This faculty spotlight is reproduced in its entirety from “An Interview with Multi-Media Artist Bethany Engstrom,” by Diamond McGrath, originally published in . The full issue is available online.

In this interview, we look at the creative journey, teaching style, and artistic growth of Bethany Engstrom, a longtime UMA art professor. She is known for her video installations, curatorial work, and use of experimental materials. Her story shows how curiosity, mentorship, exploration, and observation can lead to lasting, impactful art. As a teacher, she encourages her students as budding artists to explore, try new things, and trust their creative instincts.

Early Life and Path into Art

Bethany did not grow up surrounded by art. She became interested in high school when a teacher encouraged her to keep creating and believe in her ideas. Even with this support, she did not feel ready to study studio art right away.

Instead, she started college as an art history major, learning about artistic traditions and changing ideas. After graduating, she worked in museums, traveled, and saw the art world from the outside. Seeing many types of art, from traditional to experimental, inspired her to go back to school and experiment with her own work.

UMA and the Value of Community

Bethany completed her undergraduate studies at UMaine and has since built a strong connection to UMA through her teaching. She says UMA is a place where students from many backgrounds – such as veterans, older adults, incarcerated learners, young parents, and first-generation students – make the classroom lively and interesting.

  In her classes, students bring different life experiences and viewpoints, creating a space where ideas mix in surprising ways. Even in online courses, their openness and curiosity make the work meaningful. Being part of Â鶹APP art community, as both an artist and a teacher, is still one of the best parts of her career.

Entering the World of Artmaking

Bethany gradually transitioned from the realm of art history to creating her own art over a period of time. While working at the Farnsworth Museum, she saw a major exhibition by Matthew Barney that combined sculpture, video, performance, and installation. This show changed how she saw art and inspired her to go to graduate school to focus on her own work.

Creative Practice and Daily Life

For Bethany, art is part of her everyday life. Ideas come to her while driving, teaching, curating, or noticing something unexpected. She says that these small moments, whether surprising, confusing, or beautiful, are central to her work. They make her stop and think, “Oh… I wouldn’t have thought of that, but now I get it.”

  Teaching gives her a constant flow of creative energy and inspiration. Watching students complete assignments, use different materials in different ways, and find their own voices inspires her to keep growing in her own art. Curating also shapes how she thinks as she considers how to present work, how viewers interact with it, and how different/specific materials communicate different meanings.

Working with Video and Time-Based Media

Bethany tried video early in her career, but it became her main medium after she began attending artist residencies in 2019. She loves how video can capture time, such as a gesture, a sound, or a quick moment, in ways that still images cannot. Video lets her record actions without a live performance, while still preserving the movement, sound, and feeling within her work.

  She tells students to make a “video database” by filming one-minute clips of daily life. She does this herself to collect material for future art installations.

Materials, Experimentation, and Evolving Ideas

Bethany’s work is very experimental. She has used materials like water, salt, wood, and other everyday things, changing them as her ideas grow. When a material no longer works for her, she tries something new.

  In a recent project, she made sculpted mounds of salt, each weighing about fifty pounds, and placed them on a copy of her studio table. Each mound has a tube pointing down that shows a video hidden under the salt. The piece needed careful planning to hide the video inside. The result is a simple, elegant design that draws viewers in as they lean closer to see what’s hidden underneath the surface.

  She says the first time she looked down the finished tube was “glorious;” the feeling was like finishing a puzzle and seeing the whole picture.

Inspiration and the Creative Spark

Bethany finds inspiration in her day-to-day life, unexpected things she notices, and small moments that make her think. Sometimes inspiration comes from solving problems, like being stuck, trying something new, and finding an answer. She sees these “aha” moments as some of the best parts of being an artist.

Future Directions

Her work changes as she tries new materials and technologies. Lately, she has used drone footage to see how views from above might shape her future art installations. She does not plan far ahead, but ideas about care, the environment, and daily life still guide her work.

Advice for Emerging Artists

Bethany often shares John Cage’s “10 Rules” with her students and highlights the most important one: do the work. She tells them to show up and create, even when they feel stuck or afraid of failing. She believes failure is part of learning, not a real setback.

She urges students to take every chance they get, like going to artist talks, exhibitions, workshops, and any experience that helps them learn more about art.

Memories of UMA

Bethany’s favorite UMA memories are showing her work in campus galleries and meeting faculty and students before she started teaching. Being part of this community, both locally and on campus, helped shape who she is as an artist and teacher. Now, as a professor, she values the chance to inspire students the way her high school teacher inspired her.

Conclusion

Bethany Engstrom’s story shows how important curiosity, trying new things, and having a community are. From discovering art in high school to building a career in teaching, curating, and multimedia installations, she continues to explore and expand what art is to her and what it says about time, culture, and experience. At UMA, she helps students find their creative voices, carrying on the tradition of mentorship that shaped her own journey.

Come take a stroll in Winthrop and check out the collaborative final project from students in Graphic Storytelling, now on display at the Art:Works on Main Gallery in Winthrop.

The course is a collaboration between the art and English disciplines. Students work together to create a single final project which creatively combines illustration, sequential art, and shared storytelling.

The Charles Danforth Gallery at the Â鶹APP will open Black Box Warnings on May 9 at noon, immediately following Commencement. The exhibition features thesis work by UMA students Izzy Martinez and Natalie Rohman alongside mentors and UMA alumni artists Aylah Ireland ’17 and Tanya Russell ’11.

The exhibition explores uncertainty, memory and perception through photography, sculpture and mixed media. Drawing from the idea of “black box warnings” on prescription medications and the preserved record of an airplane’s black box, the featured artists examine what is visible, hidden, recoverable and unresolved.

Natalie Rohman’s work reflects her experience growing up with ADHD and navigating prescription medications from an early age. Using photography and sculpture, she transforms prescription bottles into vessels for plant life, documenting both growth and deterioration to explore the complicated realities of medication and identity. Her work also recalls the emotional extremes she experienced as a child, feeling withdrawn while on medication and impulsive without it. A sculptural installation resembling a cluttered bathroom shelf filled with pill bottles reflects the everyday visibility of that experience.

Izzy Martinez uses cinematic photography inspired by thriller films to capture moments suspended between safety and fear. Influenced by artists Cindy Sherman and Gregory Crewdson, her images recreate the uneasy “edge of your seat” feeling that leaves viewers wanting to look away while still compelled to see what happens next.

Aylah Ireland is a visual artist and researcher whose work explores identity, memory and recovery. Using photography and miniatures, she examines family history, environment and disordered substance use while treating artmaking as a process of mending. Her work reweaves personal history into a shared narrative that invites reflection and connection.

Tanya Russell’s work (shown at top) investigates perception and optics through imagery inspired by her experiences with degenerative myopia and astigmatism. Using mirrors, refraction and layered light, her photographs create disorienting perspectives that reflect unseen personal struggles while emphasizing resilience, self-acceptance and perseverance.

Black Box Warnings will be on view at the Charles Danforth Gallery through Aug. 23, 2026. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. All are welcome to attend the opening reception on May 9 at noon. For more information, contact Gallery Director Amy Rahn at amy.rahn@maine.edu.

Specter Moose Launch Party Friday, April 24, from 1 to 2 p.m., Katz Library, first floor (Augusta Campus)

Come get a free copy of the largest edition of Specter Moose yet!

A 100-Page Milestone
This edition marks a proud moment in the publication’s history and celebrates the artistic spirit thriving at UMA. Inside, you’ll find a wide range of photography, prose, and poetry from 20 student contributors. To honor Â鶹APP 60th anniversary, this year’s Coast to County feature shines a spotlight on seven inspiring members of our community—artists, storytellers, and educators who each bring a unique perspective to the shared story of UMA.

Inspired by the Error Screen
The design of Issue No. 4’s Coast to County feature draws from the bold retro TV aesthetic of the cover art, with color strips that line up like tabs along the page edges of the printed copies. Each article is highlighted with its own color, reflecting the range of voices in our community, and together these colors echo the way Â鶹APP many perspectives come together as one vibrant, united whole.

The Spirit of the Moose
The name Specter Moose comes from a century-old Maine legend of a massive, glowing moose that stands out against the dark of the Maine woods. The magazine channels that same luminous presence, gathering the strength and imagination of UMA students and giving their ideas and voices a place to take shape and to shine.

Why stop by?
Pick up a free copy of the 60th anniversary edition, enjoy light refreshments, and celebrate the student editors, artists, and writers behind this keepsake issue.

See you at the Katz Library on Friday, April 24, between 1 and 2 p.m. 

Explore more on the

As the new semester begins, the Â鶹APP community is invited to attend the opening of Overshadowed this Saturday, Jan 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. at in Brunswick.

Overshadowed is a collaborative exhibition by UMA art professors Luc Demers and Peter Precourt, grounded in their twenty-year friendship as artists, professors and fathers. What began years ago with lunar imagery on slate chalkboards shifted after the April 2024 eclipse toward elemental explorations of light, shadow, fire and smoke. The work reflects creative transformation and the quiet dialogue that develops through long-term collaboration.

The exhibition is accompanied by an essay by Dr. Amy Rahn, adding critical depth and context. Overshadowed highlights the power of full-time art faculty working together creatively, with curiosity and shared history at the center.

Dates: Jan 17 to March 14
Location: Fort Hall Gallery, Brunswick
Admission: Free

This event is open to anyone who wants to attend (all students, faculty, staff, and the general public). FMI, contact Amy Rahn, Charles Danforth Gallery Director.

Four graduating UMA art students invite you to explore their creative journeys in “How Did We Get Here?” a new exhibition opening May 10 at the Charles Danforth Gallery.

Running through Aug. 15, the show features works of senior art students exploring identity and personal journeys through sculpture, painting, printmaking, assemblage and digital art. The exhibition, which opens with a reception and artist talk on May 10 at 12:30 p.m., is a chance to connect with the creative vision behind the work and experience it firsthand.

The Danforth Gallery is located in Jewett Hall on the Â鶹APP campus, 46 University Drive, Augusta. The gallery is open to the public Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. All are welcome to this free event.

Artists:

Morgan Cafferata (they/them) makes work that is enticingly uncomfortable. Exploring identity, sexuality and the grotesque across mediums, they draw inspiration from feminist art, folklore, camp films and the natural world, attempting to make the uncanny relatable. They live on the unceded land of the Wabanaki Confederacy in so-called mid coast Maine.

Sheila M. Lynch (she/her) of Northport, Maine exhibits works in linoleum block printing, and is exploring her identity through the lens of the architecture and buildings that create a community.

Fatima Babar (she/her) is a digital artist exploring identity and personal journeys through worldbuilding and storytelling.

Jeff McKay (he/him) of Hallowell, Maine is showing digital prints of original watercolor paintings for a children’s book he is illustrating. His exploration of identity through an original character called “Watersharkamelon” follows a half-watermelon, half-shark as he searches for other similar creatures in the great big oceans of the world. Jeff is not half-artist, half-shark.

For more information about the exhibition and gallery, please contact Amy Rahn, Charles Danforth Gallery Director: amy.rahn@maine.edu.

Join us for an evening of art, music and inspiration at Art & Music Night, a special fundraising event in support of student scholarships. The event will take place Thursday, April 24, from 5 to 7 p.m. in Jewett Hall on the UMA Augusta campus, at 46 University Drive.

Art & Music Night will feature a student art exhibition, a reception with a cash bar at the Danforth Art Gallery and live music performances by Â鶹APP esteemed music faculty, including Lindsey Wiehl, Duane Edwards, Christine Letcher, Anita Jerosch and Jeffrey Rojo.

The event is free and open to the public. Donations are welcome and encouraged, with all funds raised supporting scholarships for UMA art and music students.

“This event is more than just a night of art and music—it’s an investment in the future of Â鶹APP talented students,” said Assistant Professor of Music Lindsey Wiehl, of Â鶹APP Contemporary and Popular Music Program. “Every ticket, every donation, and every moment of support helps provide scholarships that turn passion into possibility. We can’t wait to share an inspiring evening with you and make a real difference together!”

Art & Music Night showcases the talent and dedication of UMA students and faculty while raising critical funds to help the next generation of artists and musicians thrive.

Please join us for the opening reception for the 2025 UMA Student Art Exhibition! This annual celebration of UMA’s student artists features works created in the last year in UMA Art classes.

Gather with us in the Danforth Gallery on Sunday, April 6 at 1:00 p.m. and see the great work UMA students have created.

This event is open to anyone who wants to attend (all students, faculty, staff, and the general public).

The Danforth Gallery is located on the first floor of Jewett Hall on the UMA Augusta campus at 46 University Drive, Augusta.

Please join us Tuesday, Jan. 28 from 5-7 p.m. for a reception for “Artists/Educators: Work from Artists Teaching in Maine” currently on view at the Â鶹APP (UMA) in the Danforth Gallery, Jewett Hall, 46 University Drive. This exhibition brings together incredible new works by artists who many in our community might already know from their work in the classroom. “Artists/Educators” demonstrates the synergistic nexus of creative achievement and educational excellence in Maine. 

During the reception, visitors can see the exhibit, meet and talk with the artists exhibiting work, explore UMA’s art studios, and learn about art programs at UMA. Please join us for this very special event! 

“Artists/Educators: Work from Artists Teaching in Maine” runs through March 12, 2025 at the Danforth Gallery and features works by the following artists:

Michael Branca

Lars Boye Jerlach

John A. Knight

Scott Minzy

Jennifer Paisley

Matthew Peinado

Jeremy Smith

The reception and open studio event Jan. 28, 5-7 p.m. is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact Danforth Gallery Director Amy Rahn at amy.rahn@maine.edu.