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 Antonia Small, Untitled - Self portrait, 16 x 20 inches, Silver gelatin print, 2004 PDF of this Article (2.5MB) |
The Good Idea Grant program fosters the growth of Maine’s artists by supporting the creation of new work or professional development. The maximum award is $1,500 and projects are often funded partially. For fiscal year 2008, there were 28 good idea grants awarded to Maine artists including Antonia Small and Cara Romano.
Antonia Small is a fine art photographer working in Port Clyde. She explains, “My photographs (a combination of collage, appropriation, and self-portraits) are made with a pinhole camera on 5"x7" large format film. I have begun this project, Fair Isle, about my time sailing aboard a replica of an 18th century British frigate. The large format negatives will be scanned and then printed at about 4'x5' – mounted and then coated in encaustic. I am always seeking ways to create strong aesthetic links within the craft choices I make. Encaustic, I’ve learned, was used to seal the hulls of ships before it was used as a painting medium. This historical fact, combined with how it creates an underwater look on the photographs, creates just the sort of feel I’d like the final works to have.”
— Antonia Small, Port Clyde, grant $970
Cara Romano finds it gratifying to be working in her chosen field and says, “I do not have adequate time for personal development as an artist. Needed is an opportunity to begin assimilating the historical context of contemporary American art jewelry. I hope to develop a comprehensive knowledge of 20th century jewelry designs as well as an understanding of how my ideas fit into the paradigms of the field and assist me in self criticism as well as offering guidance toward truly original concepts. Also on the ‘to do’ list is developing a means of synthesizing the enumerable jewelry processes that are available with my creative vision. The ultimate purpose of these studies is a cohesive body of work. One which is entirely driven by aesthetic content rather than the market forces which inform many of the companies design decisions.”
— Cara Romano, Bar Harbor, grant $1,000
For a complete listing of all Maine Arts Commission grant recipients, visit www.mainearts.com
 Cara Romano, Abacus Brooch, 1.80 x 1.80 x .10 inches, Felted wool and sterling silver, 2006 |  Cara Romano, Riveted Rings, .50 x .90 x .05, inches, Sterling Silver/18k Gold, 2007 |
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