The primary (and best) reason to digitize museum collections is to share them with the public on the web. PMM’s photo archives staff has been hard at work for the past year getting to know Kosti Ruohomaa’s photographs through this process. Since he worked under the umbrella of a photo agency for most of his life (Black Star Publishing in Manhattan), the collection is most meaningfully grouped by his professional assignments: those he was given and those he conceived himself and pitched to them. It’s interesting to observe that many of the “self-assignments” were studies of particular aesthetic and cultural themes which the photographer circled back to repeatedly throughout his career.
Beginning in January of 2021, we’ll use this page to showcase a few new assignments each month. Please check back here to further explore the captivating work of this iconic Maine talent. Click on any of the thumbnails below to open that group of images in our online database.
Kosti Assignments
Lobster Price Fixing
In 1957 the price of lobsters dropped to 30 cents a pound, barely covering the expenses for lobstermen of keeping a […] Read More »
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Andrew Wyeth
Ruohomaa met American realist painter Andrew Wyeth in 1947 through their mutual acquaintance, the sculptor George Curtis. The two enjoyed a […] Read More »
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Pool Room
By the early 20th century, pool halls had become hugely popular in the US and other countries, and their ubiquity was […] Read More »
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Maine Winter
Less than a year after Kosti had his first photo featured on the cover of a Life issue, he was already […] Read More »
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Maine Political Meeting: Governor Muskie
Ruohomaa attended a dinner meeting of Maine democrats sometime in the 1950s to photograph some distinguished speakers, most notably Governor Ed […] Read More »
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Harp Colony
Carlos Salzedo founded the Summer Harp Colony of America in 1929; under this name, he offered intensive, world-class training to aspiring young […] Read More »
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Maine Country School
Mildred Gould taught the eighteen students in this mixed age classroom, all of whom lived within two miles of the Rockville, […] Read More »
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Andrew Wyeth’s Deserted House
Ruohomaa met American realist painter Andrew Wyeth in 1947 through their mutual acquaintance, the sculptor George Curtis. The two had a […] Read More »
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Pulp Drive
In the early days of interior commercial logging, passage by river was the sole means of moving timber from stump to […] Read More »
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Fryeburg Fair
In October of 1951, Kosti Ruohomaa took photographs at the West Oxford Agricultural Society, better known as the Fryeburg Fair. Two […] Read More »
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