The Art Center
The Art Center, Dover, NH • theartcenterdover.com • Ongoing
The Art Center, nestled in a mill building at the heart of downtown Dover, is filled to bursting with art, artists and artmaking. The most recent exhibition, Annual Contemporary Abstract Exhibition, took up most of the space in the gallery with abstract contemporary art from national and international artists. This year’s exhibition was dedicated to Tim Gilbert, an Art Center member artist who sadly passed away in October 2024. In the back of the gallery, a smaller exhibition, The Abstract 4: Abstracting Winter in New England, featured themed work by regional New England artists. Sequestered in a partially enclosed corner is the ongoing Small Works show, with pieces available for purchase in a varied mediums from painting to woodworking to sculpture.
The Art Center is an open-concept space offering visitors clear views of working artists in their studios. Artists can be seen coming and going from their work, sharing ideas and greetings with each other and with owner Rebecca Proctor. The mixed-use Washington Mills building invites collaboration between local artists and businesses, of which The Art Center is a part.
In addition to its being a gallery space, The Art Center also provides studio spaces for working artists ranging from private rooms to open cubicle-style arrangements. The Art Center hosts two artist residencies on-site, one for printmaking, the other for painting. For both residencies, each artist has four months to create a body of work to be shown in a group show at The Art Center the following year. The Center puts three artists through each program annually. The printmaking studio, complete with two different printing presses and a variety of other materials, is also available to rent for three-to-four-hour sessions. Proctor runs a custom framing business out the space as well.
The gallery is going through changes in the coming months as Proctor works to move some of the studio space and materials to a newly purchased third-floor suite in the same building. The new space will include pottery, the existing printmaking studio and more. “People can look in and they’re going to see people doing pottery and printmaking in an open setting,” said Proctor of her plans.
— Autumn Duke