Senior artists shine in first show at Lowell Senior Center
Talent on display through Sept. 27
Senior citizens grew up watching endless reruns of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland offering the solution to just about any problem with the call “Hey kids, let’s put on a show!”
So, when Lowell Council on Aging Senior Center programming director Aurora Erickson asked artist Maxine Farkas how to get the word out to artists, ages 60 and up, about Senior Center resources available to them, the response was immediate … put on an art show!
The first Lowell Senior Center Art Exhibition opened yesterday and runs through Sept. 27 at the Lowell Senior Center, 276 Broadway in Lowell. An artists’ reception is 1-3 p.m., Saturday, July 8.
The open call for entries went out this spring and 20 artists submitted work. Besides the art, the exhibit shares each artist’s individual path to making art. Some have been working artists all their lives; others were interested in art as children but propelled into non-art careers to support families.
Some were told they just weren’t creative, but found, after retirement, untapped creativity. All the artists in the exhibition, who range in age from mid 60s to early 80s, share a passion for making art and demonstrate that artists don’t retire, they just continue to grow.
Some of the work will be familiar to regular patrons of Lowell galleries. You’ll see John Brickels’ “Akron Asbestos” which evokes the industrial landscape of his childhood home and Richard Marion’s visual recreations of garden observations.
Also on view is Brush Art Gallery artist Donna Berger’s children’s book illustrations. Garry Harley offered not only his abstracts but also a reflection on visiting the Omaha Beach Memorial.
The exhibit also offers the work of those who only began to seriously explore their love for visual art after retirement. M. Barbara Howes love of nature and Kevin Carlson’s small floral studies are two examples of artists who came to do artwork after they retired.
This exhibit is made
possible by the support of Council on Aging Director Kimberly Gagnon, director of programming Aurora Erickson and the Senior Center staff, notably Tara
Donnelly and Ray Destrempe. Funding for arts programming is supported by a grant from the Lowell Cultural Council and taxdeductible contributions
Folk Fest crafts focus on apprenticeships.
for continued arts programming may be made to the Friends of the Council on Aging Center.
Because the 2nd floor of the Lowell Senior Center that houses the exhibit is normally only accessible to those ages 60 and up, younger visitors who wish to view the exhibit outside of the reception on July 8th are requested to call to arrange a guided tour during the week. For further information about the Lowell Senior Center programs contact Aurora Erickson via email at aerickson@lowellma.gov or call 978 674- 4131.
Gallery notes
AYER LOFTS RECEPTION: A reception takes place noon- 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 8 for the Ayer Lofts Artists Show at Ayer Lofts Gallery, 172 Middle St., Lowell. The show is on through Aug. 27 and open noon- 4 p.m., Saturday-sunday and by appointment. Visit www.ayerlofts.com.
FOLK FEST CRAFTS: It’s July and that means it’s Folk Festival season in Lowell. And that means it’s time to thinks about the music, dance, crafts, food, and family fun that’s expected to bring 150,000 visitors to Lowell July 2830. This year’s Folk Craft Area is titled “Apprenticeships: Carrying Traditional Knowledge Forward” and focuses on the role that the relationship between mentor and apprentice plays in keeping folk craft traditions alive. Stay tuned for more info in the next few weeks.