Hallowell to host granite symposium Sept. 11-19

PHOTO: Andreas von Huene, Jon Doody, Deb Fahy, Isabel Catherine Kelley and Norman Casas visit Stevens Commons in Hallowell in anticipation of the Hallowell Granite Symposium. Von Huene, Doddy and Kelley are among the six artists who will be featured at the event. (Bob McIntire photo)

HALLOWELL — The first Hallowell Granite Symposium, which will celebrate the city’s granite quarrying history, will take place Sept. 11-19 on the grounds of Stevens Commons.

The symposium is organized by the city’s Arts & Cultural Committee, Maine Stone Workers Guild, Historic Hallowell Committee and Vision Hallowell, with major grant support from the Maine2020 Bicentennial Commission.
Six Maine sculptors will transform granite blocks quarried in Hallowell into works of art inspired by one of the four “Maine200” Bicentennial themes, during the symposium, and the public is invited to watch between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Visitors will vote for their favorite sculpture and one or more will be permanently placed in downtown Hallowell to commemorate the Maine state bicentennial.
A welcome center at the Symposium site will feature displays along with antique tools and other artifacts from the granite industry. A soft stone work area provided by the Maine Stone Workers Guild will offer visitors a hands-on opportunity to do some carving between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily.
An opening reception will be held at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 11, at Old South Congregational Church, 135 Second St., and will feature a presentation on the history of the granite industry in Hallowell by Maine State Historian Earle Shettleworth Jr.
Hubbard Free Library, 115 Second St., will feature a display of photographs of the granite quarries and Hallowell Granite Works.
For a full schedule, details on participating artists and more, visit the symposium website.