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BIDDEFORD, Maine

Artist, human rights advocate Patrisha McLean to speak at UNE on Feb. 10

Artist and human rights advocate Patrisha McLean will speak at UNE on Feb. 10 on the issues of domestic violence
Artist and human rights advocate Patrisha McLean will speak at UNE on Feb. 10 on the issues of domestic violence and relationship abuse.

The University of New England (UNE) will welcome artist Patrisha McLean, advocate for survivors of domestic violence, for a presentation about her acclaimed exhibit, “Finding Our Voices: Breaking the Silence of Intimate Partner Abuse,” on Monday, Feb. 10, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Biddeford Campus Center.

McLean was thrown into the public eye in 2016 after her former husband, Don McLean of “American Pie” fame, was arrested on charges of domestic violence. Following her divorce six months later, the photographer turned pain into art with “Finding Our Voices,” a multimedia exhibit that pairs photos of 21 domestic violence victims with audio of their voices recounting their stories. 

At UNE, McLean will share her story of entrapment and freedom to an audience in the Multipurpose Room of the Biddeford Campus Center. She will also present a slideshow of the journeys of five other survivors of intimate partner abuse in connection with the exhibit. 

McLean said she is excited to talk with UNE students directly about the issues of domestic violence and relationship abuse.

“Young people are who I particularly want to reach with my project,” she said. “It's a lot easier to avoid abusive relationships than leave them, and I am looking forward to sharing red flags to look out for and also to get campus conversations going around this issue."

McLean was named one of “50 Mainers creating a brighter future for the state” by Maine Magazine in 2019. That same year, The New York Times devoted an entire page to her story and project. She represented the U.S. in a world-wide symposium on gender-based violence and has given keynote presentations on “What Trapped Me: What Freed Me,” an initiative to highlight domestic violence as a human rights issue, to groups around the country.  

This event is being organized by the UNE Center for Excellence in Collaborative Education (CECE), a University-wide hub for cross-disciplinary education and collaborative practices across academic disciplines.

UNE student Kimberly Davis (M.S.W., ’21), who has assisted CECE in bringing “Finding Our Voices” to campus, said the presentation and exhibit will foster ongoing University-wide conversations about domestic violence — both about what it means to be a victim and how victims can recognize the signs of abuse.

“I am absolutely convinced of the power of using the arts to create social change,” Davis said. “I hope people will see that domestic violence happens to every category of people, and I hope that it creates awareness of what specifically the trauma of being a victim looks like.”

Davis also said she is thankful to UNE for providing a space for students and domestic violence survivors to engage openly in discussion.

“I am really proud of my university for hosting this event. It’s hard-to-deal-with information, but it’s important,” Davis said. 

There will be a question and answer session with McLean following her presentation. Additionally, “Finding Our Voices” will be on display in the UNE Campus Center throughout the month of February, a year after it first opened in Camden.

This event is co-sponsored by the UNE Office of Intercultural Student Engagement.

Patrisha McLean will talk about her exhibit "Finding Our Voices: Breaking the Silence of Intimate Partner Abuse"
Patrisha McLean will talk about her exhibit "Finding Our Voices: Breaking the Silence of Intimate Partner Abuse," which will be on display in the Biddeford Campus Center throughout February.

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.