By Gillian Graham

Staff Writer

George Hughes worked alone in the cavernous mill room Monday afternoon, the silence broken only the whir of his drill and the roar of nearby Cataract Falls.

His four pieces of art leaning on poles added a pop of color to the wood floors and pale green walls of North Dam Mill’s 6,000-square-foot Project Space, which is being transformed into a gallery for a juried exhibition featuring local artists.

The Mill-ennial exhibition, conceived by the Saco Museum, opens Friday with a reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Project Space in Biddeford and the museum’s gallery on Route 1 in Saco. The show features contemporary art by 39 artists with connections to Biddeford, Saco and Old Orchard Beach.

Four, three-dimensional pieces Hughes created were selected for the show by artist and juror Frederick Lynch. Hughes’ pieces feature colorful images on canvas stretched over wood frames.

“I get my ideas for these paintings from the Japanese tin toys from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s,” said Hughes, who collects the toys.

The painting “Going Nowhere Fast” shows two riders facing opposite directions on a motorcycle. “He’s at the wheel but she’s in the driver’s seat” portrays women’s sense of power about themselves, Hughes said. A monkey wearing a cross is perched on the back of a red fish in “Unintelligent Design” and “To the Moon” shows his dachsund, Frankie, behind the wheel of a rocket ship-inspired vehicle. 

“My titles are really cartoon themes. Everything for me goes through a cartoon filter,” Hughes said. “They are sketches of life situations.”

Hughes, who recently moved to Saco and has a studio in Westbrook’s Dana Warp Mill, said he wanted to become more involved in the local art community through the exhibition. He said he is honored his work will be featured alongside two large-scale installations by Biddeford native Celeste Roberge. Her multi-media pieces explore issues of environmental fragility and sustainability.

Hughes said displaying his artwork in the Project Space is a bit of a challenge because he won’t be hanging the paintings on flat walls. Instead, he will hang three from support poles and the fourth will be suspended from the ceiling.

“I like this space because it still looks like part of a factory,” he said, gesturing to the worn floors and 11-foot ceilings.

Saco Museum Executive Director Jessica Skwire Routhier said the idea for the Mill-ennial exhibition first came up when she was interviewing for her job about two years ago. She heard there were many artists in the area and wanted to showcase their work in a “big, splashy” exhibition. After meeting with local groups such as Saco Spirit and Heart of Biddeford, she put out a call for entries and received 88 submissions.

Routhier said Lynch, the juror, chose 61 pieces of art by 39 artists. The pieces range from traditional painting and photography to assemblage sculpture. Themes of the pieces vary, but each artist has a connection to the area.

“It was important this be about the community,” she said.

Routhier said the exhibition will be held every other year and she would like to find space to exhibit art in Old Orchard Beach in the future.

“I hope this exhibition gets people excited about local art,” she said.

Hughes said he hopes people will show up in force to have a little fun with local art.

“I would hope people would see (my paintings) are fun and playful with a little sharp barb,” he said.