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The Seacoast Artist Association is a group of artists and people interested in art, based in the seacoast area of New Hampshire. Our gallery, located at 130 Water Street in downtown Exeter, is open:

Wednesday-Saturday 10am – 5pm
Sunday 10am – 2pm

We offer new body of work and theme show exhibitions every month by local artists, public art receptions every second Friday evening, classes and demonstrations, and scholarship programs.

See About to learn more about our all-volunteer non-profit organization.

January Events

Grant Drumheller has lived and created works of art in coastal New Hampshire with his wife, Karina. He was Professor Emeritus of Art at the University of New Hampshire, where he taught from 1986 to 2019. Grant has exhibited both nationally and internationally, has received grants from the Pollock Krasner Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New England Foundation for the Arts, the Colman Award, and the Fulbright-Hays Commission to Italy, among other awards. He has been awarded residencies at the MacDowell Colony and the American Academy in Rome.

Grant regularly shows at Greenhut Galleries, Portland, ME, and The Elder Gallery of Contemporary Art, Charlotte, NC, and is an associate member of the Prince Street Gallery, NY, NY, having had 4 one-man shows. His “In the Garden” exhibition was shown at the Museum of Art, University of New Hampshire, in 2023.

Loving buoyancy and light in art- and feels “…it is a characteristic of painting to create the ‘recollected’ moment in the viewer.” Stories carry him along in the work, and humor seems implicit when portraying the human figure. Grant is inspired by the art of the past and often looks to those inspirations in the art of Breughel, Bonnard, Matisse, Guston, and Picasso. Grant follows his instincts and creates paintings from personal experience. His practice is a reaction to those daily experiences.

On February 8, Grant will speak about his current concerns as an artist. He will share with us how he developed through his education, and his painting from both life and my imagination. Grant has taught studio art at the university level for 38 years, supporting his work, and will present a visual talk about his work from 2010 to the present day. SAA looks forward to hosting Grant, so please come join us for this display of color use that evokes a truly sensory adventure.

This event is free and open to the public.

Cori Caputo loves to create narrative pictures that transport the viewer into a smile or a memory. She works primarily with watercolor because she enjoys its spontaneous nature and glowing colors. She also enjoys oils, pen & ink and is currently exploring acrylics. Using these materials she creates environments that tell stories about her experiences and those around her.

Fond of painting old houses with pointed roofs and leaning walls, mysterious fish and wise cats often show up in unexpected places, often coming in for a cup of tea. Zooming by on lovely evenings, dogs on flying carpets can be spotted high overhead. And there’s an ongoing series of saucy mermaids dealing with difficult relationships.

Cori is currently selling her greeting cards at Just Us Chickens in Kittery Maine and Eldridge Lumber in York Maine. Her award winning work has been published in calendars and licensed as puzzles. Her work has also been featured in galleries from Maine to Virginia.

You can find updates about her work on Facebook. “Cori Caputo Studio.”
You may also see her work at https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/cori-caputo and https://seacoastartist.org/gallery/cori-caputo-gallery/

Every painting I’ve created as an artist is one I have marveled at and treasured for the world to appreciate its own unique style. The colors, lines and shapes I use enhance my art. I appreciate capturing the warmth they bring to my heart. I hope you enjoy that feeling as well.

I paint in oils, pastels, acrylics and watercolor, and have instructed adults in painting.

Theme Show
February 2026
Beyond the Surface

“Creativity takes courage.”
– Henri Matisse.

Mixed media art is all about pushing bounda-ries and stepping into the unknown. Whether you’re layering paint over collage elements, experimenting with textures, or trying uncon-ventional color palettes, creativity de-mands courage. Explore layers in your mixed media piece and enjoy a deeper engagement with your art.

Monthly theme shows are open to all artists – see our SAA 2026 Theme Show brochure (PDF) and entry form (PDF).

Neal & Cheryl began working as a duo around 2011. Neal plays acoustic guitar while Cheryl carries the vocals and adds the bass-violin for some songs. Neal and Cheryl specialize in cover songs composed by a wide variety of artists, including John Denver, Irving Berlin, The Beatles, Clinton Price, Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, Burt Bacharach, Willy Nelson, Carol King, Irving Gordon, and many others. Members of their audiences enjoy knowing the songs and singing along. Both musicians are SAA Members! Neal is well known around New England for his improvisational lead guitar style and accent electric and acoustic guitar. He performs regularly, augmenting a number of singer songwriters. Neal has been a performing and recording artist for over 30 years and appears on numerous CD’s. Cheryl has been part of the NH folk and singer-songwriter scene for over 30 years. Singing remains her first love, but you will hear her play bass, guitar, and penny whistle. You can hear her original songs on several CDs.

Receptions for our monthly body of work and theme shows are FREE and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. Meet your local artists!

The Seacoast Artist Association is running the Fundraiser “Panel by Panel” to raise money for the scholarship fund. We have 80+, 5” by 7” birch wood panel cradle boards. Starting January 2nd you will be able to pick up one or two panels at the gallery for free.  Use your panel to create a piece of artwork to donate.  Panels will be available in January, February and even into March as long as they last.

As the artist you may choose your medium.  You may choose to make your art vertical or horizontal.  Be sure and sign your artwork! Bring your finished panel art as a donation to Seacoast Artist Association on or before March 21, 2026.  

Your panel art will lead a glamorous life.  It will be photographed and featured in a video on the SAA Website, Facebook and Instagram.  April 1-10th your panel will be hung in the gallery where it can be admired.  Then…(drum roll, please) on Saturday, April 11th all panels will be available for sale for $50 each!  Funds raised from this event will help provide scholarships to High School students from the 13 area High Schools. Eligible students need to be pursuing art in a 2 or 4 year Visual Arts program  in a college or university.

Please go have fun making a little panel during the cold winter months and help the next generation of artists. Also remember to come back in April to see and purchase some wonderful art.

Learn more in this short video.

Art Class
Doris Rice
Thursdays 5:30–7:30 pm

Each week features a new subject designed to teach both technique and topic – open to all levels. Visit DorisRice.com, where you can also sign up for her newsletter for updates on classes and workshops. Cost is $35/class or $168 for a 6-class card.