Divine Contortion no. 21 – Autumn Lane Estate

In March of 2021 I was commissioned to create an installation by the Autumn Lane Estate, an award winning wedding venue on Sebago Lake, Maine. I was given full creative freedom to embellish a building under construction that would serve as the central hub of a new development on the lakeside property that already included a three story main house, a couples cottage and a large barn all sitting upon a wide sloping field surrounded by woodland. The building I’ve been entrusted with is surrounded by an expansive deck and a broad stone patio next to a reflecting pond with four shallow pools acting as part of the natural filtration system, each trickling water back into the main pond. All this services the ten new luxury cabins being installed on the upper section of the property. 

For the exterior, I chose to create an addition to the Divine Contortion series that would wrap 360 degrees around the entire building. Which makes the piece approximately 100 feet long and 12 feet tall (33×4 meters). I chose colors from the surrounding environment, pulling the blues from the late afternoon skies and the warmer tones from the spring and fall colors of the trees on the property. For the background, I chose a metallic gold effect that catches the light and changes mood depending upon the position of the sun and the location of the viewer. In doing so, the building truly becomes a part of the environment, shifting character with the changing weather and seasons. 

In contrast to the flowing design of the exterior, I designed something much more hard angled for the interior – a geometric pattern to be realized with beveled wood slats on the ceiling. I wanted to pay homage to the incredibly skilled craftsman working on the construction project, Matt Dyer, and give him a chance to showcase his talent and create something purely artistic. This ceiling pattern is painted in vibrant greens and yellows that echo the highlights and shadows of the surrounding woods in the hour just before sunset. Also mounted on the ceiling is a series of ten small intimate portraits of the local birds. Essentially bringing the forest into the interior space. Appropriate for a building which is referred to as “The Nest”.

While the exterior is complete, the interior is still a work in progress. I’m currently working on the paintings and will be installing them this winter. If all goes well, I’ll be able to get some proper documentation of the completed installation this spring or summer after all the construction is all finished and the snow has all melted away.