BANGOR — "A burst of light, a pageant of color and the hope of a new day. But filter those elements through the mind’s eye and they react in unexpected, exciting and even fantastical ways," said Union of Maine Visual Artists (UMVA), in a news release.

The upcoming “Dreaming at Dawn” exhibition in Bangor will showcase art inspired by daybreak in Maine, both literally and conceptually. The show opens August 1 and runs through September 30 at the Bangor Public Library, 145 Harlow Street, in Bangor.

Featuring 68 pieces by 51 artists from across the state, such a large show requires the combined space of the library’s Cyr, Stairwell and Lecture Hall galleries, according to a news release.

The Lecture Hall Gallery will also host a Meet the Artists Reception on Thursday, August 6, from 5 - 7 p.m. Admission is free and refreshments will be available.

Exhibition coordinators Shanna Compton and Sally Stanton encouraged contributors to push the thematic boundaries of “Dreaming at Dawn.” The artists responded with a wide range of media including painting, printmaking, assemblage, photography, collage, sculpture and textile. Some pieces depict naturalistic scenes of morning’s first light as it trickles through shaded woodlands or curtained windows. Others use abstract shapes and colors to represent the illumination that only comes to dreamers in the depths of sleep.

“One widely held belief is that the dreams we experience near dawn are those saturated with our truest creativity, our most deeply imagined, and those most likely to become reality,” said Compton. “What visions will we awaken? What possibilities will we dream?”

The show’s juror is Peter Walls. He has been an exhibiting studio artist for 29 years, specializing in shaped panel paintings and murals. From his home in Midcoast Maine, he collaborates on public and private projects throughout New England. His work can regularly be seen at Blue Raven Gallery in Rockland.

“The exhibition’s title was inspiring for me on many levels, but first and foremost is the fact that I create my own work in the predawn hours every day after waking,” said Walls. “The shift from the dreamworld to creating is a sacred time for me and my work, and I could easily imagine that many of these artists share that experience, whether they create in the predawn hours or not.”

The featured artists are NC Barto, Barbara Bemis Adams, Mark Barnette, Deb Bergman, Dyan Berk, Jennifer Fairchild Brown, Pam Cabanas, Cheryl Cayer, Shanna Compton, Alan Crichton, Caroline de Mauriac, Janelle Delicata, Shelley Dell, Kelly Bennett Desrosiers, Randy Fein, Martha Ferguson, Gene Frey, Tracy Ginn, Judith Greene-Janse, Arlene Jurewicz-Leighton, June Kellogg, Camille Kouyoumdjian, David Lewis, Robert Lockwood, Bridget McAlonan, Cynthia Motian McGuirl, Bruce McMillan, Ave Melnick, James Q Merrow, Renata Moise, Janice L Moore, Leslie Moore, Lisa Mossel, Wendy Newbold Patterson, Heather Newton Brown, Anne-Marie Nolin, MaryEllen Ostherr, Brandy Raymond, Daryne Rockett, Anne Scheer, Kathryn Shagas, Scott Shulman, Sally Stanton, Susan Szwed, Joanne Tarlin, Ann Tracy, Tim Van Hook, Peter Walls, Jean Wiecha, Sandy Willcox and Andrew Young.

Summer gallery hours at the Bangor Public Library are Monday to Thursday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and closed on the weekend. The schedule will change after Labor Day, September 7, to include Saturday gallery hours. Check the library website for updated scheduling details.

The Union of Maine Visual Artists, UMVA, founded in 1975, is a non-profit organization that promotes and advocates for the visual arts, artists and all arts supporters. It is a statewide arts network connecting Maine artists. As artist advocates, the UMVA initiated and saw enacted into state law the Maine Percent for Art Program (requiring a percentage of funds for state buildings to include art) and the Artist's Estate Tax Law (allowing art work to be used to pay artists estate taxes). UMVA members meet regularly at three chapters in the Portland, Brunswick and Midcoast/Downeast areas. Learn more at TheUMVA.org.