April 7- 30
Renaissance Man: The Art of Dan Clarke, 1942-2024
Born in East Cleveland, Dan attended Wittenberg University, Antioch College (Yellow Springs), Ohio University, and Hiram College with majors in both art and theater. While at Hiram, he worked as technical director for the Hiram Drama Department and as a guitarist and music teacher. He married and moved to Connecticut where he was employed in a variety of positions including commercial artist, guitarist, music teacher, chauffeur, and technical director at Redding Players and Southbury Playhouse.
Dan moved to Maine in 1971, bringing with him his many talents in theater, music, the visual arts, auto repair, carpentry, and other endeavors. He worked for a number of years doing paste up and writing a column for The Republican Journal, served on the Belfast Planning Board, and was a long-time member of the Belfast Historical Society, acting as head of Grounds and Maintenance as well as a member of the board of directors.
His activities in the arts included involvement with The Waldo County Players, playing guitar with a number of local groups as well as giving lessons, and being among the founding members of Artfellows Gallery. He took part in life drawing sessions both during the time he lived in Freedom and after his move to Belfast. His work has been shown at Gallery 69, The Fricke Gallery, Artfellows Gallery, and in juried shows at the Atrium Gallery at the University of Southern Maine, Lewiston-Auburn.
About the Gallery:
The Barbara Kramer Gallery at the Belfast Free Library, located on the ground floor, was named in memory of Barbara Kramer who was an ardent supporter of the visual arts in the Midcoast area in the 1980s until her death in 1998. When the library was undergoing a significant expansion in the late 1990s, a group of area residents with the encouragement of the Library Board of Trustees raised funds to create this special exhibition space where art and or other materials relating to the history of the library or Belfast can be displayed.