About the Photographer
Blue Hill Bay Gallery owner Peter LaFreniere has been equally fascinated with nature and the arts all his life. He was born in Michigan and spent his youth paddling the rivers and streams of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, while pursuing his B.A. at the University of Michigan, and Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota. After ten years at the University of Montreal teaching in French, he now teaches at the University of Maine in Orono.
His exposure to the world of art began in Ann Arbor in the 60's, and was energized further by a year in Paris in 1970, a city he has returned to for inspiration many times since, most recently as a Fulbright Scholar at the Sorbonne in 2000. Besides touring the art galleries and museums from Amsterdam to St. Petersburg, he also collected African art in the 70's as a Peace Corp volunteer. His special attachment to French culture can be seen in the gallery works from Paris, Montreal, and Charlevoix, Quebec, as well as his photographs from all corners of France from Brittany to Provence.
A professional wildlife photographer, naturalist, and amateur sailor, he also writes articles on rivers, lakes, coastal bays, and wetlands, and the creatures that inhabit these places. He has lived in Maine for over 10 years with PJ, a Brittany Spaniel, and photographs the rugged beauty of Maine year-round. Some of his favorite haunts are the Allagash, Baxter, Blue Hill Bay, Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island, Deer Isle, and the harbors, islands, and coast from Kittery to Campobello.
His photographs have won several national awards and are regularly published in books and magazines, and exhibited in galleries throughout Maine. Peter founded Nature Art in 1996 to promote the appreciation and protection of wild creatures and places. During the summer he can be found at the Blue Hill Bay Gallery, when he's not out with his camera somewhere nearby.
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Peter LaFreniere
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peter@bluehillbaygallery.com
Photo by Joe Lendvai
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