Nurturing the Nurturers through Art

Just wrapped up our first month-long residency at a skilled nursing facility in Brooklyn. It was rewarding to become better acquainted with the healthcare professionals at this site through weekly workforce wellness workshops where we were able to attune our directives, materials, and featured artworks to their specific needs and preferences. On a more personal note, this summer I’ve found myself strained from increasing sandwiched caregiving demands of having both younger kiddos and aging parents, so being able to alleviate some of the caregiver burnout and engage in “nurturing the nurturers” through art felt especially meaningful and symbiotic.

We started with creating a space for rest and relaxation through fluid watercolor resists inspired by Alice Baber. We then moved onto more energizing, expressive, tactile media as homages to Keith Haring and Young Joon Kwak, exploring themes of identity and community. The series concluded with DIY T-shirt designing and printmaking in honor of Brooklyn’s own Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose Caribbean heritage, resourcefulness, and barrier-breaking approach to artmaking resonated with all who participated. We now have a wearable souvenir of the experience, and visual reminder of our own creative resilience wherever we go.