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Senior citizen artists display works at exhibit
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
BOARDMAN
Residents of nine area senior living centers are exhibiting their art in an exhibition at the Davis Family YMCA.
The fifth annual Centered: Slightly Off-Center show, on display through July 5, includes 80 works by 80 artists.
Each senior showing a painting has been participating in a bi-weekly painting club — many for several years — instructed by Suzanne Gray. They are residents of these assisted living and specialty care centers: Beeghly Oaks, Briarfield at Ashley Circle, Briarfield Manor, Commons at Greenbriar, Glenellen Senior Living, Inn at Christine Valley, Inn at Ironwood, Oasis Center and Victoria House.
The award-winners of the show follow:
Best of show: Dorothie Wiley of Glenellen Living Center, North Lima.
Juror’s Award: Janet Freisen of Briarfield at Ashley Circle, Austintown; and Mary Nicolli of the Commons at Greenbriar, Boardman.
Perseverance and Good Humor Award: Margaret Fitzgerald of Briarfield Manor, Austintown.
Charter Member Awards: Rita Downie of Inn at Ironwood, Canfield; and Helen Trotter of Victoria House, Austintown.
An artists reception will be today from 12:30-2 p.m. at the Davis YMCA, 45 McClurg Road. It is free to the public.
Gray said the exhibition is inspiring, because many of the seniors have multiple health issues but still managed to create amazing art.
Some of the works are for sale, and interested buyers can leave their contact info at the exhibit.
Gray has been teaching art at senior centers for eight years, and gets as much out of it as her students.
“Learning the stories and histories of so many interesting people has enriched my life beyond measure,” she said. “People who never had the chance to dabble are proving to be extraordinarily creative, much to their own disbelief and delight. That I am there to witness their transformation has truly made an indelible mark on my soul.”
Gray herself got a late start in art. After her children were grown, she went to Youngstown State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts.
She was hired to teach art at the Davis YMCA in 2003, the year it opened. Since then, the program has continuously expanded.
In 2008, Gray began teaching art at Briarfield at Ashley Circle in Austintown, which marked the beginning of her painting club at other area senior living centers.
“A woman with ALS was determined to learn to paint,” she recalled of her early days at Briarfield. “We started with eight students, some more interested than others, but the program has mushroomed. Each artist chooses what he or she wants to paint, and, with very little guidance, is left to problem-solve. I step in when there’s a road block.”
Gray also is involved with the Canfield Fair’s fine arts department, introducing both the Faces of the Fair, and the Big Lock as community art projects. Additionally, she is a regional coordinator for the Global Art Project for Peace, a UNESCO-recognized global initiative that partners people from around the world in biennial art exchanges.
In addition to the awards at the Centered exhibition at the Davis YMCA, awards also are given out to the top artists in Gray’s classes at each of the senior living centers. The results follow:
ASHLEY CIRCLE
First: Tami Sandford
Second: Donna Adams
Third: Teresa Hickson
Fourth: Claudette Cook and Bill Hegedusich
BEEGHLY OAKS
First: Jean Thomas
Second: Shelley Gabler
Third: Esther O’Malley
THE COMMONS AT GREENBRIAR
First: Richard Pesa
Second: Margueritte Dudley
Third: Nick Leonelli
GLENELLEN
First: Marie Lenefonte
Second: Marian Budinsky
Third: Toni DeBenedetto
THE INN AT CHRISTINE VALLEY
First: Sue Hepp
Second: Ann Garcia
Third: Louise Lengyl
THE INN AT IRONWOOD
First: Beryl Habeger
Second: Rita Downie
Third: Lois Swindler
Fourth: Agnes Corbett
THE MANOR
First: Teresa Caruso
Second: Helen Lucas
Third: Alverna Griffin
OASIS CENTER
First: Enrique Ayala
Second: Loretta Smith
Third: Janet Zuccaro
VICTORIA HOUSE
First: Barb Melanson
Second: Lou Wellington
Third: Ann Tobias