Attleboro Art Museum

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A black, white, and dark blue striped header image with the text Attleboro Art Museum

My bonus stop during my trip last Saturday — July 6, 2024 — was Attleboro Art Museum, a single gallery exhibition space down the street from the Attleboro Area Industrial Museum. Most pieces in the museum were for sale, so if you have the money, purchasing artwork is a great way to support emerging artists.

Front of Attleboro Art Museum; a one story building with a blue sign and a cement overhang Attleboro Art Museum Sign; blue sign with silver lettering Mural on Attleboro Art Museum; happy children viewed through eyeglasses held by a pair of large hands with a colorful, abstract background painted onto a red brick wall

The exhibit on display at the time of my visit was called Morning Noon Night. My favorite piece in the exhibit was a Juror’s Award Winner called “Orange Watercolor” by Natalie McGuire of Saint Paul, MN. I loved how her customized mosaic picture frame extended the landscape appearing in her colorful photograph of sunset by a lake. Another unique piece was “Wild Swans” by Hannah Cole Dahar of Manchester, NH, which showed phases of the moon on one side of the hanging circle and zodiac symbols surrounding a princess on the opposite side. Dahar claimed she was inspired by the Grimm’s Fairy tale The Wild Swans, but that version had six swan brothers. The twelve swan variant was told by Hans Christian Andersson. This was an understandable error, as both of tales fit into Stith Thompson’s motifs “One sister and six (seven, eleven, twelve) brothers” (253.0.5) and “Sister faithful to transformed brother” (P253.2) along Type 451 “The Maiden who Seeks Her Brothers” in the Aarne–Thompson–Uther index.

Exhibit Sign for Morning Noon Night; black san-serif text on a beige wall “Orange Watercolor” by Natalie McGuire; customized mosaic picture frame extends the landscape appearing in a colorful photograph of sunset by a lake “Wild Swans” by Hannah Cole Dahar; phases of the moon on a metal circle suspended from the ceiling

I was fascinated by “Current” a 2D interactive sculpture by Michele LeMaitre of Nantucket, MA. By walking around the piece, the viewers could see the iridescent surface change color from blue to purple, while orange fish appeared and disappeared. The effect reminded me of “Sweet Journey” by Concetta Mason, a glass bowl on a base that changed color depending on where the viewer stood relative to the piece, which I saw a month earlier at the New Bedford Art Museum.

“Current” by Michele LeMaitre viewed from the front; a 2D interactive sculpture that looks blue “Current” by Michele LeMaitre viewed from the side; a 2D interactive sculpture that looks purple Detail from “Current” by Michele LeMaitre; an orange fish in a blue, green, and purple swirling background

The symmetrical oil painting “Night Blossoms” by Vanessa De Zorzi of Waltham, MA showed pretty apple tree flowers at night. In a similar theme, the hand-colored etching and Juror’s Award Winner “Twilight Time” by Margo Lemieux of Mansfield, MA showed a peaceful house at night. “Luna Park” by Sonya Schuessler of Wausau, WI shows a 1913 carousel lighting up at night. This carousel was manufactured by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company with a 1909 Limonaire Freres at Luna Park in Melbourne, Australia, and claimed to be the largest carousel in the southern hemisphere with sixty-eight horses and two chariots.

“Night Blossoms” by Vanessa De Zorzi; pretty pink apple tree flowers at night “Twilight Time” by Margo Lemieux; hand-colored etching of peaceful house at night “Luna Park” by Sonya Schuessler; brightly lit carousel with colorful horses

Nicholas Goodhue of Cambridge, MA created “Morning Again (Oklahomas)” by painting a sunrise onto insulation foam board cut into the shape of two kids lying down and not wanting to get up in the morning. Another Juror’s Award Winner, “Ode to Moonlight” to Maira Reinbergs of Attleboro, MA was a unique combination of printed muslim with acrylic paint on a panel. The green and orange abstract shapes beath a moonrise represent sheet music. “Wards” by Eddie Hall of Berlin, CT was layers of recycled window made colorful of acrylic paint. Hall was inspired by Kyoto City Hall, a city used as the capital of Japan before World War II. The modernist building was constructed in 1927 and enlarged in 1931.

“Morning Again (Oklahomas)” by Nicholas Goodhue; a sunrise painted onto insulation foam board cut into the shape of two kids lying down “Ode to Moonlight” to Maira Reinbergs; green and orange abstract shapes from printed muslim with acrylic paint on a panel “Wards” by Eddie Hall; layers of recycled window painted blue, yellow, and orange to represent Kyoto City Hall

Three quilts were on exhibit. “Burning the Midnight Oil” by Valerie Maser-Flanagan of Carlisle, MA was blue with streaks of orange and yellow like a flicker flame. Maser-Flanagan also made “Nocturnal City Lights” from thin yellow, orange, and black rectangles. “Sunset at Minot Beach” by Gwyned Trefethen of Cohasset, MA used blue, orange, yellow, and black diamonds to mimic a sunrise and water.

“Sunset at Minot Beach” by Gwyned Trefethen; quilt made of blue, orange, yellow, and black diamonds to mimic a sunrise and water “Burning the Midnight Oil” by Valerie Maser-Flanagan; blue quilt with streaks of orange and yellow “Nocturnal City Lights” by Valerie Maser-Flanagan; quilt made from thin yellow, orange, and black rectangles

The Attleboro Art Museum was a relaxing stop, and the staff was friendly. The museum is open on Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with free admission. The website does not work, but the Facebook page is active. The well-lit gallery is located on the first floor with plenty of room to navigate but no seating. If you live in the Attleboro area and want to see art for half an hour or introduce young children to art museums, this is a good choice.



Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 8/10

Accessibility: 9/10



Location: 86 Park St, Attleboro, MA 02703, USA