Granger St. Studios
Are you an Experienced Artist, Beginner, or somewhere In-Between?
Acrylic Paint Classes are currently being offered through the Swampscott Senior Center a few times a year. Check their website or call for info!
781-596-8866
All are Welcome!
Landscape by Saul.
Another landscape from our class. This woman had never taken a painting class before. What a glorious sense of color!
As part of our introduction to mixing colors students used pastels to create soft blended effects in this guided drawing.
This group of three students all had the same reference and same guided drawing instructions but isn’t it awesome to see how unique their drawings are?!
This Waldorf inspired wet on wet watercolor seascape is a great way to take the pressure off of yourself when painting. We are using 140lb watercolor paper and as the colors blend it’s magical!
People with dementia (artists) are paired with volunteers (students, families, caregivers) who are trained to rely on imagination instead of memory and focus on remaining strengths instead of lost skills.
OMA enables people living with dementia to assume new roles as artists and teachers and leave a legacy of beautiful artwork.
Genuine caring and connection.
I went to Virginia to get my OMA facilitators certification in 2022. There are only a few people certified in Massachusetts currently but if you are interested in more information about how you can become a facilitator just follow this link to OMA. I did the Hybrid training, which was all that was offered at the time, but you can now do it all online!
Paul’s favorite vacation spot is Costa Rica so it’s not surprising that his artsy alter ego had a Spanish name. He loves to talk about the many rock concerts he’s been to and his auto business.
I love the soft sage colors and gentle movement of this piece.
That’s me with the OMA white apron. In the background you can see Hadley Woodfin, the awesome Swampscott High School health teacher who connected with us at the beginning of this journey. She now teaches (after School Committee approval) a health elective course called ‘Bridging Generations’ which includes OMA as a big part of the curriculum!
Jim’s remarkable painting is sensitive and reminds us often of something we would see in a lovely Asian scroll from centuries past. He is a musician and I often wonder if he is playing his music as he paints.
He is an icon! How can you not love this moment?!
Mike is no longer with us but he left his family a legacy of art and relationships that he built during the program. I don’t think his family was expecting his social life to increase but it did! The students loved talking with him-especially about sports!
This is one of my favorite of several beautiful pieces he did. The shapes he was able to create with the black ink, which sits so opaquely on the soft watercolor, create a tension that vibrates.
Bill has a lovely accent that let us know his Southern roots were deep. He must have had a great time in college because a lot of his titles were related to his college days!
This is when the artist was just pulling tape from his artwork…revealing bright contrasting lines that criss-crossed through his work.
Ian has done several sessions of OMA with us and always brings his ‘A’ game with him! Students love to listen to his stories about his professional life and his knowledge of world history is beyond us all.
At the end of the session students share their partner/artists work and say a few words about it. They are trained to use art language that is more formal, elevating all of our experiences as we look at the work. For example, someone might notice the organic shapes, or the movement, or the warm colors. We are describing abstract art so there is lots to say!
This was one of the images we used to make cards that the community could buy to help support the program.
This artist didn’t have a lot of words, but what she said with her smile lit up the room!
This artist is not new to artmaking and watching him explore materials and dive into each project brings everyone joy!
Karen left us too soon, but her gentle and encouraging nature and deep interest in the people around her touched us all. She enjoyed asking the students about their college plans and sharing her incredible intellectual and creative journey as a writer. Her husband joined us for most sessions so he got to experience her joy!
The contrast of light and dark on this painting, along with the contrast of geometric vs. organic, makes this a very interesting piece.
Each six week group of OMA sessions culminates in an art show (which the entire community is invited to) that hangs in the Senior Center for a month or more.
We create flyers to distribute both electronically and in print.
Granger St. Studios is a trusted and valued provider of Memory Cafés in Massachusetts. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE
A one hour program within 25 miles of Marblehead is $150 and includes all materials.
We had a discussion about stained glass and looked at some images by Chagall and Matisse before a lively coloring session. I made these images by using black glue on printed acetate, then backed them with a sheet of printer paper so people could see their colors. They are using a variety of Sharpies to color.
We provide monthly programs in several towns and are available to supplement your regular programming using visual art and art history.
We had a special visit from the fire therapy dog…and half the fire department! What a great time at Memory Cafe!
I also make videos (around 25 minutes long) of ‘Virtual Memory Cafés’ that include lots of history, art history, and other video fun. Available for purchase and you can share the link with your entire Senior Center!
I happen to be reading Hilda’s Story to a group of folks during a virtual Memory Cafe, but I’ve done all sorts of programs, including a recent one using the theme ‘National Parks’ for folks who met for an online Memory Cafe sponsored by AgeSpan.
How wonderful to have these three smiling faces at our Memory Café on the North Shore of Boston! If a Home Health aide joins it’s a great opportunity for them to learn more about the communication techniques using images and also just to build a stronger relationship and have some fun with the person they care for. ♥
One of the first centers to regularly book Memory Cafe’s with Granger St. Studios. We were outside during the early years of the pandemic!
Swampscott offers monthly Memory Cafe programs, a Virtual Caregiver Support Group, a Social Day program, and Opening Minds Through Art! Here’s a link to their website.
AgeSpan hosts a virtual café each month and publishes the link in their digital newsletter. Sponsored by Right at Home Boston / North
Right at Home Boston North has sponsored a virtual memory cafe for four years!
Working with layers of tissue to create a landscape. These pieces were truly frame-worthy!
Workshop attendees get to experience both an art history discussion using Visual Thinking Strategies along with a colorful time artmaking.
This was a freezing cold day in January but residents appreciated a workshop that focused on warmth! After looking at some beautifully sunny paintings by Vincent van Gogh and other artists we created our own warmth by making lots of abstract pictures using a fistful of markers!
I don’t have to ask the health care aides to participate-they usually just jump right in and everyone has a great time sharing what they see.
Residents want to stay in our workshops. There is something magic in the air of a space where color and art and laughter is happening!
Residents love looking through postcards so we often ask a question that has a postcard “answer” such as, “Which of these pictures would you most like in your room?” (of course…they get to keep the card)
A small group of women residing in a memory care facility outside of Boston met monthly for a special art time. I liked to take their photo while they were working on their art-then I added to their sketchbooks as a keepsake for them to share with family and friends who visit.
Residents were each given precut strips of tape and invited to create designs on a hardbound sketchbook which I had already ‘primed.’ After they added the tape they then painted their books.
I have several different talks I can share with your group or community. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO CONTACT ME AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE DIFFERENT INTERACTIVE PRESENTATIONS AVAILABLE
What does it mean to be ‘Dementia Friendly?’
What are Visual Thinking Strategies and how can that help me engage with a person living with dementia?
How can I use images to help communicate with someone living with dementia?
I use Zoom and can do a live program or am happy to record a half hour program that you can share with your community.
Meant to be shared! Caring for a senior who is dealing with dementia or other health issues can be challenging, but also joyful and rewarding. Hilda's Story: New Bedford, Massachusetts is an interactive read-aloud designed for entertainment, understanding, comfort, and connection.
Building stronger connections while creating and having fun! A good fit for 8-50 employees.
The folks at Oracle loved our full day program!
You can reward your home health team with a fun and artsy experience while building their knowledge of best practices with dementia communication!
Photo Credit: "Southeastern Veterans Center" CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Smiling faces all around at this Team Building workshop!
Prompts are thoughtfully sprinkled throughout the day.
Something we consider as we work through the day, making art and strengthening connections.
Reminiscence therapy was conceived in the 1960s with the idea that looking back at our lives and recalling, discussing and interacting with someone in the present is therapeutic.
For people with Alzheimer’s disease and their families, a remembered moment from the past is a gift. Memory loss and confusion are the hallmarks of dementia and Alzheimer’s, as the diseases progressively damage brains cells, but photographs, music, and memorabilia from the past can trigger memories and provide a bridge for caregivers and loved ones to communicate and connect.
A Memory Kit is a box or bag filled with items and activities centered around a place, time, or theme. A kit could contain famous photographs from a decade, a CD with music from the era, or anything that evokes a sense of the time period. Kits can also be centered around activities such as cooking, outdoor recreation, music and dance, or world travel.
Apple for size comparison. Each carefully curated kit is contained within this sturdy canvas bag. Tags can be personalized for your senior center, library, or perhaps you want to gift something like this to an assisted living facility. ☺
Through five editions, The 36-Hour Day has been an essential resource for families who love and care for people with Alzheimer disease. Whether a person has Alzheimer disease or another form of dementia, he or she will face a host of problems. The 36-Hour Day will help family members and caregivers address these challenges and simultaneously cope with their own emotions and needs.
Mayberry, with all the characters who made us smile, is included in the “Tool Time” Kit.
Aquapaints give a lovely balance of creative touch, sense of achievement and pure joy for people with dementia. Simply brush the ‘white’ sheets of paper with water and watch as the beautiful pictures magically appear. Once finished, leave the sheets to dry to use them time and time again.
We’ve all heard about how much music can help the person living with dementia. This is the CD included in the ‘Transportation’ Kit.
What would a ‘Gardening Kit’ be without a garden? Relax and get creative with this tabletop garden.
This smallish wood board comes complete with a variety of screws, bolts, a wrench, and a screwdriver. The perfect activity for a carpenter or woodworker.
Products that are beautiful to touch, engaging, and sustainable. The handcrafted wood beads are included in the ‘Color My World’ Kit.
Most Kits include a puzzle-some are 35 pieces and made of wood. This 100 piece Red Sox puzzle is included in the ‘Made in Massachusetts’ Kit. A great activity to share!
