Isles of Shoals’ Star Island launches artist residency

ISLES OF SHOALS, N.H. — New Hampshire has had an artist in residence at the White Mountain National Forest for years. Now, it will have one on an island off its coast.

The non-profit Star Island Corporation is launching a weeklong Artist-in-Residence program. Star Island is one of a group of small islands among the Isles of Shoals, an hour’s boat ride from the New Hampshire and Maine coasts.

A pilot program has been started by a few artists. A formal application process is being worked on for the program for next summer.

For centuries, the Shoals have attracted artists drawn to the rugged beauty of the islands. Exhibit space for residents’ artwork will be provided in the lobby of the 19th century Oceanic Hotel owned by the corporation, which was founded by members of the Universalist Church and Congregational churches in 1916 and hosts summer conferences on the island. Artists will donate a portion of the sale of selected paintings to help support the non-profit.

“As a painter, I love how Star Island’s austere beauty and the natural landscape are stripped down to the essentials: air, sky, salt water, rock, and scruffy vegetation.. It’s timeless,” artist Christopher Volpe, who is helping to co-ordinate the program, said in a news release. “To me, it’s deeply compelling how the fundamental elements are concentrated there.”

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In the White Mountain National Forest, residency programs of at least three weeks have been offered since 2011.

The Associated Press