Camden, Maine, November 10, 2022 – Camden National Bank is excited to celebrate the opening of the Portland Public Library’s newest exhibit, A Blue: Daniel Minter and the Layered Narrative of Illustration. The free exhibit explores the children’s book artistry of Coretta Scott King and the award-winning illustrator, Daniel Minter. The exhibit will be on view through December 31, 2022 in the Portland Public Library’s Lewis Gallery.
“It is an honor to partner with the Portland Public Library to make this exhibit possible, as supporting our community is an important part of our culture at Camden National Bank,” said Greg Dufour, president and chief executive officer of Camden National Bank. “We look forward to sharing this remarkable exhibit with the public, and to watch these beautiful illustrations connect families and neighbors as we help educate and enrich our communities.”
Minter calls on African, West Indian, and Afro-Latin American culture and religious life as influences in his work, thus broadening the visual vocabulary of African American art. The exhibit features illustrations from Minter’s books, Blue: A History of the Color As Deep As the Sea and as Wide as the Sky, So Tall Within: Sojourner Truth’s Long Walk to Freedom, Going Down Home with Daddy, The Women Who Caught the Babies, Step Right Up: How Doc and Jim Key Taught the World Kindness, Ellen’s Broom, Seven Spools of Thread: A Kwanzaa Story, and The Foot Warmer and the Crow.
Also included in the exhibit are the pieces he created for U.S. Postal Service Kwanzaa stamps in 2004 and 2011.
“We feel so fortunate to host this important and beautiful body of work” said Rachael Harkness, Gallery and Special Programs Curator. “Daniel Minter has been contributing to children’s literature for decades and his fine art has been exhibited nationally and internationally. It’s wonderful to celebrate his contributions to the world of illustration in his own community.”
Portland Public Library is open Monday, 10-6; Tuesday through Friday 10-5; Saturday 10-3. The Lewis Gallery is on the lower level and accessible during library open hours.
About Daniel Minter
As founding director of Maine Freedom Trails, Daniel Minter has brought the history of the Underground Railroad and the abolitionist movement to the streets of Portland in a series of markers. For the past 15 years Minter has used his art and voice to raise awareness of the 1912 forced removal of an interracial community on Maine’s Malaga Island. In 2019, Minter co-founded Indigo Arts Alliance, a non-profit dedicated to cultivating the artistic development of people of African descent. Indigo Arts Alliance and Minter are founders of the Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Book Festival, an annual event celebrating children’s books and creators that tell the stories of the African Diaspora.
About Camden National Bank
Camden National Corporation (NASDAQ:CAC) is the largest publicly traded bank holding company in Northern New England with $5.5 billion in assets and approximately 600 employees. Camden National Bank, its subsidiary, is a full-service community bank founded in 1875 in Camden, Maine. Dedicated to customers at every stage of their financial journey, the bank offers the latest in digital banking, complemented by personalized service with 58 banking centers, 24/7 live phone support, 68 ATMs, and additional lending offices in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. For the past three years, Camden National Bank was named a Customer Experience (CX) Leader by independent research firm, Greenwich Associates. In 2022, it received awards in two CX categories: U.S. Retail Banking and U.S. Commercial Small Business and the bank was included in the 2022 list of Best Places to Work in Maine. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.
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