Labor Mural Unveiled at the Maine State Museum Bookmark and Share

January 14, 2013

For Immediate Release: Jan. 14 Contact Information: Julie Rabinowitz, 207-621-5009

AUGUSTA?Commissioner of Labor Jeanne Paquette and Maine State Museum Director Bernard Fishman unveiled the mural depicting scenes in Maine?s labor history on Monday, Jan. 14. This is the 11-panel mural that formerly hung in the lobby of the Department of Labor in Augusta; it now hangs in the atrium of the Cultural Building that houses the Maine State Museum, the Maine State Archives and the Maine State Library.

Commissioner Paquette and Director Fishman made brief remarks at 8:30 a.m. Monday morning in the atrium. The main facility of the Maine State Museum is normally closed on Mondays, but was opened from 9 a.m. to noon on Monday, Jan. 14.

?We are thrilled to make the mural available, as Governor LePage always promised, to the people of Maine now that the litigation has ended,? said Paquette. ?Our goal has always been to find a space that can fit the 33-foot work and also provide the security it now needs as a famous piece of art.?

Paquette added, ?The museum has the space, the expertise, and the security to best house this work of art. It is also far more accessible and more public than the lobby of the labor offices. More people, especially students who visit the museum, will be able to see the mural than ever before.?

The Department of Labor maintains ownership of the mural but has formally loaned it to the Maine State Museum following museum-standard loan practices and with the support of the artist, Judy Taylor. The agreement loans the mural to the Museum for three years and is renewable.

?We are delighted to exhibit the mural and make it available to the people of Maine,? said Fishman. ?As the new director of the Maine State Museum I have been pleased to work with the Department of Labor and the Governor?s office on this project, and to help the museum fulfill its role as a place of meaning and value to all Mainers.?

The museum is open Tuesday?Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Additional information about the museum is available at www.mainestatemuseum.org .

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