In-Person

3 sessions

Each session will be a walk or hike in various meadows, woodlands, or mountains in the vicinity of Farmington. The travel time to the trailhead will generally be between 30 and 45 minutes, and participants should plan to be on the trail for 1 to 2 hours. Efforts will be made to avoid difficult terrain, and a makeup date will be scheduled in the event of cancellation.

Approximately one week before each session, participants will receive an individual email detailing the travel plan, providing information about the destination, and offering suggestions on what to bring. 

July 25 & August 21, led by Ray Stillman

September 18, led by Nadine Marchand

Ray Stillman and Nadine Marchand have conducted many similar outings in past sessions.

In-Person

Three sessions are planned for summer paddles on one of our many local streams, ponds, or lakes. These are relaxed paddles in your own canoe or kayak to enjoy the natural world. Each outing begins between 9 and 10 am and ends between noon and 1 pm. They have been known to include lunch out or on the shore, as folks prefer. Make-up dates will be held if possible.

About a week before each session, each person will receive an individual email describing the travel plans. Information will be provided about the destination, suggesting what to bring. 

July 31, 2025

August 28, 2025

September 25, 2025

9 am-1 pm

Central meeting place TBD.

Eileen has conducted many outdoor programs in prior sessions.

In-Person

The South Solon Meeting House (1 Meeting House Rd, Solon) deserves to be called the “Sistine Chapel of Maine”: between 1952 and 1956, courtesy of the nearby Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, its interior was completely covered in frescoes depicting Biblical subjects, along with a few secular depictions in the lobby. A dozen artists, many at the time in their twenties, participated. Most of them went on to become famous, often in other media, such as beloved writer and illustrator of children's books, Ashley Bryan. Come learn how this extraordinary place came about in the middle of rural Maine and discover the messages its frescoes convey. Please dress warmly for this lecture!

For more on the Meeting House: https://web.colby.edu/southsolonmeetinghouse/

Driving directions from Famington, ME  https://tinyurl.com/3ezefstc

October 9, 2025

10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Location: South Solon Meeting House

1 Meeting House Rd, Solon, ME 04979

Carpooling: TBD

Véronique Plesch is the James M. Gillespie Professor of Art at Colby College. Born in Argentina and raised in Switzerland, she holds advanced degrees from the University of Geneva and from Princeton University, where she received her Ph.D. in 1994, the year she joined the Colby faculty. Plesch is the author and editor of nine books and over 100 articles in English, French, Italian, and Spanish, among others, on the topic of religious fresco cycles. She is one of the editors of the Maine Arts Journal: Union of Maine Visual Arts Quarterly, to which she regularly contributes. In 2022, she taught a semester-long course on the South Solon Meeting House.