Montclair Art Museum Launches New Creative Aging Initiative

MONTCLAIR, N.J. - March 19, 2014 - PRLog -- The Montclair Art Museum (MAM) proudly launched a new creative aging initiative in fall 2013, encompassing a range of new programs designed to create an environment promoting community, wellness, and lifelong learning for adults in the setting of the Museum.

Art in the Afternoon is offered every second Wednesday of the month from 2 to 3:30 p.m., and invites area seniors to the Museum for an artistic social outing. Participants enjoy an opportunity to learn about and creatively respond to art from the permanent collection and special exhibitions. Each session features tours and engaging conversations in the galleries, complemented by thematically related art activities in Leir Hall. Light refreshments are also served. The program fee is $10 for seniors and is free to Museum members.

Art in the Afternoon’s initial event in October focused on art, food, and Native American culture and was met with great success. More recent programs have featured award-winning poet Charlotte Mandel and special guest artist Sharon Pitts. Upcoming themes include printmaking, portraiture, and ceramics. Art in the Afternoon is funded by a grant from the Partners for Health Foundation, which partners to strengthen health and wellness in the Montclair area.

  Another MAM program promoting creative aging is Artful Outing, which is offered the first Tuesday of each month from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. MAM invites people with Alzheimer’s or dementia and their care partners to attend a free, interactive gallery program led by MAM docents and educators. Visitors may interact with current exhibitions in a meaningful way through hands-on activities and gallery engagement. This programming responds to an acute need for expanding cultural offerings for the rapidly growing population affected by dementia, as one in two people over 80 suffer from Alzheimer’s. Addressing widespread isolation of dementia patients, their care partners, and family members, Artful Outing will engage them in an artistic environment through looking at, engaging with, and creating works of art. If you are an individual caregiver or program coordinator for a care facility and wish to participate, please call 973-259-5136 or contact tours@ montclairartmuseum.org to make a reservation.

The Vance Wall Education Center
The Montclair Art Museum is delighted to announce a major gift from the Vance Wall Foundation that will enable a strategic and ambitious expansion of the Museum’s educational profile in the region. MAM and its Yard School of Art will be presenting more opportunities for seniors, families, and teens to engage in creative activities, both formal and drop-in.