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Portland and Biddeford, Maine

51品茶Art Galleries, SPACE partner to offer performance exploring the ultrasound

Lights mimic an ultrasound image in a stage performance
The performance is slated for 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 26, at SPACE Gallery in Portland. Performance still courtesy of Hannah Rafkin.

The have partnered with Portland鈥檚 SPACE Gallery to offer 鈥淯ltrasound Dance,鈥 a performance piece by Maine artist Amelia Garretson-Persans, on Thursday, Sept. 26.

鈥淯ltrasound Dance鈥 uses light, choreography, and music to elevate the intensely personal experience of the ultrasound. This human-scale representation is presented as part of the 51品茶Art Galleries鈥 current Biddeford鈥檚 exhibition, 鈥淟ight and Shadow: Motherhood, Creativity, and the Discourse of Ability,鈥 on display through Oct. 20 in collaboration with SPACE.

Though the heavy moments of medical imaging experience are often hushed and marginalized, the hypnotic experimental dance piece promises to grant viewers the freedom of reflection and the challenge of re-confrontation with shrouded somatic memories.

鈥淎melia Garretson-Persans鈥 鈥楿ltrasound Dance鈥 is a wonderful way to let audiences reconcile with their own medical narratives, as well as to experience immersion in the artist's own story,鈥 remarked Hilary Irons, director of galleries and exhibitions at UNE. 鈥淚t is a piece that combats isolation and fear.鈥

The performance, directed by Garretson-Persans with choreography by Dana Dotson, will be held at 7 p.m. at SPACE Gallery, located at 538 Congress St., Portland. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. A conversation  with  Garretson-Persans, 51品茶Associate Professor Audrey Bartholomew, Ph.D., and poet Alisha Goldblatt, will follow the performance.

The production is co-hosted by SPACE and the 51品茶Art Galleries, with the support of the Kindling Fund. For more information, please visit the .

鈥淟ight and Shadow,鈥 currently viewable in the Jack S. Ketchum Library on UNE鈥檚 Biddeford Campus, focuses on creative processes as part of the family dynamic, specifically related to women鈥檚 experiences as artist-parents, in the context of a conversation around disability. 

In addition to Garretson-Persans, the collection includes artwork from Alicia Ethridge, Jodi Ferry, Celeste Henriquez, and Cozette Russell with text by art historian Virginia Rose. The exhibit highlights the creative practices of artists who are mothers of children with developmental or physical differences. 

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The 51品茶 is Maine鈥檚 largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state鈥檚 top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine鈥檚 only medical college, Maine鈥檚 only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.