by Kevin Freeman
I was born in July of 1960. I was raised in Cape Neddick, Maine and consider myself a local after living here for 66 years. I attended the York Beach School, and Cape Neddick School, York Junior and Senior High. I graduated from York High School in 1978. I attended and graduated from the Portland School of Art (MECA) in 1983.
I met my wife, Sandra at the Portland School of Art. We shared an apartment for a summer on Crescent Street before moving to Cape Neddick. We moved into a painting studio I had begun building during my last year at PSA. The building was quite primitive but suited our ambitions well. I supported myself by working for a friend who was a mason. This allowed me to spend time working as needed—to buy food and paint.
Sandra studied photography at the Art School. We both had creative aspirations and found our studio to be a comfortable place to live, our long driveway removed us from the hustle and bustle of a tourist community in the summers. But also, put us in Ogunquit center with a short bike ride.
Sometime in 1990, at the advent of my first child, I began a sign business. It was a very modest operation, it slowly expanded and we made a living. Having been a student of simplicity and nature, inspired by Thoreau and others I lived in two worlds. One; the reality of life, the other, the dream of being creative, whatever that meant I really didn’t know. During parenthood everything else was set aside. Our priority was to raise our children with love and devotion. This created challenges that we embraced with dedication. I always kept a pen and ink nearby and would occasionally dabble with paint and canvas. I imagined myself, someday, getting back to the creative life that I experienced before parenthood.
I have always loved painting. Well, since my mother bought me finger paints for the bath tub when I was two or three years old. I recall being stupefied at how I could put my finger in a jar of paint, wipe it on the bathtub wall and there was something! OMG, I was hooked! I carry that same feeling of wonder when I paint today and that is what inspires me to keep at it.
