Talent and creativity does not wane for senior citizen artists, and actually can be enhanced by the wisdom of age and life experiences.
That was evident from the artwork on display at this year’s Gloucester County Senior Citizen Art Show, which ran through Aug. 30.
“I was impressed by all the different genres involved,” said Renee Post, executive director for communications at Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ), as she looked at some of the 44 entries on the College Center mezzanine walls.
“So many seniors participated and they were recognized here for their talent.”
“I enjoyed the art show a lot,” noted Alysa Serrano, who participated in the Three Plus One program at RCSJ and will graduate this December with a bachelor’s degree in applied professional communications from Rowan University.
“My favorite painting is of the herons,” she added, referring to “Scarlett O’Heron,” by Merrilee Chappell, a piece that focuses on the beaks, eyes and feathers of four herons. It won first place in the non-professional oil- painting category.
Serrano is serving an internship this summer with the Marketing and Communication Department at Rowan’s Deptford campus, and one of her assignments was to write a press release about the art show’s awards ceremony on Aug. 7.
“It was a good crowd,” Serrano recalled. “There were a lot of spouses supporting their partners.”
The county’s Cultural and Heritage Commission at RCSJ hosted the ceremony to celebrate the artistic achievements of local seniors. County commissioner and Senior Services liaison Jim Jefferson thanked the artists for their contributions.
“Today’s about recognizing our winners,” he remarked, “so thank you to all who participated for giving up your time and talents for this great ceremony.”
Erika Gardner, administrator of Cultural and Heritage Commission, set up the exhibit with help from assistant De’Von Downes, installing the show in the mezzanine and doing some promotion through social media. She is thrilled at how the show has grown each year since its inception in 2020.
“I’m always excited to see our group grow by a couple new faces every year,” she observed. “It’s also great to see those individuals who participate year after year and to see their growth as artists. We had 44 participants this year and 37 participants last year.
“They are allowed to submit two works of art to the annual exhibit that have been created within the past three years,” Gardner explained of the artists. “As this is more of a celebration of the artwork created by the county’s seniors, we’ve never turned any artwork away. It is very important to offer this service to our senior community members …
“I’ve spoken with a few participating artists who have been encouraged to try a new medium or style because of what they’ve seen during past exhibits.”
Gardner said progressing to the state show also gives participants a sense of pride both in their work and in themselves “that I believe is so valuable to our seniors,” she added.
This year participants won awards in various categories based on their medium and skill level, either professional or nonprofessional. All submissions had to be created by those 60 and older living in the county.
Winners included Nailini Jain of Clayton; Rich Gess of Glassboro; Jane Mayer of Mantua; Kathleen Turner, Edla DeFay, Leda Manfre, Richard Hughes, Joan Boarts, Sal Clark Massimino and Eileen Ziegler, of Mullica Hill; Jane Mack, Janet Kalapos and Charlotte Ryan of Pitman; Nicholas Grassia, Frank Stauss, Linda Silver, Marie Fickenscher and Donna Turner of Sewell; Patricia Acton and Nancie Merritt of Swedesboro; Jan Narducci, Marc Narducci and Catherine Root of Turnersville; Cathy Matos, Carlos Matos and Mary Stauss of Washington Township; Guillermina Martin, Cass Vitale, Guy DiGiugno, Ron Morella, Gabriele Villa, Merrilee Chappell, Barbara Wright, Amelia Valentino and Diane Sweeney, all of West Deptford; James George of Woodbury; and Sharon Coyle, Nancy Rodney, Patricia Acton, Annemarie Pondo, Rekha Chandra, Carol Schell and Myra Gross of Williamstown.
Many winners were repeat participants, returning to the Gloucester County Senior Citizen Art Show annually to not only cultivate their talents but also share their achievements with community members and other participants.
The New Jersey Senior Citizen Art Show will occur in October, and all first-place recipients in the county art show will be submitted and have the opportunity to be ranked at the state level.
“I’m always really proud when I send this stuff off to the state and I get that email back that some of our artists have placed for the state show,” Gardner said.
For information on how to participate in next year’s event, contact Erika Gardner at [email protected].
