“There’s a quality of life in Maine which is singular and unique…It’s absolutely a world unto itself,” observed artist Jamie Wyeth. For several years, acclaimed photographer Maura McEvoy and art director Basha Burwell traveled the length and breadth of the state, ferrying across countless bays and inlets, braving dubious dirt roads, and combing seaside towns in search of houses that capture Maine’s singular character. These are not designer houses: they are homes created by the people who live in them—from writers to fishermen, textile designers to farmers—distinctive for their ingenuity, originality, and fierce individuality.

Here are the spaces that personify the artists whose work is made better through struggle, a Mainer’s point of pride. Here are cottages resolutely unchanged—the warped floorboards and lovingly worn camp sofas sat on by generations of the same family. Here are the spaces where a life well lived is defined by spirit, creativity, and longevity. Here is a kind of visual wealth that money just can’t buy.

Writer Hackett spends her summers in Maine. Her most recent book is “Brooklyn Interiors;” she contributes to Elle Decor, Architectural Digest, T Magazine, House Beautiful, Veranda, Martha Stewart Living and Southern Living. Art director and stylist Basha Burwell sails every boat she can every day she can on her beloved and native coast of Maine. Her clientele includes L.L.Bean, Garnet Hill, and Misha & Puff.