MMW Spirit of Structure Workshop
Spirit of Structure Workshop
Maine Media Workshops
August 11 to 17
Rockport Maine
What is the “Spirit of Structure Workshop”? I use the term Spirit of Structure to describe how I approach photographing the places we humans build. I am trying to capture a story about the built environment. During this workshop, we will visit at least one location a day. On a couple of days, we may visit several different places. We will travel to buildings and structures that I find exciting and continue to photograph regularly. Each day we will return to the classroom and share images, looking at the photographs to see if we can find the story for each location. There will not be assignments per se, but I will talk about how I approach each situation and what I have found unique and why I continue to return to the location. I am looking for the iconic image that is both specific and universal. In other words, the picture defines a location specifically but becomes universal.
Fort Knox
Fort Knox is a Maine State Park located about an hours drive north of Rockport. This granite fort built on the western bank of the Penobscot River between 1844 and 1869. It housed troops on a few occasions and never fired a shot in anger. It is defined by brick arches, ports (windows) where the canon would have fired on passing ships and staircases. It has two spiral stairs leading to the top of the fort. I have been photographing at Fort Knox since my first visit to Maine in 1981. I find endless opportunities within its shape, shadows, arches, and windows. Fort Knox was named after General Henry Knox, U.S. Secretary of War under George Washington.
Montpelier: The Henry Knox Mansion
Montpelier is a copy of the original Henry Knox Mansion in Thomaston, ME. Henry Knox retired from military and civil service to the coast of Maine where he built his grand home Montpelier. It fell into total disrepair by the mid 19thCentury and was torn down. About fifty years later the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) rebuilt Montpelier at its current location about 2 miles from its original site. The DAR had Knox’s notes and letters and descriptions of the mansion, so they were able to build a very credible reproduction. The 2019 Spirit of Structure Workshop will be able to photograph in Montpelier.
Langlais Sculpture Park, Georges River Land Trust
Bernard Langlais was a world renown sculpture. He built hundreds of wooden sculptures many of which sat on his property for years. A few years ago the Georges River Land Trust took over the property and began a massive renovation. With the help of several major corporations, they were able to refurbish many of Langlais’ sculptures. At his home in Cushing, they created a short trail to display about 10 of his outdoor sculptures. Many other sculptures were placed around Maine. We will visit the Sculpture Park and hopefully be able to photograph inside his home, workshop, and studio as well as photograph around all of the exterior sculptures.
Pemaquid Point Light House
Commissioned By John Quincy Adams in 1827, Pemaquid Point Lighthouse sits at the entrance of Muscongus Bay and John’s Bay. The park includes a Fisherman’s Museum and access to the Lighthouse with admission. It is also one of the great landscape locations in Maine. We will be looking at how the Lighthouse sits above the rocky shore and well as investigating the Lighthouse itself. It is the classic Maine Lighthouse. During the week if we have time, we may also visit one or two other local lighthouses.
The Old German Meetinghouse, Waldoboro, Maine
The Old German Meetinghouse is one of the oldest churches in Maine. It was built in 1772 by a group of Reformed Lutherans. It was initially made on the east bank of Medomak River and moved at a later date to its present location. I first photographed inside in 2018. The interior still retains the look and feel of an 18th-century church with its box pews, large windows, and a high pulpit. It is a challenging location and one I have just begun to explore. During the workshop, we will spend time here and at the Waldoboro Historical Society’s other site which has a one-room schoolhouse and a stone cow pen.
Join me this summer in Maine and explore the Spirit of Structure found in Mid Coast, Maine.
tillman