Acadia Senior College

Site: Camden National Bank, 1316 Route 102, Town Hill.

What makes a photograph worth hanging on the wall or sharing on Facebook? The first step in becoming a better photographer is to recognize what makes a good image. Next you must apply that knowledge to your own work. As you develop the skills to capture this vision you will become a more satisfied artist. In this course we will look at the elements that make a good image. We’ll study the works of the masters and analyze our own images. Come prepared to share your photographs and to give and accept constructive criticism.

Site: Clark Room, Southwest Harbor Public Library, 338 Main Street, Southwest Harbor.

Learn to speak basic Italian in an engaging and stimulating environment. Develop skills in the basics of Italian grammar, pronunciation, spelling and conversation. Each class will include speaking Italian in simple sentences and building on this skill with each successive class. Becoming familiar with Italian culture will also be a goal of the course.

Site: Southwest Cycle, 370 Main Street, Southwest Harbor.

This course will emphasize the maintenance and repair of the participants' own bikes. The course will cover all components of a bike from headset to derailleurs. It will be a chance to bring newer bikes into as-new condition and to refurbish that forlorn old clunker hidden in the garage so that, at least, it does not scare you to ride it. Tools and supplies will be available at dealer cost.

Site: Wendell Gilley Museum, 4 Herrick Road, Southwest Harbor.

Work with Gilley Museum artist Steve Valleau to create a bird carving over four classes. Focused on knife carving, the class will teach participants the basics of knife technique, surface decoration, and painting. All tools and instruction will be provided as part of the class and participants will be invited to show their work in our annual May Carving Show. Steve Valleau has been teaching the art of bird carving at the Wendell Gilley Museum for over 30 years.

Site: Mellon Room, Northeast Harbor Library, 1 Joy Road, Northeast Harbor.

Russians know their own country, its ideas and moral compass, its angels and its demons, its struggles and tribulations, through Russian writers. We will read stories and essays from the brilliant 19th and 20th century Russian tradition, by Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Babel, Berdyaev, Shalamov, and Solzhenitsyn, and flavor with poems by Pushkin, Blok, Mayakovsky, Pasternak, and Akhmatova. We will meet to provide some cultural background and historical context and, mostly, to discuss the reading. This will be a real discussion class: do the reading and share your ideas.

Site: Sips Restaurant or Sawyer's Specialties, Southwest Harbor.

Class participants will learn about the art of tasting wine, the grape varieties that are most important around the world, the best places to travel and the best books to read to increase comfort levels with wine in a fun, relaxed setting.

Site: Mellon Room, Northeast Harbor Library, 1 Joy Road, Northeast Harbor

This course will explore six passages in the development of Mount Desert Island and Acadia National Park since establishment of the park in 1916: 1) Mr. Rockefeller’s Roads: The Great Acadian Sculpture 1912-1958, 2) A New Deal for Acadia: The Civilian Conservation Corps 1933-1942, 3) Conflagration and Community: The Fire of 1947, 4) Transitions, Boundaries and Friends: 1960-1986, 5) Friends of Acadia – the First 33 Years 1986-2019, and 6) Acadia in the Anthropocene. The course will combine illustrated presentations and co-learner discussion.

Site: Community Room, Abbe Museum, 26 Mount Desert Street, Bar Harbor.

This class will examine how humans went from hunter-gatherer cultures to agricultural and how this shift meant we moved from “we” or “leaver” cultures to “me” or “taker” cultures. Some of our discussions will focus on which elements might be critical for civilization now and in the future.

Site: Common Room, St. John Episcopal Church, 315 Main Street, Southwest Harbor.

Who or what are the gods and goddesses? Why do their stories, after 3,000 years, continue to connect us with wisdom and meaning? Using the insights of psychiatrists Carl Jung and Jean Shinoda Bolen we will explore mythology and what the gods and goddesses have to do with our lives in the 21st century. No previous knowledge of mythology or psychology is necessary.

Site: Clark Room, Southwest Harbor Public Library, 338 Main Street, Southwest Harbor.

Hal: A young prince who avoids his duties because he would prefer to hang out in a tavern with his buddies, petty criminals who enjoy their ale. King Henry IV: A disappointed father who needs his son's support as his crown is threatened. Falstaff: A chubby, jovial old knight who likes pranks and puns. Hotspur: A young nobleman who is out to topple the king and restore his family's honor. We will read and discuss one of Shakespeare's greatest history plays and watch some performances on film.