ARTIST Barbara Ernst Prey’s iconic painting “The Collection” has been selected by the U.S. State Department for the cover image for all invitations and was sent out by every U.S. Embassy and U.S. Ambassador worldwide for their Independence Day celebrations at their respective embassies. Prey, who maintains a gallery in Maine, is recognized as one of the most significant American artists and is known to the U.S. State Department through her participation in the Art in Embassies program which exhibited her paintings in Paris, Madrid, Oslo and Prague, and through her lectures worldwide about American art. A print of “The Collection” is included in Prey’s Print Show exhibit, currently at Blue Water Fine Arts in Port Clyde. It was painted in Maine. Prey was appointed by the president to serve on the National Council on the Arts, the 14 member advisory board of the National Endowment for the Arts. Her annual exhibit, “East Meets West,” opens July 20 at Blue Water Fine Arts gallery in Port Clyde. For more information, call 372-8087.