PORTLAND, Maine — The former director of Haystack Mountain School of Craft on Deer Isle has been tapped to serve as Maine’s new poet laureate.
The Maine Arts Commission announced Thursday that Stuart Kestenbaum of Deer Isle will fill the five-year appointment. He succeeds Wesley McNair.
Kestenbaum, who has written four books of poetry, stepped down from his position at Haystack last year.
Maine Arts Commission Executive Director Julie Richard said in a statement that his work "captures the quirky, rural characteristics that make Maine unique and beloved."