Grist Mill patrons offered ‘Visions of the Past'

ANDOVER-The Grist Mill Café, located on Lenape Road, Andover, will transform into an art museum at 4 p.m. Sunday, May 2, for "Visions of the Past," an art exhibit by John Tappen III. Tappen, a Morristown resident, will exhibit Civil War re-enactment pieces, as well as some of his other art.  According to Tappen, his love for art is in his blood. "Ever since I was a young boy, drawing was my passion -- it was in my blood," he said.  "The ability to see something and draw it at a later time was relatively easy; and as I aged, so did my painting," he added. "It matured. As I retained information and studied about religion, history and the Civil War, I developed different perspectives and was able to represent that in my artwork." His interest in the Civil War was peaked after finding out he had a relative who fought in the war. "Learning I had ancestors who fought in the Civil War, I became interested in that era," he said. "Here we had men who grew up together and served together in the military and fought side-by-side in the Mexican War, forging friendships and trust, only to battle each other on their own soil for reasons many of them did not understand." For more information about the exhibit visit www.gristmillcafe.com/johntappen.html or email jtappen@optonline.net. For more information about The Grist Mill Café family of coffeehouses including The Surf ‘n' Grind Cyber Café at Centenary College in Hackettstown, The Grist Mill Too at The Sparta Library, and The Hyper Goat in Newton, visit www.gristmillcafe.com.