New Works with Old Friends opens at Picture This Gallery on Friday, May 29^th with a reception from 6 – 8 pm. The exhibit runs through July 7th, and features photography by Peter Cram, Eric Horan and Mark S. Tierney.

I’ve been doing a lot of soul-searching lately; trying to figure out how to raise children in challenging times. The way I remember it, growing up was so much simpler than it is today. And with every generation that ticks by, we lose even more of an appreciation for the smaller, quieter things in life. To me, innocence is becoming as fleeting and as fine as the white blur of the blown dandelion weed.

When Mark Maute left teaching art in 1977, he threw away all his art supplies and equipment. Thirty-five years later, after moving to Hilton Head Island full-time, he took his first art class at the Academy of Art League of Hilton Head. During this journey, which began in 2012, Mark has taken many classes to sharpen and polish his skills and abilities. He likes to think that this has been his retraining in retirement.   

Pests in the garden are certainly problems. Weeds are wildflowers in the wrong place, according to some, but they have adapted over the centuries to adversity and poor soil. In rich garden soil they can thrive! At best they compete with your fancy posies for space, water, and nutrients.