“Anyone who knows Matt might be surprised to find out that he’s camera-shy. It took me five months—and finally his wife, Karli—to convince him to have his photo taken for this exhibition!”

Matt Whitney was born in Eastport, Maine, and moved to Kennebunk in 1980, while in the second grade.  He did the rest of his schooling in the Kennebunks and graduated from Kennebunk High School in 1991. He has always worked in the hospitality industry and has been the bar manager at Shipyard Brewing Company’s flagship Federal Jack's Restaurant and Brew Pub since 1997. Outside of work, he is an active golfer and soccer player.

To accompany his portrait in the exhibition, Matt Whitney loaned two artifacts. The first is a Shipyard pint glass—the same kind of which he fills hundreds on a busy night at Federal Jack’s. The second item is a signature Shipyard growler. A “growler” is a glass jug filled straight from the tap and sealed with a twist-cap. A deposit on the growler upon purchase means the buyer can bring it back later for a refill at a reduced price. Beer in a growler is fresh from one’s favorite bartender and brew pub but has a shorter shelf life than a bottled beer.

“The Kennebunks represent. . . a sense of community. It’s home. It’s a nice place to live.”