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Community Collects: “Art Committee Loves Art”

JANUARY – MARCH 2026

 The York Public Library has for many years exhibited its winter show under the title “Community Collects.”  This flexible title has allowed the YPL Art Committee to ask different communities to show the art that they have collected.  Sometimes we have identified a local artist who has recently passed to honor their career and celebrate their creative contributions.  We have invited anyone in the York community to loan works by this artist to be shown in the Community Collects show.  At other times the art committee has invited a gallerist whose own collection includes many artists whose works have drawn the attention of a single collector.

January through March, 2026, the Community Collects show at the Library presents yet another way to define “community”.  This time it is the YPL Art Committee members who constitute the community who have collected the art on display.  Some of the artists included in the show are Ted Jaslow, Leslie DeMuth, Dewitt Hardy, Brett Gamache, Tom Glover, and Maureen Reardon.

The approximately three dozen works included present a wide range of media and content in both large and small pieces. You will see representational and abstract works, oil paint or watercolor, etching, photography, and collage. In the library’s glass showcases there will also be jewelry pieces in ceramic and silver. The variety of work testifies to the diversity of interests of the committee members and their evolving taste as they have created their personal art collections over many years.

Betsy Cromley
The York Public Library Art Committee

Please join Committee members for an exhibit reception on Tuesday, January 13, 2026 from 5:00 – 6:30 PM in the Library’s Upper Level. 

Previous Exhibits
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About York Public Library Exhibits

When you stroll into the York Public Library (YPL) to find a book, read a magazine, work at a computer, or attend a meeting or program, you will undoubtedly discover more than you expected. In fact, you will have an opportunity to see major exhibitions by some of the area’s most talented artists, past and present. The art is displayed throughout the Library.

The exhibits at the York Public Library include a broad range of art and represent artists from York, Eliot, the Berwicks, Ogunquit and the Portsmouth area. The common denominator is the quality of the work. Exhibits run the gamut and have included sculpture, fiber art, and traditional, abstract, and contemporary art. Our goal is to reach not only those who have a strong interest in art but also patrons who may or may not visit museums and galleries on a regular basis.

One of the highlights on the calendar is the “Student Art Show” held each year in April. The show features art created by young people in York from kindergarten through high school and is designed to foster excellence in art for generations to come.  

Every year the Library mounts a group show called “Community Collects”.  This show features the work of one or more well-known local artists from the past. Collectors from the area generously lend pieces from their personal collections during this three-month long exhibit.

The York Public Library (YPL) Art Committee

The YPL Art Committee, composed of a small group of volunteers, selects and organizes six exhibits throughout the year. Committee members are knowledgeable in the field and familiar with the reputations of artists in our area.  An Opening Reception is hosted by the Committee for each exhibit during which the artists are invited to give an informal talk about their creative process. Exhibits are by invitation. For more information contact info@yorkpubliclibrary.org