lauranapier.com

Laura Napier and Carmen Julia Hernández

Activity Committee, 2012

Contributing Artists: Bobby DeJesus, Martine Fougeron, Edwin González-Ojeda, Kathleena Howie-Garcia

Special Thanks: Christian Marche

During the heyday of the Andrew Freedman Home, residents self-organized affairs in the home with committees, such as the bird committee, the fish committee, garden plantings committee, and entertainment committee. The residents also organized bridge lessons and played pinochle together. To connect the past with the present, Activity Committee will reference activities of the past with new activities, facilitated by a small group of Bronx-based artists for the general public of all ages, both inside and outside the Andrew Freedman Home. Some committees are planned in advance by topic, date, and time, and will meet more than once, but others may be formed spontaneously following anyone’s suggestion.

Committees are an art form. Often tasked to solve problems and investigate material in depth, they serve as meeting ground and social space, and also can waste time. Committee activities are familiar to community based groups, but the word committee also obliquely refers to the political: House Un-American Activities Committee, or the Comité Noviembre (a local Puerto Rican heritage group).

This location is the headquarters of Activity Committee and sessions take place here and at other places displayed on the calendar. To date there is the Welcome Committee, the Bird, Plant & Fish Committee, the Eating Committee, the Entertainment Committee and the Games Committee but any visitor to the space can suggest a new activity, which will be reviewed by the Committee Ideas Committee. Please see an Activity Committee or No Longer Empty representative or leave your suggestions in the suggestion box.

Children and adults of all ages are invited to participate in Activity Committee workshops. Also, please feel free to spend time in this space, and try one of the games or self guided activities during the hours when committees are not meeting.

THIS PROJECT IS MADE POSSIBLE WITH PUBLIC FUNDS FROM THE BRONX COUNCIL ON THE ARTS THROUGH THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS GREATER NEW YORK ARTS DEVELOPMENT FUND REGRANTS PROGRAM, BRONX BOROUGH PRESIDENT RUBEN DIAZ, JR. AND THE BRONX DELEGATION OF THE CITY COUNCIL.