Will WhelanWW

Will Whelan / Painter and printmaker / Boston

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About Will

Will Whelan is an artist and educator in the Boston area. In 2015 he co-founded Dorchester Art Project, an artist-run studio and gallery in Boston's Fields Corner neighborhood.

He has worked as a teaching artist in Boston Public Schools and now teaches adult English language learners in Somerville. He studied Art History and Studio Art at the University of Chicago and holds an M.Ed. in Art Education from Lesley University. He lives in Malden, Massachusetts.

The work

  • Small grass paper lanternGeolights

    Geolights

    An ongoing series of experimental lighting and site-specific sculpture in paper. The forms come from geometry and from patterns in nature such as the spiral. Many use paper Will makes by hand from corn husks, grass clippings and recycled cardboard.

    See Geolights
  • Undone, 2021Text Collages

    Text Collages

    Small analog collages built from hand-printed and found paper, much of it gathered in urban wild spaces where print and plants mix. Works include Undone and Pink Swarm, both 2021.

    See Text Collages
  • Phonebook print blockPhonebook Prints

    Phonebook Prints

    Begun in 2010. Block prints pulled from the curved pages of old phonebooks. The original blocks remain, and prints can be made on request.

    See Phonebook Prints
  • I Am Here, installation viewI Am Here

    I Am Here

    A 2025 collaborative installation with the SCALE community in Somerville. Each participant wrote on a paper monarch butterfly to say why they are here.

    See I Am Here

  • Archive

    Earlier projects and series.

    See the archive

Exhibitions

2026
HELD, online exhibition, 11 Gallery
2025
I Am Here, community art installation, Somerville MA
2024
SCALE Art Show (artist and curator), Somerville MA
2023
NHAA Biennial One Juried Exhibition, Portsmouth NHWill Whelan: OPEN HOUSE, solo show, Art Lab Everett, Everett MA
2022
Natural Language, solo show, Malden Public LibraryNatural Language, solo show, Well Coffee Shop, Everett MA
2019
New Work, solo show, Barismo, Cambridge MA
2018
Divergences, solo show, Dorchester Art Project, BostonCAN'T YOU SEE HOW HARD I'M WORKING: DAP Group Show, Dorchester Art Project, Boston
2016
Body Language, Dorchester Art Project, Boston
2015
Between You and Me, Dorchester Art Project, BostonPaintbox mural program, Boston
2014
Life of Materials, Gallery 263, Cambridge MA
2013
One Minute Film Festival, Gallery 263, Cambridge MA
2012
Community Supported Artist, CSArt Project, Cambridge Center for Adult EducationAllston Open Studios, AllstonHarborArts Festival, East BostonBoston Critique Group, Lilypad, Cambridge MAWHIRL/Togetherfest, Machine, Boston
2011
New Work, solo show, Café Nation, Brighton MATwo from North Allston, Honan-Allston Library, Allston MAFigment Interactive Arts Festival, BostonDorkbot, electronic media expo, Middlesex Lounge, Cambridge MASOOP, Jamaica Plain MA
2010
Exit Strategies, University Gallery, Lesley University, Cambridge MAWinter Salon, Lilypad, Cambridge MAAllston Brighton Art Expo, Honan-Allston Library MA
2005
Thesis Show, Midway Studios, University of ChicagoFOTA, University of Chicago Festival of the Arts

Press

  • Boston Hassle, Alex Hadley, April 2, 2018. On the DAP Group Show.
  • Boston Neighborhood Network News, Chris Lovett, aired August 4, 2016. Emerging artists in Dorchester.
  • Boston Globe, Cate McQuaid, July 21, 2016. The Week Ahead, Critic's Picks.
  • Dorchester Reporter, Chris Harding, October 1, 2015. On Dorchester Art Project.
  • Cambridge Day, Marc Levy, May 29, 2012. On the CSArt program.
  • Weekly Dig Boston, Cara Bayles, August 8, 2008.

Contact

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