“I Am An American” exhibition opens Thursday, Nov. 12 at Cove Street Arts in Portland. The show features the work of Daniel Minter, Leonard Meiselman (Wiscasset), Natasha Mayers (Whitefield), Robert Shetterly (Brooksville), Abby Shahn (Solon) and George Longfish. The opening will include a video presentation of poets reading original poetry on the theme with images of the work on exhibition curated by Gary Lawless.

Artist and activist Meiselman has organized and co-curated the show of 24 works on exhibit through Jan. 16, 2021.

In 2007, Meiselman founded ArtCriesOut.com, a website for protest art. In 2014, Meiselman also coordinated “The Dilemma of Memory: Maine artists and the Holocaust.” The exhibition, at The Holocaust and Human Rights Center of Maine at University of Maine at Augusta, used photography, paintings, poetry and photography to explore themes and aspects of the Holocaust. This show was followed by “America Now” at Portland Public Library in 2018.

“We are all adjusting to challenging times…” wrote Meiselman for Cove Street Arts. “I am reexamining my attitude toward myself as an artist and what I believe and struggle to express… The work I am exhibiting represents that search and process. I am committed to painting as a response to crisis; to art as an outcry against injustice, tragedy and the absurd; and the affirmation of the human spirit confronting adversity and despair.”

Cove Street Arts, an 8,000-square-foot multi-media space at 71 Cove St., Portland, is open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and is closed Sunday. For more on this show and Cove Street Arts, call 207-808-8911 or visit https://www.covestreetarts.com