Craig Pederson's sculpture "The Orca," created from native Maine granite, was selected for inclusion in the American Society of Marine Artists 2nd annual Awards Exhibition online.

Pederson explored the world of stone carving having been inspired by the sculptors at the first Maine Coast Stone Symposium at the Boothbay Railway Village Museum. And so the story began. After exploring various abstract shapes and ideas in stone, he created a whale tail. Next, an entire whale. "The Orca" is local granite sourced from E.M. Wood, the base is scrap from a local shipyard, anbd the rod is from Grover's Hardware

The American Society of Marine Artists is a non-profit organization, whose purpose is to recognize, encourage and promote marine art and artists, and hold exhibitions of members' work in museums across the country. The current exhibition is available at www.americansocietyofmarineartists.com through the month of December.

Pederson moved to Boothbay Harbor from New York City, after a successful career as an artist and stringed instrument maker, found an ideal spot on the edge of Mill Cove. Not only does it have work space, it has an abundance of granite and downed trees, the raw materials for sculpture.

Pederson sometimes paraphrases his friend, Utah Phillips, "In a world that is ugly, it is a privilege to create beauty."