The Magic of Photography Celebrated

The Magic of Photography Celebrated in

Penobscot Marine Museum’s 2014 History Conference

Searsport, Maine, October 10, 2014 – The enormous influence of photography on how we see ourselves and how we see our culture is the subject of Penobscot Marine Museum’s 2014 History Conference, Exploring the Magic of Photography: Painting with Light.  The History Conference brings together scholars, professionals, and the public to explore new ideas on topics relating to the museum’s collections.  This year’s conference complements the museum’s extensive photographic collection of over 140,000 images which document life in New England from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. 

Speakers at the History Conference will present six illustrated talks: Maine State Museum’s Deanna Bonner-Ganter will talk about the famous images of LIFE photographer Kosti Ruohomaa; Libby Bischof of the University of Southern Maine on the lives and work of four 19^th-century Maine women photographers; retired Beloit College ProfessorMichael Simon on the importance of the snapshot; Maine historian and author Bill Bunting on discovering hidden photographic treasures; photographer Sam Murfitt on capturing the disappearing traditions of the fishing industry; and Colby College professor Laura Saltz will speak on the surprising influence literature and photography exert on each other. 

The History Conference is a part of Penobscot Marine Museum’s 2015 exhibition Exploring the Magic of Photography: Painting with Light.  The exhibit, opening May 23, 2015 will include opportunities for visitors to develop film in a darkroom using historic methods, make their own pin-hole camera, and have a tintype photograph taken with historic equipment.  It will also include a walk-in Camera Obscura, an exhibit of extraordinary Maine women photographers, and behind the scenes tours of Penobscot Marine Museum’s extensive photography archives.  The exhibit is part of the Maine Photo Project mainephotoproject.org, a year-long, statewide collaboration that celebrates photography in Maine. Twenty-seven participating museums, galleries, historical societies, and other non-profit cultural organizations will offer public exhibitions, a major publication, and a variety of programs exploring the state’s role as a magnet for photographers, both as a subject and as a unique place for introspection, discourse, and innovation.

The 2014 History Conference Exploring the Magic of Photography: Painting with Light is Saturday, November 1^st at The University of Maine Hutchinson Center, 80 Belmont Avenue, Belfast, Maine from 8:00 am to 2:30 pm.  For the schedule, more information, or to purchase tickets go to the website www.penobscotmarinemuseum.org or call 207-548-2529.