Currently working from Portland, Maine, Alex Rheault was born in Washington
DC, resided in Rome, Italy during her last two years of high school (plus one
year of Italian University), and then lived in New York City from 1981 to
1998. Rheault received her BFA from Parsons School of Design in 1985 and her
MFA in Visual Arts from Vermont College in 2004.
Rheault exhibits drawings, paintings, animation, zines, sculpture, and
site-specific works combining a range of materials, from sound to debris to
words. Rheault works intuitively, drawing upon many languages, and inventing
her own. Rheault is deeply moved and compelled by social concerns and ideas,
using her imagery to make tangible the intangible, that which is overlooked,
ignored, and denied available. Some of her works' themes include rules,
excess, and the potential of the infectious.
Rheault's most recent projects confront order and chaos, continuous
discontinuity, drawing as experience, discovery through failure, and the
gaps between the extremes of the tidy and the untidy.
EDUCATION
2004 MFA Visual Art, Vermont College of Fine Arts/Union Institute and University,
Montpelier, VT
2001 Photography, Salt Institute for Documentary Studies, Portland, Maine
1990 Millinery, Fashion Institute of Technology, New York City
1985 BFA Illustration, Parsons School of Design, New York City
1981 Costume, L'Accademia di Costume e Moda, Rome, Italy
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2007 The World is the Third Floor, Filament Gallery, Portland, Maine
2000 Toes, Fingers and Doll Decay, First Union, Captiva, Florida
1996 Order out of Chaos, Spring Studio, New York City
1994 Drawings, Spring Studio, New York City
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2007 Metamorphosis: A Journey of Dolls, drawing room, Portland,
Maine
2007 Translation: Dreams/Nightmares, Backroads Gallery and Sculpture Garden, Damariscotta, Maine
2006 Springtime Salon, Filament Gallery, Portland, Maine
2006 2nd Annual Best of Bath Banners, Bath, Maine
2006 Long Overdue: Book Renewal The Altered Book Project, Portland Public
Library, Portland, Maine
2006 UMVA Exhibit, Maine
2005 Opposites: Dismantling Symbolic Orders
based on the Play of Opposites, Backroads Gallery and Sculpture Garden,
Damariscotta, Maine
2005 Long Over Due: Book Renewal, Maine College of Art and The Portland Public Library, Portland Public Library, Portland, Maine
2005 Produced at Eyebeam: Works in Progress, Eyebeam, New York City
2005 Summer Exhibit, Patricia Carega Gallery, Center Sandwich, Maine
2004 Destination: Biscay, 2004 Invitational, Backroads Gallery and Sculpture Garden, Damariscotta, Maine
2004 Check It Out, South Portland Public Library, South Portland, Maine
2004 Drawing as a Window, The Chocolate Church Center for the Arts, Bath, Maine
2004 Touch, Space, Portland, Maine
2004 Summer Exhibit, Patricia Carega Gallery, Center Sandwich, Maine
2003 Photo a Ho Ho, BPIC, Portland, Maine
2003 Summer Exhibit, Patricia Carega Gallery, Center Sandwich, Maine
2002 911 Maine Responds, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, Maine
2002 Annual Exhibit, Spring Street Studio, New York City
1999 New Faces, Captiva Civic Association, Captiva, Florida
1997 Multi-dimensional Shoe, Hopper House Art Center, Nyack, New York
1994 Cinderella's Revenge, Cristinerose Gallery, New York City
GALLERY AFFILIATION
Current-2002 Patricia Carega Gallery, Center Sandwich, New Hampshire
1998-1992 Carega Foxley-Leach, Washington, DC
TEACHING
2007 Bowdoin College, Summer Camp, visiting artist, Brunswick, Maine
2007 Maine College of Art, Summer Camp, Instructor, cartooning, Portland,
Maine
2006 Bowdoin College Summer Camp, Instructor of cartooning and drawing, Brunswick,
Maine
2006 Maine College of Art, Instructor, Fashion Illustration, Maine
2006-2005 Maine College of Art, Adjunct Faculty, Foundation, Portland, Maine
2006-2005 Maine College of Art, Instructor, cartooning, Portland, Maine
2006-2004 Artascope, Instructor, decorative painting, South Portland, Maine
2001-1999 BIG Arts, Instructor of cartooning and Italian, Sanibel, Florida
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE
2007-2006 Maine College of Art, Printmaking Department, Portland, Maine
2006-2005 Art Exchange, Mary Jo Rosania (internet classroom), Hunterdon Central
Regional High School, New Jersey
VISITING ARTIST
2007 Maine College of Art, Illustration department, Portland, Maine
2007 Hall School, fourth grade class, fashion illustration
2006 Gardiner Area High School, Art class, Gardiner, Maine
2006 Maine College of Art, Reviews
2006 Maine College of Art, Print Department, Maine (Fall 05/ Spring 06)
2005 Maine College of Art, Print department, Portland, Maine
2004 The Cambridge School, Collect, Stack and Arrange, A Collaborative Mural
Installation Project with Todd Bartel and Drawing II classes, Weston, Massachusetts
2004 Maine College of Art, Painting, Print and Sculpture Departments,
Portland, Maine
JURIES AND PANELS
2007 Maine College of Art Alumni exhibit, juror
2006 Master Artist Series, Portland Museum of Art, Portland, Maine
2006 Surreal Soiree, Portland Museum of Art, Maine
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Justin Ellis, "Fit to a T," Portland Press Herald, Monday Magazine, August
13, B7, 8, www.pressherald.mainetoday.com
Kay Liss, "Backroads Gallery presents provocative show," The Lincoln County
News, July 26, p9A
Brandi Neal, editor, "Metamorphosis, the unique journey of 18 dolls," front
page, p18, 19, www.inthecourier.com
Ian Paige, "Exquisite Corpses," The
Portland Phoenix, July 20-26,
www.thephoenix.com
Lauren Fensterstock, "Fresh Paint, New Media, The Historic and
the Contemporary: Maine," Art New England, April/May, p20
2007 Kay Liss, The Lincoln County News, "Backroads Gallery
presents provocative show," July 26
2007 Brandi Neal, Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier, "Metamorphosis, the unique journey
of 18 dolls," front page, p. 18, 19, www.inthecourier.com
2007 Ian Paige, The Portland Phoenix, "Exquisite Corpses," July 20-26,
www.thephoenix.com
2006 Amy Sutherland, New York Times (Art &
Design), "Wear This Book (But Bring it Back Friday)," April 23
2006 Susan Perrine, The Forecaster, Letter to the Editor, Banners in Bath, April 23
2006 Bob Keyes, Portland Press Herald, "New on The Shelf,"
February 19
2005 Chris Thompson, The Portland Phoenix, "Book to The Future," April 22-28
2004 Kay Liss, The Lincoln County News, "Destination Biscay is an Artistic
Adventure," July
2004 Philip Isaacson, Maine Sunday Telegram, "Always Robust, art scene goes
wild in summer," July 18
2000 Amy Fleming, Islander, "Artist focuses on 'ungainly' body parts in
Captiva Show," November 17-23
2000 Libby Boren McMillan, Times of the Islands, "Tooning in the Islands,"
September/October
2000 Mason Laderer, San-Cap Style, "Fashionable Transportation," Fall
1999 Island Sun, "Cartooning at Big Arts," September 3
1999 Jill Goodman, Island Reporter, "Artist to teach cartooning at BIG Arts," July 29
SELECTED LECTURES
2004 "Drawing": A slide presentation of works and influences, Cambridge
School, Weston, Massachusetts
2004 A review of the artist's works from 1981-2004, MUSE, Portland, Maine
2000 A Survey of Cartooning Through a Cartoonist's Eyes, Sanibel Captiva Art
League, Sanibel, Florida
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2005 "99 sounds," www.amystaceycurtis.com, November
2001 Islander, "Prunella: A cartoon character in search of a cartoonist,"
January 12-18
2001 Islander, "Koho Mori-Newton: Spontaneity," March 16-22
2001 Islander, "Art Funk," June 1-7
2000 Islander, "The Joy of Black and White and read-all over," August 4-11
2000 Islander, "Saul Steinberg: Life Draws itself," October 27-November 2
2000 Islander, "Keith Haring: Understood Underground," December 8-14
CARTOONING
2004-2003 Sun Messenger, Estero, Florida
2004-2000 Island Reporter, Sanibel, Florida
CATALOGUE
2003/2004 The Past, Present, and the Future of the Nurse's Uniform. Mark
Dion and J. Morgan Puett, Fabric Workshop, October 2003-February 2004
(drawings), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
COLLECTIONS
Portland Public Library, Portland, Maine
South Portland Public Library, South Portland, Maine
Mobilelivre/Bookmobile, Canada
private collections
