ARRT! The Artists’ Rapid Response Team (ARRT!) is a project of the Union of Maine Visual Artists. The ARRTists are members of the UMVA who collaborate with progressive organizations throughout Maine to create “visual soundbites,” frequently in the form of banners, to be used to draw attention to important issues. ARRT! is grateful for the support of the UMVA and the Broad Reach Fund of the Maine Community Foundation.
Remembering the Sandy Hook tragedy, Brunswick activists stood silently together with the ARRT! banner and candles.
It was an active fall for ARRT! ARRTists gathered together to paint banners outside at the Merrymeeting Grange in Bowdoinham on sunny days while wearing masks and following COVID protocols. They gathered on decks, in driveways, and worked separately in studios. What follows is a glimpse of some of the work that transpired. ARRT! is pleased to announce that a selection of the collective’s yard signs painted in 2020 will be included in the upcoming exhibit at the Portland Museum of Art Untitled 2020: Art From Maine in a _____ Time. We will be in good company there, alongside other Maine artists including a number of other UMVA members. Congratulations to all! The exhibition will be up from mid-February through May.
ARRT! banner with volunteer painters for Maine Youth Justice.
ARRT! placards with volunteer painters for Maine Youth Justice.
ARRT! painting session with crew and SMART Recovery banner.
ARRT! banner.
ARRT! banner for the Midcoast Recovery Coalition.
ARRT banner for SURJ which was used at polls on election day.
ARRT! paint session.
ARRT! banner.
ARRT! banner for Showing Up for Racial Justice.
Yard signs painted over the summer and early fall were used in neighborhoods across the state to promote social justice issues and to help encourage Mainers to vote. A couple of ARRT! designs were selected by Creative Portland to contribute to health and safety messages throughout the city.
-
ARRT! on bus stop kiosk in Portland.
-
ARRT! Street Banner in Portland.
-
ARRT! on bus stop kiosk in Portland.
Young students at the School Around Us in Arundel were inspired to create their own signs.
Yard signs by students at the School Around Us in Arundel.
Image at top: ARRT! banner with volunteer painters for Maine Youth Justice.