July 29, 2010 -- A new show of black and white photography by Michael Kahn brings an element of abstraction to the windjammer exhibit at Penobscot Marine Museum. Part of the ongoing exhibit "Earning Their Keep: Maine's Windjammers," the display of Kahn's photographs runs August 5 – 24 in the museum's Main Street Gallery.

"Seldom in man’s history have we created something as beautiful and as functional as the sailboat," says Kahn, whose work has appeared everywhere from Cruising World and Family Circle to the New York Times and the James Bond movie Die Another Day. "These boats symbolize more than just basic transportation. They represent the ability of man to work with nature. To harness the power of the wind and endure the strength of the sea is an awesome achievement."

While generally pictorial in nature, Kahn's photography often emphasizes abstract shape and form as a means of exploring the beauty and grace of sailing vessels. His hand-processed gelatin silver prints provide a rich texture to his images that is one of his trademarks. Marine Art Quarterly has compared his work to that of Ansel Adams for its "sureness of vision, richness of atmosphere and subtlety of surface."

"Earning Their Keep," which runs through October 24, celebrates the history of Maine's windjammer fleet through photos, film, models, artifacts and ephemera. Following the Kahn exhibit, the museum will present windjammer photography by Fred LeBlanc.