Sometimes it’s a matter of life and death. Not often, though, do you see both in one exhibition. In November, at Thompson Garden Gallery, Mary Lou Diekmann will be joyously presenting her pottery and paintings, celebrating the birth of her first grandchild – actually, several.

Mara Smith, however, will be mounting a retrospective of favorite images of various types of her photographs. After receiving a diagnosis of stage-four lung cancer, probably, it’s her “last picture show.”

“I’ve been an artist most of my life.” reports Mary Lou Diekmann, “even when I was busy being a speech therapist and a mother. At a very young age, I was lucky to have the well-known New York painter Elinore Schnurr as a mentor and teacher. She ignited the spark that’s driven my creative spirit my entire life.”

Mary Lou attended the University of Rhode Island on a music scholarship and earned spending money as a portrait artist. Shortly after graduating, she became co-owner of the award-winning Scituate Potters in Rhode Island where she worked as designer, potter and instructor.

In recent years, Mary Lou has been fortunate to travel in this country as well as Europe to paint some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Favorite scenes include the lakes and ponds of the Adirondacks, beaches in Maui and the northern California coast, as well as the deserts of Arizona.

Now, Mary Lou is pleased to say, “My works – pottery, jewelry, portraits and landscapes – have been displayed and sold in numerous juried shows, winning their share of praise and critical acclaim. I feel fortunate that my art and craft are displayed in homes and boardrooms around the country.”

Mara Smith has been taking photographs for about thirty-five years. Before that, she offered advice to her husband Ford. Then, when they were deplaning in St. Thomas for a family vacation, he handed her his camera and said, “Let’s see what you can do.” He didn’t get his camera back!

With technological advances, the Smiths purchased digital cameras for each other and formed a partnership. Their work has appeared in newspapers, magazines, books and advertising materials. Stock-image banks also sell their photographs.

Many Polk County residents remember that in 2006-2007, Mara photographed the area weekly with two other women photographers, Carolyn Ashburn and Elaine Pearsons. Their project was mounted at The Upstairs Artspace as
“3 Women/3 Cameras.”

Mara’s passion in photography has always been landscapes. Flowers are a close second. When the Smiths moved to Tryon in 1987, Ford suggested Mara focus on people.

Together they photographed various events, including the Blue Ridge Barbecue Festival and Super Saturday. Mara discovered she enjoyed capturing the essence of moments, events and people.

For this retrospective, Mara has selected favorite images that exhibit aspects of her work: animals, architecture, black and white, events, landscapes, flowers, people and more.

Their work will be exhibited in November at 83 Palmer Street in downtown Tryon,
Thompson Garden Gallery hours are 11a.m. – 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. On Friday, Nov. 15, Thompson Garden Gallery will host an opening for the two artists. The event will be from 5 – 7 p.m.

– article submitted