PRESQUE ISLE — A collection of woodcarvings by Franco-American art teacher, small business owner and wood sculptor Tom Cote will be on exhibit at the Edmunds Library at Northern Maine Community College through the month of September.
Photo courtesy of Northern Maine Community College
Woodcarver Tom Cote and Gail Roy, assistant dean of learning resources at NMCC, work to set up a display featuring a variety of Cote’s work, which is on exhibit at the college through the month of September. The official opening for the exhibit is this Friday, Sept. 16 at 2 p.m. in the Edmunds Library at NMCC.
The official opening reception of “Wood Carvings of Acadia” will take place Friday, Sept. 16 from 2-4 p.m. in the college library. The exhibit opening is one of a host of activities planned as a part of the college’s Constitution Day celebration.
Handed his first piece of wood by his mother at the age of 12, Cote has spent years honing his craft and passing his skills onto others. Cote, owner of “Carvings by Cote” and a teacher at Limestone Community School, has dedicated his life to sharing and exploring art.
For Cote, classes don’t end at the bell; in fact, most afternoons after school one will likely find a number of students lined up outside Cote’s workshop to learn the foundation of art, poised and ready to explore creativity housed within their own imaginations.
“As a teacher I have found that a lot of kids truly excel when they have the opportunity to really use their hands, and since art education is not as mainstream as it once was, colleges and schools serve as a great place for people to gain exposure to art,” said Cote. “Events like this can serve as a venue for that creative spark for younger generations.”
The exhibition features a mixture of pieces depicting the region’s proud agricultural traditions. Although most of the pieces on display were made by Cote himself, the exhibit also features pieces by Cote’s apprentice woodcarvers Jessica Stackhouse-Goodwin and Cote’s granddaughter, Ellyzabeth S. Bencivenga.
