BDN Interviews Riordan, MacDougall About Public Humanities Day

The Bangor Daily News spoke with Liam Riordan, a University of Maine history professor, board member of the Maine Humanities Council and director of the UMaine Humanities Center; and Pauleena MacDougall, director of the Maine Folklife Center, about the UMaine Humanities Center’s third annual Downtown Bangor Public Humanities Day on Jan. 24 with a kickoff event on Jan. 23. “The humanities are vital and dynamic, but are often hard to explain in a general way,” Riordan said. “The public humanities events showcase the range of activities that count as the humanities, from music and the visual arts to philosophy, film, oral history and more.” Several events for participants of all ages will be offered at venues including the University of Maine Museum of Art, Bangor Public Library and Maine Discovery Museum. “We hope the program will provide stimulating discussions, will be fun and will build personal connections between UMaine faculty and members of the Greater Bangor community,” MacDougall said.