The Blake Library Gallery at the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK) will present “A Patchwork of Ideas,” an exhibition of work by artist Joshua Birden, through Oct. 9. The exhibit is free and open to the public.
Birden grew up in Fort Kent and attended UMFK before earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI) with a focus in digital media. He will return to the community with an exhibit that highlights the range of his creative process.
“It’s a collection of illustrations made for various projects or for practice,” Birden said. “I’m displaying the different kinds of work I produce and some of the methods I use to create them.”
The exhibition includes digital works, mixed media pieces, and sketchbook pages that show how Birden develops ideas from early concepts into finished illustrations. Works such as “Singing Stones” and “Red Lights Over the Factory Planet” began with hand-drawn thumbnails before being developed digitally, often in Clip Studio Paint.
“Digital art is very powerful and one I’ve come to really appreciate,” Birden said. “However, pen and pencil are still where I feel most comfortable.”
Birden utilizes different materials to achieve distinct visual approaches. Digital works like “Layover,” feature sharp outlines and solid colors, while “Red Lights Over the Factory Planet” adopts a direct paintbrush style. Mixed media pieces, including “Stingin’ Pete” and “Caterwaul the Single-Mind,” combine various pens, pastels, and pencil.
Throughout the exhibition, Birden shifts between expressive figure work and imaginative scenes influenced by science fiction, fantasy, and surrealism.
“I love motion, figures, and using them to explore themes of emotion and mental state,” Birden said. “I also really enjoy creature design based on things like the Lovecraftian Mythos and speculative evolution.”
Birden credits his mother as the first artist he looked up to and says her surrealist paintings continue to influence him. He also draws inspiration from classical artists such as Egon Schiele and Francisco Goya, as well as comic artists Yoshihiro Togashi, Bill Watterson, Naoki Urasawa, and Junji Ito.
“Ultimately, my biggest inspiration comes from comic books,” Birden said. “The art of making comics has always fascinated me.”
Birden is currently developing “Layover,” a science fiction comedy graphic novel starring an android delivery driver. The artwork “Layover,” included in the exhibition, is directly connected to the graphic novel project. Birden is also creating illustrations for a children’s book in collaboration with his father.
For more information about the exhibit, contact Blake Library Curator Sofia Birden at sbirden@maine.edu or 207-834-7527.