PORTLAND (AP) – Camden National Bank has filed a foreclosure notice against an internationally known photography school in Rockport and its founder and owner, saying he is nearly $4 million in arrears.

David Lyman, who has operated the for-profit Maine Photographic Workshops for 33 years, had put the school on the market and said he is optimistic about finding a buyer. Ten years ago, he established a year-round affiliate, Rockport College, which specializes in advanced studies in photography, filmmaking and video.

Lyman said several venture capitalists are “seriously interested” in buying the institution and “we may have a deal by the end of the week.”

The bank filed the foreclosure notice last week in U.S. District Court, alleging that Lyman owes $3.9 million in principal, interest and late charges. Lyman is in default of a $2.7 million loan dating to 1999, according to court papers, and the bank also is foreclosing on a $1.2 million loan for a boat owned by Lyman, as well as several promissary notes.

The college program was suspended this fall because of the financial uncertainty surrounding the school. The workshops are seasonal and not in session, but Lyman said they will continue.

“We have our summer mostly planned, and we are taking applications now. We are going forward,” he said.

The workshops have attracted world-famous photographers to Maine’s midcoast, helping to make the state a destination for photographers, said Susan Danly, a curator of photography at the Portland Museum of Art.

The school’s struggles are “very, very sad,” she said. “It has played an extremely important role in promoting contemporary photography in the state.”

Lyman said the foreclosure filing was “unfortunate” and reflects poorly on himself and his business, but the school will survive.

“It’s going to take six months (for the foreclosure complaint to be processed),” he said. “By that time, the school will be sold and the bank will be paid off.”

Copy the Story Link