The natural beauty of the North Shore makes the region irresistible to artists. This weekend, 65 painters and sculptors, almost all of them local, will show how they interpret that beauty at an exhibit and sale at one of the area’s loveliest spots, the Crane Estate in Ipswich.
And half the proceeds will benefit the Trustees of Reservations, the nonprofit group that preserves and manages the Crane Estate and dozens of other properties on the North Shore and throughout Massachusetts.
Colleen Kidder, an Ipswich painter who describes her work as impressionistic, is one of the artists in the annual show.
"There's something very special about the light on the North Shore," said Kidder, who studied with Caleb Stone in Rockport and recently joined a group of painters led by Charles Shurcliff of Ipswich in painting the local autumn landscape.
"Each year, it gets better and better," she said of the art show. "How can a painting look bad in that setting? They just shine."
In fact, many of the artists at the show depict the Crane Estate in their work, Kidder said.
The inspiration provided by this and other Trustees properties — from Long Hill in Beverly to Halibut Point Reservation in Rockport and Old Town Hill in Newbury — is well worth donating half the proceeds of their sales.
"It's giving back to those views," Kidder said. "I'd be lost without that property, and it's good to give back a portion of the sale."
Photographer Dorothy Kerper Monnelly of Ipswich said she knows many artists who volunteer for the Trustees of Reservations, and the art sale gives them a chance to do even more.
Monnelly, whose work applies some of the techniques of nature photographer Ansel Adams to representing local subjects, especially the Great Salt Marsh, relies on these natural resources, preserved and protected by the Trustees, for her art.
"I know that the beach and marshes feed our souls, and we live with them as we would with those that we hold dearest," said Monnelly, who will exhibit at the show with her husband, Ed Monnelly, who is also a photographer.
"I think so often of the generosity of the Crane family for making it all possible," she said.
Each of the professional artists at the show will exhibit two works in the Great House, the architectural centerpiece of the estate, which was built by Charles Crane in 1928.
The number of sculptors exhibiting has increased this year, according to Trina Schell, program and volunteer manager for the Crane Estate, and their works will be displayed on the Grand Allee, the magnificent lawn that rolls down to the beach from the front of the house.
Another new feature will be artworks by students from Montserrat College of Art and from several high schools on the North Shore, on display in the estate's casino buildings.
"Those are two buildings the Crane family used as entertainment areas," Schell said. "One side was a ballroom, one was bachelor's quarters."
Montserrat students have also created a "participatory Zen rock garden" outside, between the casino buildings, with "gravel and rocks and rakes," Schell said, where "people can move things around and change them. This is a new aspect. We decided last year it would be fun to have the public do something they can contribute to."
There will even be activities for children in the form of "art I spy," a game in which they find items from a list in the works on display.
The art show has been held for the past six years, according to Kidder, who said she had participated in all of them.
While presenting works by established painters and photographers, it is also helping to continue the North Shore's long artistic tradition by nurturing the artists of the future.
Those would include Theresa Peura, who graduated from college eight years ago and makes art that is inspired by her work on organic farms. Her paintings feature scenes from Appleton Farms in Ipswich — another Trustees property — where she worked for three years before taking a job at another organic farm in New Hampshire.
Like many of the artists who are participating, Peura feels a sense of gratitude for the natural beauty of the North Shore, and for the efforts of those who have worked to preserve it.
"I'm honored to participate," she said. "I'm happy to support the estate."
If you go
What: Crane Estate Art Show and Sale
To benefit: Trustees of Reservations
Where: The Crane Estate, 290 Argilla Road, Ipswich
When: Tomorrow through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Preview party: Tomorrow, 7 to 10 p.m. Tickets $45, or $35 for Trustees members
More information: Preview tickets and information at www.thetrustees.org or 978-356-4351, ext. 4015
