Studio Visit with Painter Mea Duke - Inside Art with Michael Rose

Studio Visit with Painter Mea Duke - Inside Art with Michael Rose

 

In her Pawtucket studio, artist Mea Duke is hard at work. In the vast mill complex where she paints, she is in the process of moving studios. She is also finishing up her most recent body of precisely executed artwork for her next show. They are headed to the artist’s second solo exhibition at Jessica Hagen Fine Art + Design in Newport. Titled SPF, the show will be on view from June 30 - July 28, and it is an unabashed celebration of all things summer and sea.

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Duke, who was raised in Providence and graduated from Wheeler School, studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Lyme Academy College of Fine Art before earning her BFA cum laude at the University of Rhode Island while working full time. She calls her journey through varying undergraduate art programs a “goldilocks” moment. Duke went on to obtain her MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University. Shortly after completing grad school, she entered academia. Duke has taught students at Montserrat College of Art, MassArt, and the SMFA, as well as at Harvard where she earned a Certificate of Distinction in Teaching five years in a row.

 

 

Asked how teaching and other endeavors like curating exhibitions have factored into her life as an artist, the multi-talented Duke answers, “I research my content, subject matter and materials heavily and always strive to be objectively critical. Go deep, go far, and don’t assume any subtlety will be missed by your audience. In turn, my practice more so informs my teaching and curating. Speaking of teaching and curating specifically, it’s always best to bench any personal tastes, methods or theories and support the artist(s) constructively to make way for them to do their best work.”

 

The paintings for the artist’s show in Newport will focus on themes that she has returned to repeatedly. Summer is an undergirding influence in her art. The fresh bright light and the sleek apparatuses of fun that accompany the season are central to Duke’s work. There are paintings, prints, and shaped panels that take on a sculptural quality. Beach hats, towels, and bottles of sunscreen show up in the art and beckon the viewer to the coast.

 

 

Considering the way living in Rhode Island has inspired her work, Duke says, “The varying uses of Narragansett Bay as a resource influences my work heavily, whether that be in shipping, defense, commercial fishing, or leisure.” The artist shares an anecdote about driving to Quonset during her time as a student at URI to take pictures and do firsthand research into the way the port functioned. She has completed additional pieces that explore the maritime shipping industry. Fastidious paintings of crumpled shipping containers atop enormous cargo ships tell the story of the dangers of the open sea.

 

Her new exhibition is the continuation of an ongoing working relationship between artist and gallerist. Duke has been featured in a number of group exhibitions at Hagen’s Newport gallery and the artist’s first solo show at the space in 2022 sold out completely. Hagen is an enthusiastic promoter of Duke’s work, saying of the show, “From suntans to Sea & Ski, Mea’s upcoming exhibit is a high vibe ode to sun, salt, and sand. A show not to be missed.”

 

 

As Duke wraps up prep for her next exhibition, she is also working on plans to renovate her new studio in Pawtucket and to expand her capabilities in printmaking. An exposure unit and print racks for silkscreens sit at the ready. On top of that, she and her husband, Geoff Gaunt, just welcomed a new baby. Holding her daughter Betsy in the studio, squeegees used in screen printing hang on the wall behind the pair. Duke is one of the state’s most energetic artists and from her busy studio she has produced a stunning new body of work to share in her exciting Newport exhibition.

 

 

Summing up what her solo show at Jessica Hagen’s gallery is all about, the artist puts it succinctly, stating, “SPF is about leisure and disaster meeting at the beach. Anything can happen – from sunburns to shipwrecks.”

 

Mea Duke’s solo exhibition SPF will be on view at Jessica Hagen Fine Art + Design at 9A Bridge Street in Newport from June 30 - July 28, 2024. The exhibition will open with a reception with the artist on Sunday, June 30, from 5-7 pm. The gallery’s hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 11:00 am - 5:00 pm, and Sunday, 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm.

 

 

Learn more about Duke at www.meaduke.com and find details about her exhibition at www.jessicahagen.com.