We are so excited to debut the BPM’s Community Art Gallery featuring artists from The Michael Lisnow Respite Center! To read more about the center and our collaboration with it, check out this previous blog post, and to read about the opening take a look at this article from The MetroWest Daily News. Keep reading below to meet, in detail, each of the fabulous artists whose work is featured in the gallery.

Emily

Emily is a 28-year-old woman with Spina Bifida.  Emily is so grateful for the art therapy program because she feels “famous” being featured in downtown Boston.  She loves all types of cakes because they remind her of special occasions such as birthday celebrations and holidays, thus she chose a decadent cupcake as the subject of her piece.  Emily’s favorite part of the art program has been exploring her own creative process by experimenting with new techniques, such as creating her own color hues by mixing paints. She is also a huge Red Sox fan and can’t believe her art will be so close to Fenway Park!

Pieces: “Cupcake Celebration”

Gabby

Gabby is a 27-year-old woman with Down syndrome from Westboro, MA.  Aside from art, she loves fashion, sports and music.  Gabby works part time at a local bakery and cafe (Angels Cafe) in Hopkinton, MA.  Gabby’s involvement in the bakery has provided her with plenty of inspiration for delectable dessert-inspired pieces!  She really enjoyed experimenting with pastels and shadowing techniques for the first time in this art program. Gabby’s father hails from Brazil so she chose to use the Portuguese word for “love” (amor) in the description of her brownie piece.

Pieces: “Apple of your Eyes,” “Brownies Amor,” & “Cake Time”

Joe

Joe is a 30-year-old man with Down syndrome, who has an incredible knack for detail in all his artistic endeavors.  He has participated in several other local art shows, but is so proud to be featured in the city of Boston because he is a huge Boston sports fan!  Joe invented his own dripping paint technique using a standard spray bottle for his own original rendition of the Boston skyline. The skyline reminded him of the Boston Harbor and all the amazing seafood available at the market.  Joe also chose peaches in his second piece because it reminds him of the spring- and summertime. Joe’s love of spring and summer shines through in his passion for outdoor activities such as hiking, archery and kayaking.  He also loves his Special Olympics basketball team.

Pieces: “Peaches Delight” & “Dripping Skyline”

Katie

Katie is a 27-year-old woman with Down syndrome. Although she has always excelled in studio art, Kate also loves all forms of artistic expression including dance, music and performance art.  She has found a lot of inspiration in her gluten-free cooking club at the Respite Center, in which she and the instructor experiment with many different chocolate-based desserts. Katie loves the aromas of baking sweets, so it was easy for her to choose a brownie sundae as the subject of her Boston Public Market piece. She “hopes to bring feelings of family, joy and love to the market” with her drawing.  One of Katie’s favorite field trips every year is strawberry picking at local farms, so she selected a pristine strawberry to usher in the warm weather vibes at the BPM.  Katie is also a very talented golfer and was selected to join the National Special Olympics Golf Team.

Pieces: “A Sweet Love Addiction” & “Strawberry Paradise”

Sandy

Sandy is a 50-year-old woman with Down syndrome. Sandy is not scared to attempt complicated and detail-orientated art projects, as is evident in both her pieces. When Sandy visited the market she was overwhelmed by all the chocolate scents, prompting her to feature chocolate-dipped apples in one of her pieces.  Whether in her ceramics class at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts or drama/acting club at the Michael Lisnow Respite Center, she revels in the many media she can express herself through.  Sandy considers the Respite Center a “second home” and is so proud to represent the center in such a public venue as the Boston Public Market.

Pieces: “Lemonicious” & “The Big Dipper”

Steve

Steve is a 49-year old man with Down syndrome.  He lives independently in his own group home in a nice suburb of Hopkinton, MA with four other individuals with disabilities.  Displaying a truly raw aptitude for art, Steve creates all of his work in a free-style manner.  Unlike many artists, he exclusively draws his subjects without any external stimulus, basing his works solely on memories or images stored in his wonderfully gifted mind (including the “sea creatures” in this piece.)  As is apparent in the piece at the BPM, he prefers the simplicity of pen and ink.  Although Steve relished the sweet treats in his trips to the Boston Public Market, he was most inspired by the Boston Harbor and the seafood section. Steve is an avid follower of Marvel and DC comics. Superheroes and haunted houses are his absolute favorite subjects to draw.

Pieces: “Boston Harbor Sea Creatures” 

Su Lin

Su Lin is a 36-year-old woman with an intellectual disability.  She chose flowers as the vehicle for her creativity because she loves spending time in the flower garden at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts before and after her art therapy sessions.  She also feels that flowers were the best symbol of spring, which is her favorite season in New England.  Su Lin is also a very talented seamstress and has produced some amazing quilts at the Respite Center!

Pieces: “Su Lin’s Secret Garden”