By: Elizabeth Gronke, ATR-BC

Everyone is invited (virtually) into the Folk Art Museum!

Museum visits can be incredibly beneficial for people living with dementia. Engaging in arts-based activities can stimulate the brain, improve mood, and offer new and creative non-verbal outlets.

I’m an Art Therapist that has been hired by the American Folk Art Museum for over five years to lead their dementia-friendly programming called Folk Art Reflections. 

The monthly Zoom gatherings we host for Folk Art Reflections have become very dear to me as a friendly, conversational opportunity to share the Folk Art Museum’s vast and fascinating collection. I’m confident that we will never run out of interesting artworks for our groups to look closely at and contemplate. Sometimes we take a “deep dive” into the life and works of a particular artist. Other times the theme is playful and fun. For example, to celebrate the new year we looked at artworks that feature babies!

Some participants use these meetings as an excuse to invite friends or family over for tea and treats while enjoying the artworks. Others invite far away loved ones to join the “zoom room” as a fun way of sharing time together despite distance. This is the best part of technology; we have participants from all over the country and sometimes from other countries!

I hope you’ll feel welcome, especially if you’re feeling cooped up in this frigid winter weather, to virtually join us for these free, monthly gatherings. Every session is designed to foster community and shared enjoyment for people living with dementia and the important people in their lives.

Upcoming Folk Art Reflections Zoom Sessions (to take you through the winter!):

Thursday, February 20th from 1pm – 2pm EST

Thursday, March 6th from 1pm – 2pm EST

Thursday, April 3rd from 1pm – 2pm EST

To register simply email me at egronke@folkartmuseum.org and I will send the zoom link on the day before the event. Hope to see you there!

If you are not able to attend one of these live zoom sessions, you can always view one of my short “Folk Art Reflections: Video Visits” on your own time. These videos are roughly 15 minutes long and feature a few artworks and a suggestion for an activity to do at home.  Here is a link to all 19 videos available on Youtube.