LEWISTON – Artists around the world know Marsden Hartley’s work, but few people know him in his hometown.

Until recently, even Mayor Lionel Guay had never heard of the Lincoln Street native whose paintings sometimes sell for more than $1 million.

Guay wants that to change. He backed the City Council’s recent decision to name the Lewiston Public Library’s new cultural center after the artist. He is also talking about a memorial plaque beside the Androscoggin River’s Great Falls, where Hartley’s ashes were spread more than half a century ago.

“With everything that’s going on in the city, as a place for artists, this is a great, great opportunity,” Guay said.

Hartley was born in 1877. Maine landscapes were his first subjects. During his lifetime, he worked in New York, Berlin, Paris, New Mexico and Nova Scotia. And he worked in a variety of styles, from naturalism to cubism, abstract impressionism and expressionism.

In his later life, one of his favorite subjects to paint was Mount Katahdin. He was also known for his essays and poems.

Hartley died in 1943, just as his work was becoming valued. Just prior to his death, he donated manuscripts to Bates College.

He also donated a painting to the Lewiston Public Library. Titled “Shady Brook,” it hangs beside the circulation desk on the first floor.

The new cultural center, part of the library’s $2 million expansion, will include a performance space with more than 100 seats. The library renovation is expected to be completed in 2005.