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RANGELEY — The Outdoor Heritage Museum in Oquossoc is featuring a a new exhibit, “Rangeley au Naturel, the Nude Studies of John Swan & Herb Welch.”
The artists both share deep Rangeley roots. Swan has compiled a portfolio of nude studies in outdoor environs, and the museum uncovered a collection of Welch’s sketches done while an art student in Paris and New York.
The exhibition also shares a sculpture and some oil paintings by Welch that few have seen in more thean 80 years. Welch died in 1960 at the age of 81. Welch, who died in 1960, at the age of 81, was a guide, angler, fly-caster, taxidermist and artist, a true Renaissance man, organizers of the exhibition said, and he made his home just a mile from the Outdoor Heritage Museum.
His artwork adorns the walls of the museum and those of collectors from across the U.S. The 19th and early 20th century Rangeley-inspired paintings by contemporary artist Swan capture what the region was like in Welch’s day, according to the Rangeley Historical Society.
Swan’s paintings are highly sought after by collectors from around the globe and, like Welch, Swan fell in love with the region at first sight.
“I began coming to my grandfather’s camp on Kennebago Lake before I can remember, and Herb regularly guided for him,” said Swan. As a boy, Swan said, his grandfather would take him to meet Welch at his Haines Landing shop.
“I was very young, but clearly recall Herb’s larger-than-life personality and his kindness to me when I visited with my granddad,” Swan said. “He was such a multi-talented and accomplished artist and sportsman, just a true legend and to now be featured alongside him in an art exhibition is a real honor for me.”
Swan spends his summers fishing and painting at his family’s long-time camp, which is one of the earliest constructed at Kennebago.
Although art has always been an integral part of the Oquossoc museum’s exhibits, the new exhibition is clearly “new territory” for the regional archive that has become one of Franklin County’s more popular attractions.
“We are delighted to be able share this unique exhibition featuring two highly accomplished artists from different eras,” said Executive Director Bill Pierce. “They are both well known for their Rangeley inspired work, but not so much for their anatomical studies and we hope it will attract art lovers from all over New England.” “Rangeley au Naturel” will be offered through the museum’s closing for the 2018 season on Oct. 16.
The Rangeley Lakes Historical Society operates the Outdoor Heritage Museum in Oquossoc and the Rangeley History Museum in downtown Rangeley, with the goal of preserving and sharing the region’s history. The society’s programs and exhibits celebrate the region’s unique character and heritage through the dedication of its volunteers and the generosity of its members, without state or local tax-payer support. For more information, visit rangeleyhistoricalsociety.org or call 207-864-3091.
