A Kennebunkport church will host a special one-day art exhibit featuring the works of former President George W. Bush. 

St. Ann’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church announced this week that it will host the exhibit Aug. 6 at the Harold Alfond Forum on the University of New England campus in Biddeford.

Bush has been painting since 2012, just a few years after he left office. According to a news release about the exhibit, he was inspired by Winston Churchill’s essay “Painting as a Pastime,” an essay Churchill wrote of his passion for the art of painting prior to his role as prime minister.

Bush has published two art books, with collections of paintings dedicated to those who served in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and to American immigrants.

He’s spoken extensively about how his paintings have allowed him a chance to reflect on certain issues and aspects of his life. 

“My life has changed dramatically in the post-presidency. One reason why is I’m no longer president, the second reason why is I’m a grandfather. The third reason why is because I have become an artist,” Bush said about his painting at an event hosted by the George W. Bush Presidential Center in 2017. “I’m proof that old dogs can learn new tricks.”

St. Ann’s by-the-Sea is a historic Kennebunkport church consecrated in 1892. Its website describes it as “one of 18 historic summer chapels in the Diocese of Maine.”

The Bush family has been attending St. Ann’s for generations when spending time in Kennebunkport at its famed Walker’s Point compound. The family donated an organ to the church in memory of George W. Bush’s paternal grandmother, Dorothy Walker Bush, after her death in 1992.

Bush and his wife, Laura, were spotted at a service Sunday, just ahead of the former president’s 80th birthday.

Proceeds from the Aug. 6 exhibit will go toward repairs and protections of the church, including protecting the grounds from weather and preserving it for future generations.