MAINE, USA — The September edition of Down East Magazine is on store shelves everywhere and features an array of articles, including a collaborative effort between the Maine State Prison and local artists, photographs taken by Kosti Ruohomaa, and the "Best of Maine" list.
Brian Kevin, the magazine's editor-in-chief, stopped by the 207 studio to talk about the issue.
Question: There is a photo of a yellow bowl with a woodsy scene painted on it that really grabs your attention, and the artist might surprise you?
"It's a neat project because it's a collaborative project, this bowl was made in a woodshop by a resident of the Maine State Prison where there is a program to work on woodworking and other occupational skills. They have partnered up with an organization called Area Interfaith Outreach, or AIO, it's a food and energy assistance program around Knox County. As a fundraiser, the folks in the prison woodshop are making these wooden bowls and then artists around the Midcoast are painting and decorating them in all kinds of different ways.
"They're really attractive. They're having a gallery show at the 'Page Gallery' in Camden and then they will be auctioned off to help raise money for Mainers who need help with a food pantry and energy."
Question: The Penobscot Marine Museum has an incredible exhibit focusing on the work of Kosti Ruohomaa, a photographer who grew up in Rockland with his Finnish immigrant parents. Who is this guy and why do people love his work so much?
"This is a really neat exhibit, I have to say. So, the Penobscot Marine Museum came into possession of boxes of Kosti R's old photo negatives a few years ago. They've been putting together a couple exhibits of his work and this one that specifically highlights his assignments in Maine was supposed to show during the bicentennial year back in 2020 but obviously couldn't because of the pandemic.
"He was a working editorial photographer with kind of a fine art sensibility back in the day which is to say he shot for LIFE Magazine and Look Magazine, and a little startup called Down East every so often. He was kind of a rockstar in the photographic world."
Question: We couldn't let you go without talking about the "Best of Maine," which the September issue of Down East Magazine features. Who made the lists?
"There are so many categories and I can't even begin to run through all the various people who were recognized and organizations and businesses. We have readers vote every year and they narrow it down to a group of finalists and they pick a winner. It's like tens of thousands of votes that get casted, it's incredible.
"We threw in some "Editor's Picks" as well and so I know, for example, a restaurant in Searsport called Hey Sailor was picked as one of the readers' favorite best new restaurants and the editors absolutely concurred with that. There's an outfit in Belfast called DoryWoman Rowing, it's an awesome way to see Maine from the water. So, there are just pages of things like this."
Watch the full interview for more on the new September issue of Down East Magazine.
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