Immersion in abstraction: I went to see the new “Abstraction” exhibit at River Arts in Damariscotta on opening day, Thursday, Oct. 25. I wanted to immerse myself in abstract works of art – nothing figurative, nothing obviously representing something from real life.

All about the 6-by-6: I popped into Kefauver Studio & Gallery in Damariscotta last Thursday, Oct. 11, hoping to find exactly what I did find: painter and gallery owner (and super nice guy) Will Kefauver and a whole lot of excellent art. I caught Kefauver while he was busy hanging the gallery’s new “6 x 6” show, set to open the following day. The show, as the name implies, features pieces that measure 6 inches by 6 inches – little squares of artistic goodness.

Stuart’s stories: Twenty-seven seconds into Charles Stuart’s beautiful new short film “Sheepscot River Stories” we see two preteens jump from the side of a low rural bridge into the Sheepscot River on a sunny day, a just-audible squeal of delight coming from one of them before the camera pans up to take in a wide shot of the grandeur of the river and the deep-green woods on the horizon.

Wally’s art: There’s an art exhibit currently on the walls of Pemaquid Watershed Association’s office-gallery in Damariscotta titled “Remembering Wally.” It is a retrospective of the artwork, in various mediums, of the late artist Wally Margaret Huber Schweighauser, who would have turned 105 on Sept. 3. She passed away in 2016 at the age of 103.

Multitasking artmaker: South Bristol painter and silkscreen artist Joy Vaughan is getting ready to host a public sewing event on Saturday, Oct. 6 in front of the kNOw S.U.P. office in downtown Damariscotta, right next door to Midcoast Kayak. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., she and 25 volunteers will be taking turns manning four sewing machines on which they will sew dozens of canvas bags to give away to anyone who wants one.

The artistic life of Joe Lugosch: Last Thursday afternoon, I entered the cozy studio space of jewelry designer, jewelry maker, and actor Joe Lugosch at Peapod Jewelry in Edgecomb to find him at work on a carved-wax prototype of a maple leaf pendant.

Sweet wood art: Travelers along Route 126 between Jefferson and Whitefield may have noticed the large totem poles at the end of one Whitefield driveway. I have admired them on passing and wondered just who was responsible for such striking work, which reminds me of totem poles I have seen in British Columbia, Canada.

Metal man: Of the 18 sculptures on the new Boothbay Harbor Region Sculpture Trail, only two are made of metal, and they are both made by Warren metal artist Jay Sawyer. Sawyer’s abstract steel sculpture “Ain’t My First Rodeo” stands tall in front of The Opera House at Boothbay Harbor, and “Violent Surrender,” an appropriately twisted and “torn” piece made of rusted metal on a granite base, graces the garden area in front of Bath Savings Institution.

Women on the walls: Elaine Pew and Jorge Pena, the co-curators of the “Three Women on Board” exhibit at Maine Art Gallery in Wiscasset, were kind enough to give me a sneak peek of the show last Friday afternoon, Aug. 24, before it opened officially that evening.

Low-key celeb in our midst: The list of musical artists that play an instrument designed by Nobleboro stringed-instrument designer extraordinaire Ned Steinberger is literally a who’s-who list of musical talents. Avant-garde legend Laurie Anderson, jazz musician Michal Urbaniak, bassist/cellist Tony Levin, South African bassist Bakithi Kumalo, and bassists Eric Mingus (son of Charles Mingus) and Jamaaladeen Tacuma are just several names on a fairly lengthy list (viewable at thinkns.com) of highly accomplished musicians who prefer Steinberger’s unique, finely crafted, headless electric instruments – violins, cellos, and basses, both bass guitars and uprights.