The Eliot Elisofon Collection
Prominent midcentury documentary photographer and photojournalist Eliot Elisofon fell in love with the island of Vinalhaven, Maine, and bought a farmhouse on Crockett’s Cove in 1942; it became a summer retreat for him and his family. He cherished his time in this bucolic place and was very involved in island life. This inspiration and his passion for camera work naturally led to the casual photographic survey he made of the island and its inhabitants. Though most of his professional work is in the hands of major museums and galleries, Elisofon’s daughter Elin wanted the Vinalhaven photos to reside close by; she donated the group of nearly 2000 slides and negatives, shot between 1940-1970, to Penobscot Marine Museum in 2020.
Adopt-a-Photo
PMM has begun a campaign to raise $14,000 needed to digitize, describe, and publish the collection online. These evocative photographs have received recent press in Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors and Working Waterfront, providing a fitting introduction and announcing the museum’s fundraising campaign. To meet our goal, we ask for your support. Each $10 donation will “adopt” a negative or slide. As the negatives are adopted, we will process and upload them to our online image database. A credit line with the photos will acknowledge you as the donor. Click the donate button below to support the project! Thank you!