KENNEBUNK — The stern, austere faces of Maine’s past look down on the gallery space like ghosts in a Puritanical morgue. The portraits that line the walls of the museum’s second floor are grave, and yet there is a craftsmanship present that offers a glimpse into the mid-19th Century American mindset: Restraint, refinement and an impeccable sense of style.

And wafting into the gallery space from the first floor is the sound of laughing children.

Such was the scene Saturday at the Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk, and while the sounds of laughter may have seemed out of place in a setting rife with buttoned-down itinerant portraiture, the reason for it was simple enough: Complementing the museum’s ongoing exhibition of early American portraits was a special program called “Picture Yourself at the Museum,” a chance for people of all ages to come and try on some period clothes from Brick Store’s educational collection and pose for their own old-fashioned portrait.

In other words, it was time to play dress-up.

“I’m a history buff,” said museum patron Melissa Loisel, trying on some vintage pieces from the museum’s collection, “and I love Civil War (era) stuff. I think I was born in the wrong century.”

Dressed in a clothing style from a century long gone, it is 21st century technology that will ultimately provide Loisel, and the other museum-goers, with their souvenirs to mark the occasion. After dressing up, patrons were photographed in the old-fashioned garb, and through computer editing programs such as Photoshop and Corel, the pictures will be fashioned to look much like the early American portrait pieces in the museum’s ongoing exhibition.

Brick Store Museum Director Tracy Baetz estimates that those who showed up Saturday should get physical copies of their portraits within the week. Having the portraits ready the same day would have been too much of a crunch, which Baetz and the museum staff know first-hand. After all, they’ve done this before.

“It was one of three activities we did on a day-long history camp for kids over the summer,” said Baetz. “We knew we could do it technology-wise.

“The kids loved it,” she said. “We decided to expand it and re-run it as a weekend event.”

The activity lent an interactive element to the portraiture exhibit, which staff hoped would make a more lasting impression to patrons in terms of the history.

“It tends to be a more static display,” said Baetz, but a fun activity like the “Picture Yourself” program can make visitors “more attuned to the symbolism.”

The symbolism in the exhibit’s pieces is subtle, but easily discerned by the educated eye. Fruit, for example, may represent a subject’s genteel status. A bird on a string may be present to hint at mortality and the frailty of life, while a finished musical instrument oftentimes symbolizes refinement.

“Even these early portraits tend to have a lot of charm,” said Baetz. “The placement of furniture and props tell the story of who a person is.”

Props galore were available to patrons for their own portraits, from ferns to books and plastic fruit. Those willing to be photographed were allowed to view their raw pictures before they were processed through Corel to emulate the brush strokes of those early American painters.

Loisel was just happy to get the chance to try on old clothes.

“I would do it all day long,” said Loisel. “I’m a girl, so we like this.

“Although,” she added jokingly, “what I’d really like is if they had a horse as a prop.”

As for doing similar photo activities in the future, the Brick Store Museum is keeping an open mind.

“Certainly it’s a model that works,” said Baetz. “I certainly wouldn’t rule it out.”

— Staff Writer Jeff Lagasse can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 319, or at jlagasse@journaltribune.com.