Tomorrow Kicks Off Art Exhibit For Fort Greene Nonprofit’s Senior Artists

If you’re looking for community history, don’t look only to history books: there’s a treasure trove of information and life experience in the memories of our older neighbors, parents and grandparents, too.

Tomorrow (Wednesday, May 14), 16 local seniors, aged 62 and up, will be on hand to share some of those personal stories — through their artwork, on display May 14-June 4 at the Brooklyn Pride Center at 4 Metrotech Center (entrance next to the Subway sandwich shop at Gold Street and Willoughby Avenue).

The exhibit is the culmination of Fort Greene nonprofit Elders Share The Arts’ (ESTA) visual arts residency in partnership with SAGE (LGBTQ ) Senior Center. And the art exhibit’s theme is “basically life experience,” explained ESTA Program Director Remy Kunstler.

“They’ve been working on their art for 24 weeks, since early November and all of the art that they’ve done has had some connection back to a personal story and personal history,” said Kunstler. “So it’s a way for them to share that story through artwork.”

Viewers can look forward to paintings and other pieces of artwork, created by people who, Kunstler said, “maybe come in not realizing or knowing they’re artists, and they leave as artists while also becoming closer as friends and as people.”

“Artwork is a great way to give elders a voice instead of letting them think their story doesn’t matter. Not only does it matter, but it’s vital for the community to hear. It affirms their story and passes it on,” added Jennie Smith, ESTA’s executive director.

The ESTA/SAGE exhibit opening event is tomorrow from 1-3pm, but the show will be up until June 4.

The Pride Center is open at 10am on weekdays, but there are often other programs going on so check their calendar.