At first light, a lobsterman loads his boat in solitude, preparing to depart for the day—a quiet moment that reflects the rugged beauty of Maine’s coast.
Maritime artist Thomas Adkins draws many of his ideas from scenes and landscapes like this one. “I go out and study nature often in the early morning, and I love the way the sun shines through the pines and the reflection it creates,” he says. This 16 x 20-inch oil painting, titled “Rising Sun On the Mid Coast,” is a composite based on two 9 x 12-inch studies he created en plein air. Set in Cushing, Maine, the painting also draws inspiration from Deer Isle.
Adkins’s artistic process usually begins with on-location studies of 16 x 20 inches or smaller. He then composes larger pieces in his studio by compiling studies and sketches, working from memory, editing the details and dramatizing the scene. He might snap a reference photo when he first arrives at the location to capture the light before it changes or the shape of a boat, but he otherwise acquires all the information he needs while he’s painting.
“I’m focused on the atmosphere of the painting, and photographs never capture that,” Adkins says. “That’s why it’s imperative that you paint outdoors, because as you’re painting, there are slight, subtle changes. A ray of light might hit the top of a boat, and it happens for just a few seconds, so you add that to the painting.” He uses these moments to build the final piece, which helps convey a sense of place and character.
Adkins knew he wanted to be an artist since winning first place in an art contest in the first grade. He studied illustration and graphics at Paier College of Art in New Haven, Connecticut, and attended graduate classes at the School of Visual Arts in New York, all while painting on the side. After working as an art director and creative director for advertising agencies in Connecticut and New York, he eventually transitioned to fine art as a full-time profession.
Today, Adkins has two studios—one in Southbury, Connecticut, and the other on the Maine coast, which he built 20 years ago and visits year-round.
“Maine is very special when it comes to painting and subject matter,” he says, explaining that there is less private property in the state than other parts of the East Coast, allowing him to roam pretty much anywhere during the off-season to seek inspiration. “The lighting is a little different,” he continues. “Everything is softer; it’s not quite as stark. But the character of the coastline is very rough.”
Adkins travels to Monhegan Island for a week every year to paint, and he uses his own small boat to explore various coves along the coastline, where, he says, “subject matter is around every corner.”
Adkins’s work is on display in galleries throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Virginia, and “Rising Sun On the Mid Coast” is included in the American Impressionist Society’s 26th Annual National Juried Exhibition.
Courtesy of the J. Russell Jinishian Gallery, jrusselljinishiangallery.com.
August 2025
