Art Making from Life Experience
Art Making from Life Experience engages elders in creating visual artworks inspired by their life experiences. Mediums include painting, printmaking, mask making, and drawing. Using a studio session format, Art Making from Life Experience provides elders with an opportunity to explore their artistic skills and create final works of art. The participants then write a reflective statement to accompany their artwork that tells the story behind their piece.
At the end of the program, ESTA works with the host site to plan a culminating exhibition to present the work created by participants to the site's community, their family and friends, and the greater public.
In late 2008, ESTA hosted an exhibit with a special opening night at the Whitney Museum of American Art followed by a six-week showing in early 2009 at Saint Peter's Church in midtown Manhattan. The art exhibited was a culmination of 20 Manhattan-based senior centers that explored the theme, "A Long Way Home".
