It's August--it's Monday--sit back and enjoy the moment before the moment is gone . . .

Enjoy watching New Zealander Peter Donnelly create his "moments" of art.



If you have 10 minutes, watch this longer video of Peter talking about his art while he creates it.
(Can't see the video? Go to Artful Aging and enjoy!)

Turkish Marbling comes to Philadelphia

Richard Aldorasi, a Creative Arts & Aging Board Member, was highlighted in April on the PBS special, "Ebru World Arts" a WHYY Experience,

As a resident artist with the Pennsylvania State Council on the Arts, Richard offers this special program, the World Art Project, through the Arts in Education Partnership (PCA).

The World Art Project residency program allows students to explore the following 8 hands-on art techniques from around the world: Turkish and Japanese Suminagashi marbling applied to paper and silk, making linen paper with flowers, ferns, gold, silver and metallic iridescences, paste painting and momigami paper design, making Egyptian papyrus paper, bookbinding, and letter press printing.

Each student learns the rich history of these decorative folk arts including the historic role Philadelphia and Pennsylvania played in papermaking and printing.

Watch Richard with young students as they learn ebru, the art of Turkish marbling, an art form that if not taught anymore, is in danger of disappearing.  

Learn more about Richard's work by visiting The Philadelphia Handmade Paper Company.

Arts, Humanities & Cultural Organizations ... let US publicize YOU at the ASA East Coast Conference on Aging!

Creative Arts & Aging Network
is presenting

"Creative Connections: Experience Aging through Art."

at the American Society on Aging's (ASA)
East Coast Conference on Aging

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

And we want to help YOU publicize YOUR programs for older adults.

We are compiling a Resource Table for workshop participants, and it will feature area agencies and organizations that provide programs and opportunities for older adults to experience the arts and humanities. If you have an upcoming arts related event or opportunity, we can publicize that as well.

We encourage YOU to take advantage of this opportunity to showcase your program!

Send your brochures, flyers and PR materials:

Mary Catherine Dabrowski ~ Creative Arts & Aging Network

c/o Havertown Senior Center ~ 1105 Earlington Road ~ Havertown, PA 19083

Questions about the Resource Table?

Contact Mary Catherine at 610-446-2070 or caan.info@gmail.com

I love PR (public relations)
Photo by DoktorSpinn

Experience Aging through Art at the ASA East Coast Conference here in Philadelphia

Creative Arts & Aging Network
is presenting

"Creative Connections: Experience Aging through Art."

at the American Society on Aging's (ASA)
East Coast Conference on Aging

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

at the
Philadelphia Corporation for Aging 

642 North Broad Street (Broad and Wallace Streets)

Center City Philadelphia.

This September ASA, in collaboration with the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging, is offering cutting-edge programs and continuing education for professionals who work with older adults. And Creative Arts & Aging Network will be there! “Creative Connections: Experiencing Aging through Art,” will feature two sessions:
Morning Session:* Experiencing Aging through Art Part I (9:30-12:30)
The morning intensive is designed to help staff working in the aging field find and develop the resources necessary to implement arts programming for older adults. A panel of arts, humanities and local professionals will discuss the opportunities available that provide professional arts programming and/or funding.
Afternoon Session:* Experiencing Aging through Art Part II (1:30-4:30)
During the afternoon intensive, professional teaching artists (experienced working with older adults) will explore the opportunities for to artists to bring creativity to aging services The need for older adults to nurture creative expression and find meaning through the arts will be explored from the vantage point of  artists as teachers. Adaptations for well elders will be the focus, but frail elders, and elders with dementia will be discussed as well. Workshop participants will also engage in a hands-on sensitivity learning activity focused on what it may be like to have diminished senses as part of the natural aging process.

Early Registration (Paid registration received on or before August 31, 2010)
Half-Day:  $70 each (Members) or $85 each (Non-Members)
Full-Day (includes box lunch):  $150 each (Members) or $170 each (Non-Members)

Late/On-site Registration (Paid registration received on or after September 1, 2010 and for on-site registrants, Last day for online registration is Sept 10, 2010 Midnight EST)
Half-Day: $85 each (Members) or $100 each (Non-Members)

*Yes, we know. The Conference Brochure (p. 13) lists our morning program as the teaching artists session and our afternoon program as the arts and humanties professionals panel. However, the session times ARE as listed above. What would a conference be without just a little confusion?!

Get your Monday on with the Fun Theory!

Fun is good!

Happy Monday!

Thanks, Volkswagon, for believing fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better!
(Can't see the video? Go to Artful Aging and enjoy!)

10 out of 100 Thoughts on Social Media

Social Media is here to stay, so here's another reminder to jump on the bandwagon. Read Valerie Maltoni's post 100 Thoughts on Social Media. Read all 100 thoughts. Don't worry, they're short. But first, check out 10 of her thoughts (along with Artful Aging comments) right here.

#  9 realize that the most important person is the other
That's right, social media and social networking is not all about you. It's about what you can do for others.

#18 resist copying
Sure, you don't want to "reinvent the wheel." But share things in your own voice, in your own words. Attribute the information, the quote, the photo, the whatever to the source. Go that extra step and link to the original source.

#23 collaborate freely
This goes along with both #9 and #18. It's not all about you. Make friends and play nice with others. Give credit where credit is due and you'll get credit in turn. Connect, connect, connect.

#46 build an extra mile on someone else’s runway
Yes, we'll say it again. It's not all about you. Promote other organizations' events and activities. Remember #9, #18 and #23. The more you share someone else's information, the more interesting and valuable content you can offer your audience.

#49 stay with it through the thick and thin
It takes time to build an online presence. It takes patience to engage followers and listeners. In the beginning, you sometimes feel you are "talking" to yourself. Hang in there. Build #9, #23 and #46 and they will come.

#67 thank often and liberally
Saying "thank you" ...  a few minutes. Showing appreciation and recognition ... a few minutes more. The return ... priceless.

#71 find mentors
Find out who's posting on Facebook, blogging, and tweeting about your niche. Find the authorities, the leaders. Follow them. Link to them. "Like" them. Connect. Take notes!

#73 be flexible
Be prepared for the unexpected. Plan out the topics you want to share with your audience. But be ready to switch gears and share a new, current bit of information that just popped up. Be prepared, but be timely.

#85 work with others, it’s not a competition
Re-read #8, #18, #23, #46, #67 and #71. The more, the merrier. Web 2.0 is big and wide. When you are willing to share, then you share the "winning."  Be discriminating, but be generous and, yes, #73, be flexible.

#95 inspire and find inspiration
Inspire your followers to do something. The best way to inspire others is to get inspired yourself. Always, always be on the search for inspiration.

Have you taken the leap and jumped on the Social Meda Bandwagon. Need some help? Start by re-reading our Take Notes! posts:

• 
  
  Facebook 101 & Facebook 102
• 
  
  Become a Fan!
• 
  
  Think Social Media is a Fad?
• 
  
  Facebook is as Easy as 1-2-3!
• 
  
  More Facebook is as Easy as 1-2-3!
• 
  
  Social Media is Not Gibberish!
• 
  
  Social Media is not Gibberish Part II

Find more Social Media post by clicking on Artful Aging's Topics Tab at the top of the page.

Jump on the social media bandwagon

Image by Matt Hamm

Joanne Turney Bauers and “The Art of Joyful Aging”

This is a guest post by Alexandra Shaw, Manhattan Arts International.

Inner Beauty by Joanne Turney Bauers

When Joanne Turney Bauers, a charismatic, red haired woman, enters the room all heads turn. Simply stated, this beautiful 81-year old artist radiates joie de vivre. She lives a rewarding and active life in which she pursues her many areas of creativity, volunteer work, and travel between her home base in Washington, DC and her pied-a-terre in Manhattan.

Mrs. Bauers has had a successful artistic career which has included exhibitions throughout the world and many awards of distinction. She is also an advocate for social change, particularly in the area of attitudes about the aging process. Her most recent accomplishment is "The Art of Joyful Aging," a hard-cover book that features 80 of her abstract “Teeny Turney” paintings accompanied by a positive quote. The paintings are featured in different chapters that relate to the four seasons.

What motivated Mrs. Bauers to create such an inspirational book was her desire to reverse the negative associations people of all ages have about what she enthusiastically refers to as “Advanced Youth.” She states,

 “The intent of my book, ‘The Art of Joyful Aging,’ is to focus on the many advantages of aging which has been all but ignored in our society. Aging, or as I call it 'Advanced Youth,' is the one common human trait we all share from birth to death. (If we are fortunate to live until adulthood.) We are an extremely youth oriented society with very little time, honor or respect given to our elders. It has been said that the character of a country can be simply seen on how we treat our elders. My book gives all the positives about the joy of aging from friends, family, the youth and the famous accompanied by one of my paintings with each affirmation. I suggest you read one positive quote a day to keep the Doctor away and bring joy to your life.”

Mrs. Bauers’ book has been described as “a health tonic” to be cherished and shared with loved ones. Her philosophy may well be attributed to her spiritual beliefs:

"I feel as if I am the instrument through which the spirit of life can be revealed on canvas. This is a wonderful gift and I treat it with respect, reverence and gratitude. I trust the Divine mind within me to be my leader and guide.”

She is currently sharing her optimistic attitude in her talks and book signings to inspired audiences in the Washington, DC and New York City area. Her schedule will be announced soon on the Edgewood Publishing Company website. “The Art of Joyful Aging” can be ordered from the web site and it is also available in the Katzen Museum and The National Museum of Women in the Arts, in Washington, DC.

Mrs. Bauers recognizes the healing power of art. Several years ago she created "The Art of Healing," a poignant series of thirteen paintings that depict the emotional stages of her battle against and recovery from breast cancer. They encapsulate the universal feelings associated with loss, suffering, fear, faith, hope and healing.

She has traveled extensively through the Middle East, Pakistan, India, Bangkok, the Kybher Pass, and Europe. For 15 years, she lived on the Costa Del Sol in Spain. The passion and colors of that land and its people emanate from her exuberant paintings.

Mrs. Bauers work is in many private and public collections including Osman Ali, former Executive Director of the World Bank, International Resources Corporation, Washington, DC; Mallorcan Properties International, Palma de Mallorca, Spain; and Hyatt Hotel, Arlington, VA.

You can view more of Joanne Turney's work on the Manhattan Arts International web site.

About the Author: Alexandra Shaw is an editor for Manhattan Arts International, Celebrate HerStory, and the Healing Power of Art blog.

A Monday kind of question: What good is Art?

"It is creative thinking that defines and gives purpose to our day to day activities."


Happy Monday!

Thanks, Scott Ligon, for talking to us about the value of art and creative thinking.
(Can't see the video? Go to Artful Aging and enjoy!)

What do you do with your ideas?

A thoughtful question...

In Focus Your Creative Energy, over on her blog Art Slam, Lucrecer Braxton writes: "Ideas are similar to choices in that you have to take action for them to come to life."

Lucrecer reminds you to ...

• Capture the idea when it comes to you. Don't let it just disappear from your mind.
• Find your passion and then let that passion inspire you to create.
• Seek out others who share your interests and passion. Creative energy can be contagious.
• Play. 
• Do. Go beyond the thinking and work on the doing

So, what DO you do with your ideas?

Leave a comment and tell us how you bring your ideas to life!

Give your Monday a pinch of salt . . .

"Fun is the pinch of salt that brings out the flavour . . ."



Happy Monday!

Thanks, Michael Bungay Stanier for reminding us about the importance of fun!
(Can't see the video? Go to Artful Aging and enjoy!)

The National Council on Aging is Teaching Social Media?

Yes,that's right. The National Council on Aging (NCOA) is all set to talk to you about Twitter and Facebook and YouTube. Yes, the National Council on Aging is telling you to use social media to strengthen your work in the community!

As part of their Healthy Aging Briefing Series, the NCOA's webinar Social Networking and Social Media - Tools for Connecting with Older Adults and Their Families will help you to understand:

• The strengths and audiences for different social networking tools.
• How social networking and social media have changed the way people and organizations communicate.
• How some aging service providers are using social networks to connect with clients and their families.

Mark your calendar for August 26, 2010, 1:30-2:30 PM and register for this FREE webinar today!

Oh, you have a meeting at 1:30 that day ? You're on vacation on August 26? Not to worry. The NCOA archives webinars once they're presented. You can view Social Networking and Social Media on your own time. (But make sure you do view it!) In fact, you'll find other webinars to view, such as the Current Research Supporting Creativity in Later Life webinar.

Take Notes! If you missed some of Creative Arts & Aging Network posts about social media, check out:

• Boomers, Senior Living, Eldercare and...Social Media?
• When it comes to social media IS ignorance bliss?
• Remind me again why I need a Facebook Page...

Let Nike rev up your Monday!

Is your BETTER better? Just do it!



Happy Monday!
(Can't see the video? Go to Artful Aging and enjoy!)