Paul S. Plumer

HALLOWELL -- Hallowell artist Paul Southworth Plumer died unexpectedly Monday afternoon, May 17, 2010, at MaineGeneral Medical Center, following an illness of several months at his home.

Paul was born in Augusta on Sept. 10, 1936, the son of Paul S. and Claire Miller Plumer. He was educated in Hallowell and Gardiner schools, graduating from Gardiner Area High School in 1956. He served in the Air Force until 1961. He studied art at Ecole Nationale Des Beaux Arts Et Des Arts Appliques, Nancy, France, followed by study at The Art Center School of Design in Los Angeles, now located in Pasadena, Calif.

He began working as a freelance illustrator in Los Angeles, where he produced work for ABC television. He returned to Maine in 1963 and worked for Ad-Media Inc. in Augusta until 1965, when he started his own commercial art and illustration studio in a barn adjacent to his home. For more than 40 years, he worked in watercolors, oils, drawings, architectural renderings, sculpting and woodcarving.

Although Paul Plumer chose to remain in the state he so loved, his lifelong career in art included many noteworthy accomplishments, the most recent being the national selection in 2007 of one of his drawings for the book, "Strokes of Genius: The Best of Drawing." The book's flyleaf describes the art selected for the book as "169 standout examples of the finest drawing being done today, selected from hundreds of submissions from around the world."

Paul's work is also in numerous private and public collections. Kennebec Savings Bank in Augusta has a large collection of Plumer artwork representing various areas and institutions of the region, many of them historical. In his early years, he was a consultant to the newly constructed Maine State Museum in Augusta, working with museum staff to design and create exhibits, particularly the natural history area. In those same years, he was a consultant for several years to the newly-formed Maine Commission on the Arts and Humanities. He taught at the Portland School of Art, now Maine School of Art, in Portland and at Kents Hill School. Paul mentored many young people over the years.

Paul will also be remembered for his passion for the outdoors and his desire to share his considerable knowledge and skills with others. He loved the state of Maine, particularly its woods and mountains, hiking many of them throughout his life. He took an active interest in Hallowell, complained that the traffic is getting "as bad as Boston," and was proud to be a native son. He was involved in numerous community activities over the years including the Hallowell Board of Trade and the march on the State House to save Hallowell back in the 1970s. He was a downhill skier, a sailor, and loved music, especially classical.

He and his wife, Mary, had lived in their historic Warren Street home, once owned by a publisher of the Hallowell Gazette, for 45 years.

He is survived by his wife, Mary, of Hallowell; his son, Peter and his wife, Patti, of Nashville, Tenn.; a son, Paul Birmingham, of West Melbourne, Fla.; a daughter, Ramona Birmingham, of Indialantic, Fla.; his grandchildren, Lauren Plumer and Mitchell Plumer, both of Murfreesboro, Tenn., James Maloney and his wife, Keiko, of Pasadena, Mary Maloney Philip and her husband, Chris, of Nashville, William and Brandon Birmingham, of West Melbourne, and Neil Birmingham, of Indialantic; his brother, Stephen, of Hallowell; as well as several nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was predeceased by his brother, Timothy C. Plumer.

Family and friends will gather at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, May 22, at Paul and Mary's home, 16 Warren St., Hallowell, for an informal remembrance and celebration of the life of a very good man.