Spruce Point Inn is known for immersing guests in the local art, history and cultural scene of Midcoast Maine, from its “innkeepers tips” to its smartphone app. Over the winter, the inn has enhanced its guest rooms with original artwork by a member of the storied Monhegan Island art colony, Kevin Beers, and other artists.

The inn commissioned two paintings, one of Burnt Island Lighthouse and one of Ram Island Light, as well as a collection of original prints by Beers. The two originals are being displayed in the inn’s main dining room 88, during the coming season. The prints are placed throughout the inn, accenting interior spaces with Beers’ “windows” into life in Maine. The inn has had collector-quality giclee prints made from the commissioned works so that guests can take home authentic art as another dimension of “oceanside memories made in Maine.”

“Maine is as famous for its art and we are proud to support the work of a distinguished living Monhegan Colony painter, Kevin Beers,” innkeeper Angelo DiGiulian said. “Authenticity is more than location. It takes an appreciation for every sensory impression, for cultivating relationships with every dimension, to affirm the unique sense of place Maine provides to our guests. The art we choose for the inn is a link with the place and its people, and we think Kevin Beers’ work speaks vividly to that living connection.”

“I only paint things for which I have a strong emotional attraction,” Beers said. “I am drawn to certain subjects that I return to again and again. I'm also drawn to plein air painting. I grew up in the Hudson Valley, an area with a rich history of landscape painting. The artists of the Hudson River School, the first school of American painting, worked in my backyard.

“I have since expanded my stomping grounds to include Monhegan Island, a small island off the coast of Maine also prominent in the history of American art. Artists like Edward Hopper, Robert Henri, George Bellows, Rockwell Kent and the Wyeths have painted there. A tiny island of rugged rock with dramatic headlands and crashing surf, it can give you a pretty intense experience of nature.”

The inn worked with Boothbay art dealer Dennis Gleason, of Gleason Fine Art, who represents Beers. Gleason established the fine art gallery in 1985 with his wife Martha. Gleason Fine Art (www.gleasonfienart.com) has become a fixture on the local and statewide art scene. Located in a restored 19th-century house at 31 Townsend Avenue in the center of Boothbay Harbor, the gallery occupies the entire first floor. Selling 19th through 20th century art, the Gleasons offer the finest work by established painters and sculptors inspired by the beauty of Maine, especially its coast.

Over the years, they have placed work in some of Maine’s most important permanent collections, including the Portland Museum of Art, Farnsworth Museum and the Monhegan Museum. The gallery celebrates the rich art history of coastal Maine, particularly the long-standing connection between Boothbay Harbor and Monhegan Island. The gallery presents an exhibition of Kevin Beers New Work, June 19 through July 26, 2014.

“Each summer, Brooklyn resident Kevin Beers returns to the rock-bound island of Monhegan to paint for five months,” Dennis Gleason said. “Monhegan has come to mean a lot to Beers as it is where he transformed a passion for painting into his life’s work.”

Spruce Point Inn was recently highlighted on the travel blog, www.epicureandculture.com for its art-related programs, including the David Marx photography workshop offered in June and September.

In operation for over 100 years, Spruce Point Inn is a distinctive and historic vacation destination in Boothbay Harbor for travelers nationwide. Located on 57 acres of stunning oceanfront and sheltering pine forest, the resort is a retreat with nine guestrooms in The Inn, 15 classic cottages and cottage rooms, 56 modern lodge rooms and five townhouses. The convenient location, peaceful setting and spectacular coastal views have made Spruce Point Inn a premier resort for families, reunions, weddings and business events. For reservations and more information, call 1-800-553-0289 or visit www.sprucepointinn.com.