Rufus Porter (1792-1884] was an artist, musician, teacher, inventor, and founder of Scientific American magazine. Porter began his artistic life as a decorative painter. He moved on to portraits and later began painting the murals that made him famous. He painted what he knew — landscapes depicting the farms around Bridgton, Maine, his childhood home, and seaport scenes of Portland, Maine, where he lived and studied as a young man.  His style is very recognizable.