By Anna Schaeffer
Special to the Leader

Local artists Jeanne-Marie Eayrs, Janet Kyle and Elizabeth Weeks are hosting an in-home art exhibit 3 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 10.
Original artworks by Eayrs, Weeks and Kyle will be on sale and open for viewing at 2 Scabbard Drive in Scarborough. Light refreshments will be served.

Eayrs, Weeks and Kyle first developed the idea for a “kitchen art gallery” over coffee in December. They decided to expand upon the innovative concept as an open-to the public chance to sell their artwork and connect with artists and enthusiasts alike in their community.
Eayrs said that while the primary goal of the exhibit is to sell and showcase their art, she also hopes that the gallery will promote the flourishing communities of artists that live beyond Portland.
“There are enough interested people in the [Scarborough] community and we want them to realize that there is art and artists outside of Portland.” Eayrs said. After a successful exhibit at Pottery Barn, the idea for a home gallery opening fell quickly into place for the three artists.
The art trio said that they are excited for an opportunity to share their artwork with the Scarborough community and beyond.

Despite their varied backgrounds, the trio came together when Eayrs and Weeks bonded as co-workers over love of art and the yoga classes they attended together.
Eayrs, a muralist, worked with Kyle in London. Eayrs’ current street-art campaign, called Love Your Street, promotes litter cleanup in the south of London. Seated in her brightly painted living room, Eayrs said, “We just put the three together from there.”
Weeks was born and raised in Scarborough, but left Maine at 17 to attend Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania. She lived in Pennsylvania for 10 years where she worked for an interior designer.
The hand drawn renderings she made of the designer’s plans, Weeks said, “satisfied my need to make art.”
Weeks lived for two years in Boulder, Colorado, before returning home to Maine.
“It’s bittersweet,” Weeks said of her return home, “But good to have a support system again.”
She has experimented with using the e-commerce website Etsy for selling both handcrafted stationary and taking commissions for custom baby mobiles, which she enjoyed.
“Making custom pieces gave me a focus,” said Weeks.
Also a professionally trained artist, Kyle has worked for several years as a graphic designer, specializing in commercial art and advertisements.
She currently works in information technology.

Balancing the seemingly polar disciplines of art and technology, Kyle said, is easier than one might think. Ever evolving, Kyle said that pushing her comfort-zone is vital to her identity as an artist.
“I decided I was going to do something uncharacteristic,” she said, “and finish one painting every day … not only has it changed my attitude about approaching a canvas, but also my ability to make more bold statements.”
Eayrs said that while her focus and passion remains on mural paintings and larger pieces she is always experimenting with artistic styles and subjects, “I love mixed media. It’s really just a fulfillment of creation, for me.”
The art trio hopes that the Scarborough community will consider themselves invited to the exhibit and take the chance to support and connect with local artists.

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