As artist advocates, the UMVA initiated and saw enacted into state law the Maine Percent for Art Program (requiring a percentage of funds for state buildings to include art) and the Artist’s Estate Tax Law (allowing art work to be used to pay artists estate taxes). Other programs and projects supported by UMVA include: The Maine Arts Journal, an online, quarterly publication; ARRT! Artists’ Rapid Response Team, a collaboration of artists & progressive groups making art to create positive change; Lumen ARRT!!, a group creating large-scale video projections in public spaces to give a visual voice to progressive non-profits; and the New England Emmy Award-nominated Maine Masters Project, a video series profiling many of Maine’s most distinguished and often less recognized artists. More information is available at www.TheUMVA.org.
Film Running Time: 1 hour, 17 minutes
All ticket sales are final – Nonrefundable and Nonexchangeable.
All tickets are available for purchase in advance* through our online box office. Any remaining tickets will be available for purchase at the door beginning 30 minutes before showtime. We do not release additional tickets at the door after a show is sold out.
*Advance tickets or confirmation emails may be printed for admission OR you may check in with your email address at the theater box office when you arrive.