President
michaelkelso@kitteryartassociation.org

Michael Kelso has been a resident of Kittery for 51 years. He has been a volunteer at the Kittery Art Association for twelve years and member for three, working on the Coleman Ave Grounds and various carpentry projects. Michael is the owner of Maine Carpenter since 1999 and has experience in restoration carpentry, new home construction, and restaurant renovations. He designs, plans, and executes construction projects. He a member of the Guild of NH Woodworkers.
Michael worked as an electronic foreman at Shop 67 Portsmouth Naval Shipyard from 1981-1997. He directed a team of 20-30 mechanics in repair, restoration, overhaul, installation, and testing of electronic equipment on submarines. He was also a Boys Head track coach at Traip Academy from 1991-1994 and a boat building instructor at Traip Academy Adult education in 1991.
Michael was an Electronic Systems Mechanic at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard from 1979-1981. He was responsible for the installation and testing of Sonar equipment on submarines. He was also a volunteer firefighter at Kittery Point from 1984-1989.
Michael served in the USAF as an Electronic Systems mechanic from 1972-1977. He was responsible for testing and repair of electronic equipment on F111 aircraft. He was stationed in the Oxford, England area for three years were he was able to take art history class with the University of Maryland and visit many art museums thoughout England.
Michael graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology, Magna Cum Laude in May 1993. He has skills in leading groups of people in accomplishing complex projects. Michael has received an Industrial management scholarship from USN from 1989-1993 and numerous Outstanding Achievement awards for supervision.
In 1970 Michael was a member of the Holy Spirit High School National champion rowing crew eight who competed at Henley England’s Princess Elizabeth cup. He also competed in The World pilot gig championship at St Mary’s Island, Scilly Isles, Cornwall England in 1991

Treasurer

Laurie Bilby has been a member of the Kittery Art Association for about seven years. The first three of those were spent as the association’s Administrative Assistant on Coleman Avenue, where she became deeply familiar with the KAA’s workings and got to know many of its active members. Prior to that gig, she had a career as an Estate Administrator in a Boston law firm, for which she still contracts on an as-needed, part-time basis, mostly preparing estate, gift, and fiduciary income tax returns. Laurie is also currently serving as the Treasurer of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Portsmouth. When not fulfilling these commitments, she enjoys playing with watercolors, mostly losing at mahjong, keeping a book group in line, puttering around the yard at her Kittery Point home, helping out her mom in Eliot, working on acquiring Italian language skills, and hanging out with friends, dog, and ancient cat. And traveling whenever possible!

Assistant Treasurer

Residence:
We have been living on the Seacoast since 1980. My wife, Sally, and I have resided in York for the past 38 years.  

Work Experience:
Real estate investments, project marketing, property management and mortgage banking, graduated 2012.

Board Affiliations:
York Art Association, President and Board Member 2014 - 2019
Kittery Art Association, Treasurer, 2021- present.

Art Concentration:
Photographist - started with street photography in early 1970's focusing on the bowels of urban life while driving a taxi in NYC.  Expanding into travel photography and multiple travels over the decades to Europe, Mexico and the islands. Most revered photographer: Vivian Maier.

Programming Chair

My broad professional background has been in the textile industry over the past 30 years; designing for fabrics of all kinds: printed apparel fleece, printed flock upholstery fabrics, woven jacquard velour fabrics and printed knit performance fabrics for automotive interiors, and woven jacquard fabrics for the home and accessories.

My love for textiles started as a young girl growing up in the Virgin Islands. There, I was introduced to silk screen printing at an early age by one of the pioneers of silk screening, Jim Tillett. The flora, fauna and color of the tropical islands have greatly influenced my design, images, and spectrum. I have always been drawn to the fine detail of texture and pattern. These elements continue to be a presence in my artwork.

Monoprinting is a favorite medium for me. As I explore the parameters it presents, I enjoy that it is both spontaneous and immediate at the same time. Some of my works are on paper, others are on fabric, and some combine both.

Education:
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI Textile Design BFA

Study:
- Haystack Mountain School of Crafts - Surface Design
- World Batik Conference - Indigo textile wax-resist
- Kyoto, Japan Artist Tour - Rozome textile wax-resist
- Wen Redmond - Monoprinting on fabric

Children’s Art Programming

Alexander Levesque is a 24-year-old artist born and raised in Lyman, Maine. He studied Fine Art and Art Education at the University of Maine, where he earned his bachelor's degree. Currently, he teaches art at Horace Mitchell Primary School, a pre-K to 3rd-grade institution, inspiring young students to explore their creative potential. Alexander's artistic work primarily revolves around abstract portraiture, focusing on deconstruction, emotion, and form, using charcoal as his medium of choice. Additionally, he expresses the natural beauty of Maine through his oil paintings, capturing the essence of its landscapes. His dual approach to art, combining abstract portraiture and landscape painting, showcases his versatility and deep connection to his roots.

Plein Air Program Chair

Bill Paarlberg’s two favorite things are making artwork and being outdoors in nature. His earliest memories are of the thrill of composing arrangements of sticks, rocks, and leaves while walking around in the grass. He grew up in Hampton, New Hampshire, with two years of high school in East Africa.

Educated as a scientist, yet always inclined toward the visual arts, he has been a fine artist, architectural illustrator, and freelance marketing creative his entire working life. Over the years he has helped hundreds of people and organizations create compelling communications about themselves, their products, services, and ideas.

In the early 1980s he co-founded and for four years co-published re:Ports. Arts and Entertainment Magazine, a weekly compendium of reviews, opinion, and poetry, including everything to do for every night of the week in the Portsmouth, New Hampshire area.

He was a co-founder and editor of The Measurement Standard, the world’s first and always least-boring newsletter on public relations evaluation. He edited several books on public relations measurement, including Kanter and Paine’s “Measuring the Networked Nonprofit,” the 2013 Terry McAdam Book Award winner.

Today Bill specializes in watercolors, preferably painted outdoors. He is an instructor at Sanctuary Arts in Eliot, Maine, at the Currier Museum in Manchester, New Hampshire, and at the Shoals Marine Lab on Appledore Island, Isles of Shoals. You can watch a WMUR TV Chronicle interview about his artwork on his website at paarlberg.com.

Bill served on the board of Pontine Movement Theatre, and spent thirteen years on the board of the Kittery Land Trust, with four of them as President. Bill was a Category 1 USCF road cyclist in his youth, and still likes to hike, snowboard, and ride his mountain bike.

Exhibits Chair

I joined the Kittery Art Association (KAA) in 2020, shortly after beginning my journey as an artist in 2019. I remember feeling very nervous about showing my work, and on the day I dropped it off, I was greeted by Aimee Timmins, who told me how much she enjoyed my pieces. I'll never forget how her warm, friendly greeting made me feel, especially in that moment.

What I soon discovered is that the Kittery Art Association is a welcoming, professional, and supportive community that I have come to love for many reasons. I am excited and honored to have the opportunity to contribute and offer my perspective as a member of the Board of Tirectors.

I am a represented artist at Maine Art Hill in Kennebunk, a member of the jurying committee for the NHAA, a member of The TAG Gallery at SOWA in Boston, and I will be joining the Steidel Gallery in Palm Beach for the upcoming winter season.

I live in Kennebunkport with my spouse, Brian, and our four-legged family members. I am the proud mom of two adult children and joyfully spend time with our grandson.

I am a lifelong seacoast resident, living in Kittery Point for close to 30 years with my wife, son and two rescue dogs. 

I am currently co-owner of Kittery Ace Hardware. Previously I worked in the action sport industry, primarily in snow, surf, and skateboard. I had a sales agency that represented everything from snowboards and apparel to sunglasses and sneakers. During this time I also owned a bicycle, snow, skate store in Portsmouth NH. I eventually went on to become the marketing director of a snow sports helmet company and then Vice President of sales and marketing of a snowboard brand. In this capacity I was involved in the design of everything from catalogs and brochures to equipment bags, helmets and snowboards.

My passion for art comes from my mother, an accomplished painter and juried member of the Ogunquit Art Association and the NH Art Association’s Levy Gallery. My family also owned an art gallery called Family Tree on Ceres St in Portsmouth, NH.

I have served on the board of directors of the New England Winter Sorts Reps and have been student mentor at Traip Academy.

It was the mid 80’s and we moved  back to Maine, to Kittery.  I quickly joined the KAA. It was a low-key, welcoming neighborhood of local artists who contributed and often created art in the space. 

In the early 90’s there was a devastating fire in the building. The arts community rallied, as well as many earnest and talented workers. The building was finally restored to a level more user friendly & acceptable than before. I was active in many ways during that time, as well as sitting on the Board for 2 terms.

Years later, the Rice Children’s Library became available, as the new Rice Public Library addition was being completed.
I was chosen to be a committee (citizen) member to decide what the future  use of the ‘old courthouse’ building Might be. The process was slow. There were many different opinions in our committee of 11. After 3 1/2 years a couple of us were finally able to convince both the Town Manager, fellow committee members, and the KAA members to put our Coleman Avenue building on the market. The timing was in our favor and it sold for a remarkable sum. We bought the ‘old courthouse’/the old library building, for the KAA.

Coastal Architects volunteered to design & contract the interior renovation of the ‘new’ KAA. I designed the interiors and oversaw the completion. Since then, my involvement has been peripheral , except for our founding of the Building Committee not long  after our move.

I am a strong supporter of the Arts in our community. I look forward to the prospect of helping the profile of the KAA continue to grow.

I am excited to join KAA and become involved in the local arts community. I recently retired after 20 years of teaching visual arts at Sanford High School. My background is in analog photography and drawing, I mostly work with pen and ink these days. I love to embrace the opportunities that volunteering can provide, I was a volunteer artist instructor for Yosemite Conservancy for two summers, I work with the Backpack Program in Sanford, and I also work with the Sanford Community Youth Alliance. I am an avid gardener and am working to build an apple and stone fruit orchard on my property in Wells. I spend a lot of time exploring the trails of the local land trusts with my two dogs, Freya and Baxter. And I've most recently begun pursuing one of my other hobbies as a "second act" career - I am working as a baker and chef at a new cafe in Wells.

My name is Annie Cicero. I moved to Kittery in 2013 and have since fallen in love with the community. Both my children attend Shapleigh Middle School where I have been actively involved in the PTA. I have served on the School Committee for 7 years, 3 of those as the Vice Chairperson. I am thrilled to be involved with the Kittery Art Association and its mission to cultivate and support a community of local artists. 

Gallery Shop Coordinator

Born and raised in Connecticut, Susan attended Conn College and the University of Connecticut, graduating magna cum laude in sociology/psychology. After an early retirement from a business career, she moved to Vermont where she resumed an earlier interest in art, taking lessons, attending the Vermont Studio Center, and taking annual oil painting classes in Italy. She was fortunate to take a workshop with her favorite painter, Wolf Kahn. In addition to painting in oils, she also paints in acrylics and developed an exceptional body of work in collage, winning awards in all three media. She was a founding member of Caspian Arts and a board member of Catamont Arts, both in Vermont.

A decade ago, Susan moved to Maine and shortly became a member of the Kittery Art Association where she is now a board member and shop coordinator. Local landscape is her favorite subject for painting, whether in oil or acrylic, and she uses color as her means of expression. She also occasionally works in collage with more diverse subject matter. In addition to KAA, Susan is a member of the New Hampshire Artist Association, the Seacoast Art Association, and Exeter Fine Crafts.

Art Intake Chair

Norma Houde is a retired teacher and business owner. She has lived in Southern Maine for most of her life, however her love of art stems from having grown up on Cape Ann in Massachusetts, surrounded by artists in Rockport.

After selling her business in 2012, she began exploring mediums and pursued watercolor painting. Norma has been a member of the KAA board since 2020, and is devoted to helping to serve local art. She holds the title of Assistant Treasurer and is a member of the Building Committee. She also volunteered as needed.

Receptions Coordinator
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Gallery Sitter Coordinator
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Installation Crew Lead