Joe Devenney has been photographing the Maine coast for thirty-seven years, and Ken Textor has been writing about it equally as long.
Separately--and occasionally on assignment together--they have turned over many stones in this varied 3,000-mile-long coastline, seeking out and recording its moods, seasons, and secrets. Now they are sharing their rich accumulation of images and insights.
Joe'sphotos capture moments of ephemeral grace and beauty in places that areforgotten or hiding in plain sight. Smelt Brook in Castine is not on any standard itinerary. Neither are South Addison, Merrymeeting Bay, theScarborough Marsh, and many other places Joe has explored over the years. Even places that are familiar to many--West Quoddy Head, Old Orchard Beach, Monhegan Island, Pemaquid Point, Portland Harbor, Acadia National Park, and others--are revealed by Joe's camera in moments of other-worldly allure. There are surprises on every page, just as there are surprises around any bend of a Maine coastal road. Every photo in this book was taken from a public vantage point you can reach by car or ferry. An appendix offers directions to each place. Ken Textor's essays reveal hidden nuggets on every page: why the shade on a Castine street has a strange, nostalgic feel; what to think of a mauve lobster boat or a seemingly abandoned dory in the weeds; how a lighthouse surrounded by granite quarries came to be built of brick; which is the front and which is the back of a house built between Main Street and the harbor; how to enumerate the many services provided by a salt marsh; why the lobstering isn't better in upper Blue Hill Bay; why sea air makes us hungry; and how a wormdigger turns a mudflat into money. The great naturalist Louis Agassiz believed that the only way to discover the truth of a thing is through sustained attention. In THE HIDDEN COAST OF MAINE, Joe Devenney and Ken Textor share the results of three-and-a-half decades of attention to an amazing place.
Joe Devenney has been photographing Maine since 1976 and has been a professional outdoor/location photographer since 1983, shooting on assignment for The New York Times, American Profile, Audubon, and other clients. His photographs have appeared on the covers of Down East; Yankee; Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors; Northeast Boating; Points East; and other magazines and have been published worldwide by the National Geographic Society, The Sierra Club, and Reader s Digest, among others. His prints are shown in galleries, juried shows, and festivals throughout the eastern U.S. and are included in many private collections. His work is featured in the collections of Getty Images, The Image Pro Shop, and alamy. Joe lives in Jefferson, Maine. Ken Textor has ranged the Maine coast by land and sea since the late 1970s. He is a contributing editor for Down East magazine and has been boating columnist for the Maine Sunday Telegram, contributing editor for Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors and Country Journal, columnist for Popular Woodworker, and managing editor for Boating Digest. His writing has appeared in WoodenBoat, Cruising World, SAIL, Northeast Boating, Fine Gardening, This Old House, Points East, Sailing, Yachting, and other publications. Ken began his writing career as a general assignment reporter for the Concord (NH) Monitor and was bureau chief for the Claremont (NH) Eagle-Times. He is the author of two previous books, Innocents Afloat and The New Book of SAIL Trim.
The considerable talents of these two artists in their coverage of the Maine coast are second to none. The Hidden Coast is a splendid exploration of Maine.-- "New England Boating"
This is your roadmap to Maine's gems. The photos will inspire you to jump in your car and head there--and there's a very helpful set of directions to each destination in the back of the book.-- "Morning Sentinel"
While it would certainly enhance any coffee table, The Hidden Coast of Maine offers much more than merely an aesthetic armchair browsing experience. It is really an invitation to set out and visit the places represented--and to be even further inspired to seek out others on one's own.-- "Kennebec Journal"
Joe Devenney has been photographing the Maine coast for thirty-seven years, and Ken Textor has been writing about it equally as long. Separately--and occasionally on assignment together--they have turned over many stones in this varied 3,000-mile-long coastline, seeking out and recording its moods, seasons, and secrets. Now they are sharing their rich accumulation of images and insights.
"While it would certainlyenhance any coffee table, The Hidden Coast of Maine offers much more than merely anaesthetic armchair browsingexperience.