PORTLAND—Stumble down to the ground floor of the Portland Public Library and you’re sure to feel how Alice did after sipping the “Drink Me” sizzurp. A contemporary art exhibition titled “Wake Up Alice!” began November 6 at the library, featuring the surreal, fantastical and cheeky works of 35 Maine artists depicting some element of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The exhibit celebrates the 150th anniversary of the book’s publication as well as the 10th anniversary of the Illustration Program at Maine College of Art (MECA). “I find that people are either in love with Alice In Wonderland or slightly freaked out by it,” said MECA’s Illustration Program Chair and Assistant Professor Scott Nash. “And it’s funny, I read the book when I was a kid in various forms, but there are certain of our artists that were sort of put off by the book and how unkind the characters were to one another. But that’s the nature of nonsense, moving from one curious situation to another. We, like Alice, travel through Wonderland, much in the way we observe things in dreams—dispassionately.” Headed up by Nash, the exhibit took two years to prepare and curate. “All of the artists represented in the show have had some connection to our department, either as visiting faculty, current faculty, alumni and even current students,” Nash said, “I wanted to run the full gamut—from seasoned illustrators to new talent. As a result, we’ve gotten some remarkable pieces and some of the student illustrations are our most popular works.” The diversity of the show shows the range of artistic expression inspired by this story. One of the focal points of the exhibit is a section of wall with what seems like manic Sharpie scribbles. Artist Declan McCarthy put the book on tape and listened to it out loud as he scrawled the entire plot of the book in cartoon form on the wall. “He did this over the course of a few days while we were hanging the show,” said Nash. “He wrote out the whole story in real time. It was incredible to watch him as he worked.” Another artist who brought out the visceral energy of The Mad Hatter, Alice falling down the rabbit hole and The Cheshire Cat was Lori Stebbins, a recent graduate of MECA. Her dream-within-a-cartoon depiction of these iconic characters washed in dark greens and blues, is another popular attraction to the exhibition.
“I’ll get different reactions on what people are focusing on in the show and this is one that’s getting noticed,” Nash said. “I adore Lori’s ‘Alice’ figure and and the dimensions of the illustration all akimbo.” Nash himself, has a few pieces in the show. A diminutive Alice stands in a wash of white looking up after realizing where she is and says something people won’t expect. “As I was getting work in for the show, I took the opportunity to do something a little understated, taking advantage of white space and the idea of Alice shrinking,” Nash said. That’s what I would have said, I’m afraid.” So far, 4,000 people have come through to view the exhibit, which is on par with MECA’s Illustration Department’s previous shows at the Portland Public Library on Edward Gorey, Maurice Sendak and The Art of The Pulps. Nash is proud of his Illustration Department. "There is such a wealth of illustrators in Maine. Coming from Boston 20 years ago, I'm just astounded at all of the talent here. It's the primary reason we're able to develop shows like this." The show will hang until December 31 at the Portland Public Library. For more information visit: Wake Up Alice
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Is this your kind of business? Or similar? -Auto repair -Roofing -Plumbing -Masonry/ carpentry -Landscaping -Demolishing -Trucking -Electrician -Painting company -Fishing/Lobstering I live in Maine and work with men and women every day in these industrial types of businesses. Typically, what's known as "the trades" businesses are very specialized. The people who run them don't often have time to learn how to use social media to push their message out. They're working long hours and too busy. Even if they don't have time to tweet or post on Facebook, their clients definitely are--and that's where the new business is. Here's your one minute marketing tip. If you're going to invest in ANY social media presence at all, make it a business Facebook page. First, you want to build and engage your audience with posts that are universally interesting. For example, last month I posted this on the Facebook page of a painting company client of mine: It was a shared post from This Old House asking readers if they remembered some weird old architectural detail from the house they grew up in. Even though this had nothing to do with a painting company, it was universally interesting and got the most clicks and engagement from readers.
A recent Nielsen study claims that people need to have exposure to someone's brand on social media at least 10 times before they take action. And that's where the Facebook page comes in. But just like at a party if you don't know anyone, you don't just go up to someone, shake their hand and say, "Hi, our company is looking for business, here's an offer." With Facebook, you post and share content to engage your audience. Let them get to know the faces in your company, what you're working on, what makes you laugh or you find inspiring. (But keep it clean.) Experts say that posting 1-2 times a day is ideal; anymore than that and your brand starts to be annoying. Here's more to get you started. I'm running a special for the winter months of $100 to get you a Facebook business page set up with 10 engaging posts. With it comes some built in consulting on how to go from there. View more or contact me for details. THOMASTON — Within a nondescript, low slung building next to Flagship Theater, festive balloons decorate the Midcoast Collaborative sign; otherwise, it’s easy to miss it, tucked away next to an old-fashioned bridal shop. Inside, however, there is some serious creative energy taking place. It’s where eight local men and women use the industrial space as a workshop and office, sharing resources, equipment, and even ideas on each other’s work.
“There’s no boss, everyone is an equal member of the collective. It’s actually a tenant association,” said MidCoLab member Isabella Pierson, a designer and a builder of modern wood furniture. The building used to be a brake service garage with office space, which everyone can use. The back of the building is informally partitioned into smaller hives — each bay is set up differently depending on the person’s interests. Whereas Jill Caldwell, a fine art painter and Stefanie Mojonnier, a graphic designer, printmaker and photographer, might have cans of paint, canvases or art supplies in their sections, Isabella Pierson’s space contains woodworking tools and various projects in production. Other members include Andy White, a sculptor, fabricator, metal worker; Casey Hufnagel, a builder, timber framer, and concrete fabricator; Seth Bournival, a builder and cabinetmaker; Trisha Badger: Managing Director of the World Ocean Observatory, and Zander Shaw, an architect. Further down the storage area of the building, it looks like shop class in high school all over again. “Everyone brought their own machines,” said Isabella, pointing to the various woodworking and metalworking machines situated in the area. “That’s my band saw. That drill press over there, Andy and I bought together. The table saw is on loan from a friend. Because nobody could afford to buy all of this stuff and keep it in one place, this is how we’re able to pool together all of our equipment and share it.” Each member pays insurance and an equal amount to cover the rent, whether they use the MidCoLab every week or just occasionally for individual projects. It also serves as a storage space for stuff that might not fit in the garage or shed.”We have an agreement drawn up that says how we behave in the space and with each other, what happens if equipment needs to be fixed, and everyone gets a vote,” said Isabella. “It is becoming much more popular to have co-working spaces, and also for high-tech stuff where people can’t afford to buy big equipment on their own.” Rockland seems to be at the heart of the Maker-Designer-Artist collaborative scene with two other incarnations of this concept in existence. A woodworking collaborative exists in the former Bicknell Manufacturing Co. on Lime Street in Rockland, and the other, the Steel House, a center for design, technology, and education opened on Main Street in 2014. As a collective, MidCoLab has been around about three years, and just this past summer, formally opened their space up to the public with an open house with all members participating. “We’re just now getting traction,” said Isabella. “Ninety-nine percent of the time you get more back than what you put in. For example, one of us will be working and need some kind of tool. Another person will walk by and say, ‘I happen to have that tool and you can use it.’” Being around creative people for a length of time lends to an exchange of ideas and advice that strengthen one another’s projects. “We’re all trying to make a living,” said Bella. “The amazing thing is we just happen to have a great group of people who are interested in seeing everyone’s success.” The sharing of space and equipment naturally leads to collaboration on commissioned projects as well. “Casey was hired to build a timber frame on an island last summer, so he hired Andy and I to help him cut the frames for that. We did all the work for that here and then hauled all of the materials out to the island.” The collaborative is currently working on figuring out a way to open the space up to entrepreneurs who just want a short-term lease for specific projects. MidCoLab is also accepting applications from creative individuals seeking shared work space. There are currently desk spaces available in a communal workshop/office environment. For more information, visit: facebook.com/midcolab Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com Originally published in the Summer 2015 edition of The WaveBefore the “farm to table” trend became so fetishized, it was just the way people naturally ate. Sixty years ago in Maine, it was just called, “Junior, get your hide out there, pick those fiddleheads and bring ‘em to the kitchen table.” Jump ahead to the 2000s. Maine farmers have been successful in connecting with chefs and restaurateurs, who’ve latched on to the just-harvested herb or vegetable and transformed it to a thing of beauty on the plate. And that in turn, has spurred consumers to buy directly from farmer’s markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)s.
However, that hasn’t always been the case for Maine’s other prolific frontier, the ocean. “The farmers are about 30 years ahead of the fishermen in terms of connecting with consumers,” said Ben Martens, executive director of Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association. “Here we have a fantastic protein source from the Gulf of Maine, that is sustainably harvested, delicious and right at our back door.” Over the years, there’s been a disconnect in getting local fish to local people, particularly because fish sold at grocery stores has come from so many places. “I think a lot of people are wary of buying fish, because there’s a lot of information and misinformation,” said Martens. This topic prompted Maine-based executive chef Barton Seaver, author of For Cod and Country, at this year’s Fishermen’s Forum. “We have moved away from the Catch of the Day mentality,” he said. “The fact is, we so demand cod that we’re not willing to eat pollock, haddock, hake, cusk, Ling, wolf, monk, dog, or skates — even though it costs the fisherman the same amount of effort, fuel and labor to land that fish. From a culinary perspective, it is equally as valuable and from a health perspective, it equally serves the purpose of a nutritious dinner.” Everything started to shift in 2007 when Port Clyde Fresh Catch was established, becoming the first organization in the U.S. to start a Community Supported Fishery (CSF) similar to the farm model where the community pre-buys a “share” that can be picked up. Soon, fisheries from Portland to Gloucester to Cape Cod, began following the model. Maine’s fishermen have been getting in on the boat-to-plate localvore scene, often filleting and selling that fresh fish to the consumer the day it is caught. The trend is only going to pick up more steam as the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association in Topsham just got a $175,000 federal grant to develop a program that will let consumers know not only where and when seafood was caught, but even identify the fisherman who caught it. “The majority of fish are bought through supermarkets in Maine,” said Martens. “Our goal is to find ways to help the general public have more access to more types of locally and sustainably caught fish.” Currently, they are planning on working both Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Hannaford Supermarkets to develop a seafood-tracking system with with this grant. One of the ideas kicking around is to do more in-store food demos. They’re also focusing on technology to allow shoppers can use smartphone to find out where and when fish was caught. “They may be able to scan a package with their phone and up pops a story about the fisherman who actually caught that fish and a recipe on how to cook it.” FMI: visit portclydefreshcatch.com Reprinted from the fall issue of The Wave
Maine’s oyster industry too often gets eclipsed by the bib wearers looking for crustaceans, but for the die-hard oyster connoisseur, nothing is better in the fall than the briny goodness of a plump oyster grown in Maine’s cold waters. Luckily, in the Midcoast, we have access to some of the best varieties grown in the world. Oyster expert Rowan Jacobsen, author of The Oyster Guide explains why. “Oysters reproduce in summer, when water temperatures peak. As they convert their energy reserves to gamete, they tend to taste a little, well, gamey. In Fall, however, they fatten up for hibernation, filling their bodies with savory amino acids and sweet starches. That’s why a November oyster is so firm and delicious, and a July oyster generally isn’t.” More than 16 varieties of Maine oysters are sold year round under various brands, usually labeled most by the region from which they came. We contacted three seafood markets in the Midcoast to find out what they carry and what customers prefer. In order of preference, here are some distinctive brands that can be found locally. Pemaquid These are probably the most well known oyster in the Midcoast, raised in the plankton-rich waters of the Damariscotta River in Lincoln County. They even have their own annual festival named after them. According to its website, Pemaquid Oysters are “held in the cold, briny Class A waters of Clark’s Cove near the river’s mouth, where the oysters obtain their distinctive clean, salty and refreshing flavor.” Another Damariscotta River grower, Glidden Point Oyster Company, raises “cultured oysters well known around the world for their uniform size and shape, deep shell cup, and superb freshness.” Their oysters are grown on the river estuary, fed by naturally occurring phytoplankton. They harvest using a variety of methods, including diving, snorkeling, hand-picking, raking, and dragging, using the method best suited for the particular lease site substrate. Weskeag These are harvested from the Weskeag River in South Thomaston. According to the Oyster Guide by Rowan Jacobsen, “Weskeags have that ultra-briny Maine flavor profile, with a little something unusual behind the salt — a savory miso soup kind of taste, all kelp and smoky dashi.” Aphrodite These come from Cushing. Jillian Bedell writes in her blog From Away that they are “Slender, with an opalescent inside and tender meat. Very innocuous. A good starter oyster for the timid.” North Haven As the name implies, these are harvested off an old salt pond on North Haven, 12 miles off the Maine coast. A review on OysteRater describes them as a “Very nice oyster with great brine and sweet finish. Lovely green hue to the shells as well, and they shuck cleanly...these are really nice in a small package!” John’s River The John’s River Oyster Farm is partially located in the Damariscotta River and John's River in the Midcoast. The Oyster Guide says these “deliver intense fruitiness, sweetness, and brine all at the same time. It’s really unusual, and it’s followed by a mouth-filling clammy umami taste.” Taunton Bay These are harvested at Taunton Bay in Acadia and described by Pangea Shellfish Company as “Plump and silky with a “buttery Chardonnay finish.” Ranging from $1.50 to $2 a piece, these babies are a coveted treat. Just get a shucking glove and a proper oyster shucking knife so you don’t end up in the E.R. Places in Midcoast Maine that sell these varieties, and more Off The Hook, Belfast Graffam Brother’s Seafood Market, Rockport Jess’s Market, Rockland Beth’s Farm Market, Warren Glidden Point Oyster Farm, Edgecomb Restaurants/bars that sell “by the oyster” Front Street Pub, Belfast (Fridays, all day $1.75 each) Chez Michel, Lincolnville (Happy Hour $1.50) McLaughlins Lobster Shack, Lincolnville $1.50) Oyster Bar at The Pearl, Rockland (Mondays $1) Archer’s on the Pier, Rockland (Bloody Shooter: A single shucked oyster in a petite Stoli Bloody Mary $4.99) Primo, Rockland (Thursdays and Sundays for $1) Newcastle Publick House, Newcastle (If you ask, they can do singles for $1.25) Glidden Point Oyster Sea Farm, Edgecomb (Shuck ‘em yourself - $1.25 from 8 am to dusk.) Schooner Landing Restaurant, Damariscotta (Free Oyster Fridays at 4 p.m.) Note: if you would like to reuse portions of this article or photos, please contact the author for permission. Jessica Small and Ezra Rugg are two extremely talented Midcoast musicians. What they know how to do: sing and play. What they don't know how to do: describe their signature sound, create a website or market themselves on social media. That's where I came in. Now, you can see (and hear) for yourselves what makes them so good.
www.thesauternes.com If you're a band, artist or creative business and you need some help in this area too...contact me. The Mysterious Speakeasies of Rockland, Maine A Slide Talk April 1, 7 pm FREE Lower Level fellowship hall of the People’s United Methodist Church in Union In April 2014, the owner of 435 Main Street granted reporter and author Kay Stephens access to a dusty attic room in the building, before it was to be renovated. Graffiti on the hallway walls revealed the room to be a speakeasy, untouched for more than 100 years. Since then, on a quest to research scenes for her new novel, Stephens has set out to discover how Prohibition and bootlegging affected Mainers—Rockland in particular—between 1851, when Maine became the first state to ban the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages and 1933 when Prohibition ended. In her lively presentation, she will bring the past to life, focusing on particular speakeasies, medicinal workarounds and stories of Rockland citizens—some of whom defied the law successfully and others who failed miserably. This is a side to Rockland you’ll never forget! Kay Stephens of Pen Bay Pilot has worked tirelessly to assemble every notable Happy Hour offering in the Midcoast (and yes, it was hard work doing all of that sampling) into a guide that is easily accessible for the person who instantly wants to know, “where should we go today?” From upscale chic inns to hotspots with an urban feel to the local neighborhood taverns, every establishment in our list “Guide to Midcoast’s Happy Hours” has a list of their specials, days and times offered and even notes on the mood of each space.
Click to see guide. CAMDEN — At first glance, the little faces Chris Gray has carved into his handcrafted guitar picks reveal big personalities. Are they pensive? Wincing? Smiling? Hard to tell, but whatever they’re “thinking” they’ve become the signature look of his most recent entrepreneurial venture, Riff Wood Picks. Riff Wood Picks are upcycled and handmade hardwood picks for guitar, bass guitar, ukelele and mandolin. Gray and his wife are originally from Tennessee, but moved up to Union seven years ago on a part-time basis, making it permanent three years ago. A long-time woodcarver, he just started making these guitar picks as a Christmas gift for his son-in-law, who is a musician. “Once I figured out what I was doing, I thought, this is something that others might be interested in,” he said. Since Christmas, he estimates he’s made about 250 of these picks and began a Facebook page. After getting a great response, he just recently built an Etsy site and has said in just a month’s time, he said he’s gotten an appreciable number of sales. “It’s taken off great guns,” he said. Gray credits K2 Music in Camden, where some of his picks can currently be found, for help with their design. As Gray isn’t a musician, he needed input from owners Mac Economy and Harvey Curtis, who are. “When I mentioned to them I was going to make them, I asked Mac and Harvey what were the best pick styles to use for different instruments,” he said. “They were generous enough to critique them and because of their input, I’ve made the picks better.” [See our video where Mac Economy gives a demonstration of how the picks sound.] Gray makes each pick out of laminated hardwoods, producing a sturdy pick with a triangle shape for guitars and an arrowhead shape for bass guitar. The best part about his craft is that he uses leftover scraps of quality hardwoods he finds at A.E. Sampson & Sons and Mystic Woodworks and upcycles scraps that normally would be thrown out or burned. To make them, he first starts with a glued log of two or three hardwoods, such as maple, cherry and walnut. After he band saws a small chunk from this log, he can work four-to-five picks out of each chunk. It takes him more time to do the sanding and polishing of the pick than it takes to do the carving. He calls the iconic look to his guitar pick faces as The Riff Master. “I’ve always enjoyed stylized faces in my carving,” he said, noting that no two faces are alike, but all are “cousins” of the original. The darkened color and shading in the expression of the faces is actually a natural embellishment as the result of working with a dremel, a rotary tool. “It just takes a minimum of strokes to do each one,” he said. “When the tool is sharp, it won’t scorch, but when it’s dull, the friction of the burr scorches the wood. I love the way it looks so I just do the faces with a dull tool.” Faces aren’t the only images he carves. He’s recently been branching out with other images, such as a lobster, the Tree of Life, the sun and moon, a sunflower, a dragon fly, and custom requests. Recently a woman asked him to carve the numbers: 143 into a pick. He was happy to oblige and asked her what the numbers meant. She said it was Morse Code for sailors and each number represented certain letters in a word, such as in this case: I LOVE YOU. Prior to making the picks, Gray also created a natural wood game called Tumblewood. “It’s like Jenga, but it’s pieces of split wood that are stacked more like a split rail fence.” So far, he’s sold about 500 of the games and wants to keep the business small and handcrafted. Between the game, his picks and his part-time living at a sawmill in Union and working for LT Auctions in St. George, he’s making a living here in Maine. He also still manages his family’s gallery in Tennessee. Gray is not ready for a mass production, however. “It’s a lot of carving and not something I’d want to do 40 hours a week,” he said. “It’s hard on your fingers.” Still, it’s enjoyable and gives musicians something to smile about when they put one of those funny little faces between their thumb and finger. Riff Wood Picks can be found at K2 Music and Once A Tree in Camden as well as on Etsy. Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com Natalie’s award-winning bartender deconstructs the 207 Sour CAMDEN — In one week, the Midcoast has gotten more than 24 inches of snow. So, if you’re looking for a knock-your-boots-off cocktail for New Year’s Eve, here’s an ambitious drink created by Seth Knowlton, bar manager for Natalie’s Restaurant in Camden. It’s called the 207 Sour, a sour martini made with Applejack (a whiskey made from apples), along with a sharbat (a homemade concoction of Red Delicious apple peels marinated with lemon). It was time to feature Natalie’s again in this series. To say they are on a roll lately is an understatement. Recently, Camden Harbour Inn/Natalie’s melded their brand with Relais & Chateaux, a world-wide brand known for extraordinary hospitality and culinary achievements. This is the highest level in hospitality internationally, and only two Maine restaurants have become members of Relais & Chateaux. Additionally this year, their chef, Chris Long, won the Maine Lobster Chef of the Year competition and Knowlton was voted Maine’s Bartender of the Year by maine.eater.com. “I was a little shocked,” said Knowlton. “I’m just a small-town Camden, Maine, boy. But I’ve been around, been bartending all along the way. I work with a lot of talented people here, so you pick up on it if you’re willing to.” The 207 Sour is Knowlton’s original creation and the sour notes in the martini don’t come from any commercial sour mix, but instead, from a complex layer of lemon juice, a deep apple flavor and the tang from the balsamic vinegar in the sharbat. “The Red Delicious apple peels take three weeks to make to get that deep red color. It’s really cool, because it’s a labor of love. It tastes unlike anything you’ve ever tried. It hits a part of your palate that’s rarely explored,” said Knowlton. The cocktail is built in a pint glass with:
“If anyone’s worried about using an egg white in the cocktail, it’s like a ceviche, which uses raw fish and lime juice,” said Knolwton. “In the same manner, the lemon juice in this cocktail neutralizes the egg white and makes it safe to drink.” For anyone interested in re-creating this cocktail at home, it takes some time and dedication. Knowlton’s sharbat recipe is not an exact science, he says. (Take a large container and two cups water, two cups balsamic vinegar, ¾ cups of sugar and mix with the peels from five Red Delicious apples. Let sit for about two weeks.) Or, to get the full exotic experience, simply slip into one of the velvet red bar stools at Natalie’s, take in the beautiful twinkling lights on the pine trees inside the restaurant this season and have Knowlton craft one for you. Take a sip. Ain’t life grand? Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com |
The Killer ConvoThis blog is a is a killer roundup of all arts, entertainment, brewery & distillery, food trucks, happy hour happenings in the Midcoast Maine. Feel free to email me anything about Midcoast arts, entertainment & the creative economy. Archives
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