April 1 and 29; May 6, 13, and 27, 2007 ~~~ Winter Harbor
This spring, Schoodic Arts for All joins Northeast Historic Film to present the Downeast Maine Historic Film series at Hammond Hall in Winter Harbor. Six screenings, each followed by panel discussions, will bring the history of early life in this region to life for contemporary residents. Filmmakers Lisa and John Gfoerer appeared with their film, “Schoodic: Where Sea Meets Land,” on March 18. On April 1, log driver David Calder will discuss “From Stump to Ship,” a film about the logging industry. A double feature on April 29 explores two communities with “A Century of Summers,” about the intersections between summer and year-round residents in Hancock, and “Cherryfield 1938.” On May 6, the 1947 documentary “Lobstertown” will be shown along with “The Peninsula,” a short film based on the book of that title by Louise Dickenson Rich. Granite sculptor Jesse Salisbury will lead the discussion of “Granite by the Sea,” an account of the granite quarrying industry on Vinalhaven. Finally, a collection of five short, silent films from the earliest days of film in Maine will be screened together on May 27. All films begin at 2 pm; for more details, call (207) 963-2569 or visit www.schoodicarts.org.
Back to the TopApril 4, 2007 ~~~ Winter Harbor
The Hancock County Cultural Network has held a Brown Bag Artist Series on the first Wednesday of every month starting in April 2006. The intent is to encourage a varied audience to see behind the scenes of an organization or an artist’s work. Speakers present for thirty minutes, then invite the audience to join in a discussion. This month’s event, on April 4, 2007, will take place at Hammond Hall, the home of Schoodic Arts for All in Winter Harbor. Mary Laury, Executive Director, will give a brief tour of Hammond Hall and talk about the organization’s growth as an arts and cultural presence in Downeast Maine. Following the tour, there will be a short performance of music and dance from “Foot Loose” by the Show Choir, grades 4-5. For details, please contact Carolyn Hecker at (207) 348-2535.
Back to the TopApril 4 and 26; May 1, 2007 ~~~ Waterford, Otisfield, and Standish
Building on a pilot project funded by the Council in 2006, students from St. Joseph’s College in Standish will help open the world of children’s literature to rural elementary school students in Otisfield and Waterford. The college students have arranged programs with noted Maine authors and illustrators: Paul Janeczko of Hebron will visit Waterford on April 4 and Matt Tavares of Ogunquit will be in Otisfield on April 26. Following these programs, the college students will return to the schools for follow-up visit involving art and literature activities. Finally, students, teachers, and parents from the schools will come to the St. Joseph’s campus to meet Anne Sibley O’Brien of Peaks Island on May 1. For more information, please contact Dr. Cynthia Mowles, Assistant Professor of Education at St. Joseph’s, at cmowles@sjcme.edu.
Back to the TopApril 5, 12, and 26; May 3, 2007 ~~~ Belfast
In 2006, the Belfast Free Library expanded its poetry programming for adults, sponsoring both a workshop on odes and the Let’s Talk About It reading and discussion series called “American Traditions, American Innovations.” Both programs were received with such enthusiasm that the library will feature another reading and discussion series in honor of National Poetry Month in April 2007. This series, designed by Belfast’s Poet Laureate, Karin Spitfire, is entitled “Reading Out: The Rancor, Hope, Passion, and Brilliance of Liberation Poetry.” Spitfire will facilitate four evening discussions of contemporary poets such as Adrienne Rich, Amiri Baraka, and June Jordon. Meetings on April 5, 12, and 26 and May 3 will take place at the library; call (207) 338-3884 for details.
Back to the TopApril 11, 2007 ~~~ Presque Isle
With help from University of Maine at Presque Isle history scholars and students, the Presque Isle Historical Society (PIHS) has created an exhibit chronicling the development of the town and its Main Street. Six movable panels cover such events as the construction of the B&A Railroad, the fire at the Braden Theatre, and the Centennial Celebration in 1959. The panels will be unveiled on University Day (April 11, 2007), then displayed in the library at the University of Maine at Presque Isle starting on April 28. In June and July, the panels will move to the Mark & Emily Turner Public Library in Presque Isle; subsequently, they will be kept at PIHS on 3rd Street. To learn more, contact PIHS at (207) 764-1403.
Back to the TopApril 14, 2007 ~~~ Portland
In conjunction with its 2006-07 series, PCA Great Performances offers a series of fifteen scholarly, humanities-based pre-performance lectures to place the artists and their art forms in historical, literary, and social context. Unless otherwise noted, the free lectures are held backstage at Merrill Auditorium, starting 6 pm. On March 7, Dr. James Parakilas (chair of the music department at Bowdoin College) will lecture on “Universal Conflicts in Opera.” Prior to the Pirates of Penzance on March 15, Richard Conrad, one of Maine’s opera singers, will provide a fresh look on this Gilbert and Sullivan masterpiece. Additional lectures are still being planned; visit www.pcagreatperformances.org/EduAboutMusic.htm or call (207) 773-3150 for details.
Back to the TopApril 23, 2007 ~~~ Portland
The first event in a new major public lecture series, the Douglas M. Schair Memorial Lecture on Genocide and Human Rights, will take place in Portland on April 23, 2007. The speaker, Mary Robinson, is former president of Ireland and former High Commissioner for Human Rights at the United Nations. Drawing on this experience, she will be addressing issues related to her current work as director of the international organization Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative. Following the lecture at the University of Southern Maine’s Hannaford Hall, a number of organizations will host a candlelight vigil in Monument Square to commemorate the victims of genocide and human rights abuses. Participating organizations include the Academic Council for Post-Holocaust Christian, Jewish, and Islamic Studies at USM, the Hudson Foundation, the Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maine, the Maine Council of Churches, the Greater Portland NAACP, and the state’s Office of Immigrant and Multicultural Affairs. To learn more, please contact Professor Abraham Peck, (207) 780-5331 or apeck@usm.maine.edu.
Back to the TopApril 25, 2007 ~~~ South Portland
The Portland Harbor Museum’s 2007 exhibit is entitled Picturing Portland: A Century of Change. This exhibit will employ the concept of “rephotography” (pairing old photographs with current ones) to explore the many aspects of Portland Harbor that have changed or remained the same. Many of the old photographs will come from the museum’s Angell Collection of glass plate negatives from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The contemporary images will be taken by members of the Bakery Photographic Collective. The exhibit opens April 27 and runs through November 25, 2007. An accompanying series of lectures, events, and activities will include photography workshops and a scavenger hunt for children. For event listings and museum information, please visit www.portlandharbormuseum.org or call (207) 799-6337.
Back to the TopApril 26, 2007 ~~~ Cornish
Fourth, fifth, and sixth graders at Cornish Elementary School spent February and March researching local history through field trips and interviews with older residents. Based on their research, students will design and create a permanent mural for the school’s multipurpose room. They will be guided in this project by experienced educators, local historians at the Cornish Historical Society, and graphic artist Laurie Downey. A public presentation scheduled for April 26, 2007, will include the debut of a film about Cornish history and the unveiling of preparatory drawings for the mural. For details, please call the school at (207) 625-4393.
Back to the TopApril, 2007 ~~~ Skowhegan
Skowhegan’s first community-wide reading program will use the book Once Upon a Town by Bob Greene to promote reading and invite reflection on what a town can accomplish when its residents work together. The kick-off program, a presentation by Maine humorist Gary Crocker, took place on March 17. Two group discussions at the public library will follow on March 21 and April 3, at 7 pm. The PBS video related to the book will be screened twice on April 12, at 10:30 am and 6 pm. Finally, young readers will join the program during their school vacation, April 15-21, with Lynn Plourde’s Book Fair Day. Partners in this community-wide effort spearheaded by the Skowhegan Public Library include Main Street Skowhegan, the Margaret Chase Smith Library, and the Somerset Family Enrichment Council. For more information, call the library at (207) 474-9072.
Back to the TopMay 10, June 14, August 10, September 13, October 11, and November 8, 2007 ~~~ Bethel
The Bethel Historical Society’s 2007 Summer Lecture Series, Maine Character and “Characters,” gets underway on May 10 with a lecture on Maine-Hawaii connections by Paul Burlin of the University of New England. On June 14, Earle Shettleworth will speak on “A Painter’s Progress: The Life, Work, and Travels of Harrison Bird Brown of Portland.” Vandall T. King of Rochester, NY, will explore Oxford County mines and miners on August 10. On September 13, William B. Krohn of the Maine Fish and Wildlife Research Unit will address “Joshua Gross Rich: Western Maine Pioneer and Wildlife Writer. David Fuller of Farmington will lecture on the spruce gum industry in Maine on October 11. Finally, Bethel Historical Society Director Stanley Russell Howe will present on the life and times of Elizabeth Mason Carter, one of Bethel’s most famous “characters,” on November 8. For details, please call (207) 824-2910 or visit www.bethelhistorical.org.
Back to the TopMay 24, 2007 ~~~ Portland
The Telling Room, greater Portland’s community writing center, will present a forum called “A Sense of Place: Maine Writers on Maine” at the Salt Gallery on May 24, 2007. Four Maine writers—poet Betsy Sholl, spoken word performer Sontiago, novelist Monica Wood, and short story writer Lewis Robinson—will speak about their work and how it is informed by Maine. In addition, Joe Conforti, professor of American and New England Studies at the University of Southern Maine, will provide insight into the tradition of place-based writing in Maine. While it is open to the public, the primary audience for the forum is the teachers and students who participate in the Telling Room’s educational programs. Related curriculum activities will be distributed to local middle and high school teachers months prior to the forum. For more information, please visit www.tellingroom.org.
Back to the TopMay, 2007 ~~~ South Paris
The famous McLaughlin Garden in South Paris will open a new educational exhibit for visitors in May 2007. A permanent installation at the welcome point for visitors, will showcase the story of this historic site. Printed materials will detail the history and horticultural significance of the 20th-century garden as well as the architectural features of the 19th-century farmhouse and barn. To plan a visit, call (207) 743-8820 or visit www.mclaughlingarden.org.
Back to the TopJuly 12, 2007 ~~~ Rockland
On July 12, 2007, Coastal Senior College presents Mahmud Faksh, professor of political science at the University of Southern Maine, at Rockland Town Hall, starting at 7 pm. Dr. Faksh will speak on U.S./Middle East relations as part of the John Syrett Distinguished Lecture Series, held each year in honor of a beloved volunteer professor for Coastal Senior College. For more information, please call (800) 286-1594.
Back to the TopJuly 13, 2007 ~~~ Hinckley
The Central Kennebec Heritage Council consists of seven museums and historical societies working together to promote the cultural richness of their section of the Kennebec-Chaudière corridor. Drawing on the exhibit development and oral history workshops made possible by the Maine Humanities Council over the last two years, the member museums have organized the Central Maine Works project for the summer of 2007. Each site will examine an aspect of central Maine labor from a perspective that suits its location and collections. For example, Victor Grange in Fairfield Center will present “The Work of the Grange in Building Community.” The project kick-off, a lecture and slide presentation by Whitefield writer Bill Bunting, is scheduled for July 13 at Good Will-Hinckley. Member museums will host open houses on the following day, and most exhibits will run through the fall. For details, please contact the individual sites or call the L.C. Bates Museum at (207) 238-4250.
Back to the TopJuly 18; August 11 and 15, 2007 ~~~ Lovell
Among the many educational programs of the Greater Lovell Land Trust are a summer lecture series and an annual educational forum. These programs support the mission of the Trust: to protect the ecosystems of the Kezar Lake and adjacent watersheds. On July 18 at 7:30 pm, Martin Engstrom, longtime forecaster at the weather station on Mt. Washington, will recount his experiences. On August 15, anthropologist Alvin Morrison will speak about the famous 1725 conflict between Lovell settlers and Pigwacket Natives. This local stalemate-skirmish became an epic myth of American jingoism with the help of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Both of these lectures will take place at the Charlotte Hobbs Library. The forum is planned for the morning of August 11 at the Lovell VFW Hall, with keynote speaker Tom Wessels addressing the topic of “Reading the Forested Landscape.” Wessels is the author of Reading the Forested Landscape and The Myth of Progress. For more information, please call (207) 925-1056 or visit www.gllt.org.
Back to the TopJuly 27, 2007 ~~~ Camden
On Friday, July 27, 2007, the Camden Philosophical Society will present a one-day conference called “Philosophy at the Edge.” This free program, hosted by the Camden Public Library, will feature talks on diverse mainstream topics in contemporary philosophy by leading academic philosophers, with the goal of making these topics comprehensible to a non-academic audience. Topics will include environmental ethics, the philosophy of time, medical ethics, and the philosophy of work. The Society, which was founded in 2005 and regularly attracts audiences of 25-50 people for its lectures and book discussion groups, intends to make this summer conference an annual event. For details, please visit www.philosophyedge.com.
Back to the TopJanuary 15 - August 1, 2007 ~~~ Rockland
As the town of Swan’s Island restores the historic Burnt Coat Harbor Light Station (built in 1872), residents hope to simultaneously restore an understanding of how the buildings were used. With the help of a 2006 planning grant from the Council, island resident Donna Wiegle began conducting oral history interviews with the surviving children of 1930s lighthouse keeper Roscoe Chandler. The oral histories, combined with photos and explanatory text, were presented at the March 5 town meeting, and a related exhibit will be on display at the Maine Lighthouse Museum in Rockland from January 15 through August 1. A permanent outdoor exhibit will be established on Hockamock Head, adjacent to the lighthouse station. To learn more about this project, please visit www.swansisland.org and click on “Lighthouse.”
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Notes from an Open Book welcomes feedback from its readers. Please contact Diane Magras by email at diane@mainehumanities.org or by phone at (207)773-5051 ext. 208 (toll-free 1-866-637-3233, ext. 208) to respond.