Artists: The reason the we're all here? Hudson to Harbor Event Celebrates Living Local Artists & History
Acadia's June Visitation Numbers Low; Bar Harbor Man's Widow Sues Former Staffer
BAR HARBOR—Some of the original tourists to Mount Desert Island were artists.
“We are here,” Bar Harbor artist Liz Cutler posted on her Facebook, “because of the artists.”
Artists sit on the back porch of La Rochelle on West Street or near the Shore Path, at the edge of Eagle Lake or Schooner Head, paint brushes aloft, fiber needles stabbing, reinterpreting the world according to their eyes and vision. They create, they interpret, they tell and retell the story of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park.
According to Acadia National Park,
“Artists and journalists—who revealed and popularized this island to the world in the mid-1800s. Painters of the Hudson River School, including Thomas Cole and Frederic Church, glorified Mount Desert Island with their brushstrokes, inspiring patrons and friends to flock here. Following in the footsteps of Cole and Church came other artists such as Clement Drew, Julia Whiting, and Sanford Robinson Gifford who sought to capture the relatively unknown beauty of Mount Desert Island. Soon after these artists exhibited their work in major cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, tourists began arriving by steamboats and yachts, establishing the village of Bar Harbor as a popular resort in the summer for the wealthy elite.”
It happened this past week. It’s happened for centuries. And now it’s also happening to support two local nonprofits: ArtWaves and the Bar Harbor Historical Society.
This Friday, ArtWaves and The Bar Harbor Historical Society continue the legacy of art as the two nonprofits begin the Hudson to Harbor Artist Showcase, an exclusive art sale at the Bar Harbor Historical Society, featuring plein air and other works inspired by the mansion that houses the society, La Rochelle, and the surrounding area.
Throughout the summer, artists have been working at the oceanfront property on West Street in traditional plein air and also at various MDI locations.
A selection of the pieces created have been curated to give an array of views and prices so that the event allows people to select and own a piece of original art.
“Hudson to Harbor is a collaboration between ArtWaves and the Bar Harbor Historical Society. Bringing 25 artists to MDI and specifically La Rochelle the Gilded Age cottage in Bar Harbor. Following, but not exclusive of the tradition of plein air painters of the Hudson River School, these artists will offer up the work made in this one week in residence. Work will be available at a ticketed cocktail party Friday night, August 11, open to the public Saturday 10-2, and online on the BHHS website until Monday August 14. Half of the proceeds go directly to the artists, with the partnered organizations sharing the other half,” said ArtWaves Director Nikki Moser.
MaryAnn Ead is one of the 15 artists featured at the #HudsonToHarbor Artist Showcase.
MaryAnn writes,
“I give you peace and joy through my art. Our planet is alive and ever-changing. It shows us the process of creation in every present moment. It is from here that I am inspired to create in abstract or to show my vision of how I see my surroundings. Peace and joy are my cornerstones for a good life. When I make art I am both experiencing and creating this in an art piece.”
The Hudson River School was an art movement in the middle of the 19th century that had been influenced by Romanticism and originally focused on Hudson River Valley, New York depictions. The paintings tend to reflect the themes of settlement, discovery, and exploration and are pastoral, realistic, detailed, and often idealized when illuminating nature.
Plein air or en plein air just means painting while outside.
HISTORY OF PAINTERS ON MDI
On August 10, Carl Little will present a “History of Painters on MDI” at the Historical Society specifically talking about the Hudson River School Painters. A suggested donation is $10 a person. The event is at 4 p.m. at the Bar Harbor Historical Society.
QUICK FACTS ABOUT HUDSON TO HARBOR
25 artists who have been working in residence at La Rochelle or on MDI will have work for sale;
After the event on Friday, all works will be on the BHHS website and can be purchased there;
Saturday you can come and see the works in person from 10 a.m. -2 p.m.
Artists receive 50% of the sale price with ArtWaves and BHHS splitting the remainder;
Artworks will be for sale online until Monday afternoon.
MORE DETAILS:
Location: 127 West Street, Bar Harbor
Date: Friday, August 11 and then Saturday 10-2
Time: 5 PM
Tickets: Hudson to Harbor Tickets (Friday night)
ACADIA NUMBERS
According to a recent Bangor Daily News story by Bill Trotter, “Acadia had nearly 38,000 fewer visits this June than it did for the corresponding month a year ago, when it had more than 600,000 visits. With the year’s lower June numbers, Acadia’s running total was set back more than 11,000 visits behind where it was on July 1, 2022.”
The rainy June weather is believed to be the cause for the drop. It rained about 5 inches in June, three inches above the June average for MDI. July numbers haven’t been released.
Trotter wrote, “In 2022, visitation fell off a little but, with 3.97 million visits, it clocked in as the park’s second-busiest year ever.”
MAX LINN
Trotter also reports that Hanna Aquino, the widow of political candidate Max Linn, has sued his former campaign staffer, Matthew T. McDonald, 42. McDonald’s next court hearing on the felony charge is in November.
McDonald, of Hancock, faces criminal allegations for stealing over $225,000 from the couple in a complaint that involves allegedly investing Linn and Aquino’s money in cryptocurrency in his own name. Linn died in December 2021 from a heart attack. Aquino found him in their hot tub at their Bar Harbor home. McDonald had filed a protection order against Linn prior to his death, saying Linn threatened him at gunpoint. Linn denied that occurred.
According to Trotter,
“McDonald told police he made the cryptocurrency investments in his own name, rather than in Linn’s or Aquino’s, and that he ‘liquidated’ the investments when Linn allegedly sought to use the cryptocurrency to buy drugs.”
A Reform Party candidate back in 2006 in Florida, Linn ran for U.S. Senate in 2018 and 2020 in Maine. McDonald worked for him during those campaigns. Linn had been a financial planner focused in Florida prior to his stints in politics.
According to Trotter,
“In the civil complaint, which was filed Monday in federal court in Portland, Aquino and Susan Englar, the personal representative of Linn’s estate, accuse McDonald of 11 offenses, including fraud, breach of contract, unjust enrichment, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress, among others.”
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