LEWISTON — Museum L-A will host guest curator Janice L. Moore for a panel discussion on the role of the mills in Maine’s future. Panelists will include artists, creative entrepreneurs, community leaders and members who will talk about how mills are being reused and how creativity and imagination can lead the envisioning process. The discussion is free and open to the public.

The presentation, “New Patterns: Planning the Future of Our New Work,” to be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18, at Museum L-A, will be moderated by Beckie Conrad, president and CEO of the Lewiston-Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. Executive Director Steve Bromage of the Maine Historical Society and Misty Parker, economic development specialist for the city of Lewiston, will also participate as panelists.

“With the ‘Structures & Patterns: The Remnants of Our Work’ exhibition at Museum L-A serving as the backdrop, we wanted to ask what would happen if an artist, a retired mill worker, real estate developer and a millennial shared their ideas and visions for what their city could be,” said Moore.

The goal of the discussion is to gather community members of different sectors and ages to share their knowledge and ideas around the future of the mills and brainstorm how new uses for old buildings can positively impact the community.

Moore’s project uses art as a tool for action by getting people to see their community and its structures in a new light. The project aims to acknowledge the history and culture of industry in Maine.

“This is an opportunity for connecting within the community in hopes of engaging in an intergenerational, interdisciplinary discussion about our twin cities’ future economic landscape,” she said. “The panel discussion will encourage the community to continue solving economic issues creatively and get them more invested in making the region the best it can be.”

The project was made possible with funding from the Project Grant for Artists by the Maine Arts Commission.

Museum L-A is located in the Bates Mill Complex, 35 Canal St.

FMI: info@museumla.org, 207-333-3881.