The Maine Crafts Association and the Maine Arts Commission launched an effort, almost two years ago, to offer a new specialty license plate featuring the artwork “LOVE” of longtime Vinalhaven resident and internationally recognized artist Robert Indiana.

The deadline to complete the effort is coming up June 1, and as of yet only 500 of the required 2,000 plates have been pre-ordered. The plate will serve to brand Maine as a state of creative people who value the arts and love Maine.

On one level, the LOVE license plate is an effort to celebrate Maine’s craftspeople and artists. On another level, it is a show of support for durable local economies and Maine’s tradition of innovation, entrepreneurship and Yankee ingenuity.

I hope that anyone interested in revitalizing Maine’s economy while preserving our heritage and communities will consider pre-ordering a plate for their own vehicle before the June 1 deadline. The link is very easy to find on our website, www.mainecrafts.org, or at http://tinyurl.com/p3jx6be.

For more information about the State of the Arts license plate – also known as the LOVE Maine plate – please contact Sadie Bliss, executive director of the Maine Crafts Association, at 588-0021.

Nate Rudy

vice president, Maine Crafts Association

West Gardiner