Art With Elders

Art With Elders uses the power of art, creativity, and community to enrich the journey of aging.

Fighting elder isolation since 1991, AWE has brought community to 12,000 older adults in 75 senior centers through free/low-cost fine arts classes. A dozen exhibits a year, seen by 250,000 people, engage elder artists and audiences through the power of creativity, deepening connection between cultures and generations. AWE programs provide older adults from all walks of life with a vehicle for self-expression, social connection, and a presence in the community.

06/14/2026

Thank you to everyone who attended and supported our exhibit today. We felt the love, encouragement, and sense of community every step of the way. Grateful to celebrate art together. ❤️

06/12/2026

The excitement is building!
A little behind-the-scenes look at our amazing team hanging artwork, making final preparations, and bringing the AWE 33rd Annual Exhibit to life. It takes creativity, collaboration, and a whole lot of heart to make this event happen—and we’re grateful for every artist, volunteer, staff member, and supporter who helps create this special community.
Join us tomorrow!
📅 Saturday, June 13, 2–4 PM 📍 Gerald Simon Auditorium, Laguna Honda Hospital 375 Laguna Honda Blvd., San Francisco
Come celebrate the creativity, talent, and achievements of our artists. We can’t wait to share this year’s exhibit with you!

06/09/2026

Please Join Us! AWE 33rd Annual Exhibit Saturday June 13, 2-4p. Gerald Simon Auditorium at Laguna Honda Hospital. 375 Laguna Honda Blvd, San Francisco.

Here’s a look back at that wonderful feeling of community and creativity in one special place.

Please join us for our in person 33rd Annual Exhibit Opening Event! More than 100 artworks by students participating in AWE classes will be on exhibit.

The event is free and open to the public. A donation at the door is requested, but not required.

Light refreshments will be served. The venue is wheelchair accessible and free parking is available. A free shuttle will run from Forest Hill Station.

Thank you to our juror S.F. Bay Area art community member Gay Outlaw.

05/22/2026

Wherever your Memorial Day weekend takes you, we hope you find peace and inspiration.

Art With Elders
artwithelders.org

05/18/2026

During Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Art With Elders proudly celebrates the stories, cultures, and artistic voices of our AAPI elder artists and communities.

Through creativity and self-expression, our artists share lived experiences that connect generations, deepen understanding, and enrich our collective community. We are honored to support and uplift the diverse cultural heritages that make our classes, exhibits, and relationships so meaningful.

This month and every month, we celebrate the wisdom, creativity, and contributions of AAPI older adults.

Reflected here is a small sampling of our wonderful artists and art instructors supporting our communities through creativity, connection, and special events. From cultural celebrations to our Annual Exhibit, we are honored to share the voices, stories, and artwork of our elder artists with the community — and with the world.

04/23/2026

This Earth Day, we reflect on the quiet, enduring beauty of the natural world—and the artists who helped us see it more clearly. Today we honor the life and work of an incredible artists, Richard Williams, whose paintings captured not only landscapes, but a deep reverence for the earth itself. Through his work, we are reminded that nature is not just something we observe, but something we belong to—and are responsible for protecting.

As we celebrate his legacy, we’re invited to slow down, to notice, and to care more deeply for the world that inspired him. May we carry that inspiration forward. May we be thoughtful stewards of this planet. And may we continue to protect the beauty that gives so much meaning to our lives.

About Richard Williams
Born in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Richard grew up in Wisconsin, went to Northwestern University, and performed in live theatre, mostly comedies and musicals, for twenty years. His favorite character was playing King Arthur in Camelot. But his true passion was ceramics. Richard returned to school for an MFA in ceramics and came to California planning to become a potter. He has worked in San Francisco’s Castro district for thirty years as one of the managers of a non-profit studio for ceramic artists – Ruby’s Clay Studio – where he had his studio. Richard was an avid participant in Art With Elders for many years, painting stunning landscapes of some of his favorite spots. Richard exhibited with AWE frequently, often choosing to donate his work. Richard described himself as a generally positive person and a peacemaker and shared his excitement about painting. “You’re never too old to discover new things,” he said, “I doubt I’ll develop into Grandpa Moses, but I’m having a great time in my AWE class.”

Art With Elders

04/22/2026

We’ve been deeply honored to share "A Study of Familiar Places" at the SFO Museum since May 2025. Grateful for every traveler who paused, connected, and carried our artists’ images and life stories with them—extending these journeys far beyond the gallery walls.

“A Study of Familiar Places”
Paintings and Drawings by Students of the Art With Elders Program

A Study of Familiar Places brings together works that expand the notion of travel and
challenge the age limit imposed on discovery. The exhibiting artists embrace the curious
traveler’s mentality in their studied approach to place, position, and perspective. Just as travelers seek new adventures or find themselves in familiar destinations, the artists’
compositions inspire a visual meandering that is rooted in their own past experiences and
memories. Some artists travel to new places and others travel down memory lane and explore
the vastness of their mind space. From farmer to museum curator, from El Salvador to China, from amateur to lifelong creative, these artists personify the rich mosaic of older adults in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.

Founded in 1991, AWE engages older adults in fine arts classes and shares their artwork and life experiences through public exhibitions and events. The AWE program provides older adults with a vehicle for self-expression, social connection, and a presence in the larger community and nurtures each student’s distinct artistic sensibility, encouraging them to explore their unique life experiences as they hone their vision. Art classes are taught in person and online by professional artists. Exhibitions and events engage the senior artists and the wider community through the power of creativity and serve to deepen connections between cultures and generations.

Visit www.artwithelders.org to learn more.

Art With Elders
sfo

04/16/2026

Each spring, AWE artists submit work created in our classes for inclusion in our Annual Exhibit. Over 100 artworks are selected, framed, and displayed alongside each artist’s photo and biography. The opening celebration brings together artists, families, friends, and the wider community, with over 200 attendees each year.

We are kindly seeking sponsors for Art With Elders’ upcoming Annual Exhibit Opening Event.
Your support helps make this event possible—honoring and uplifting older adults whose voices are often underrepresented, and bringing their creativity to center stage.

Our Mission: Art With Elders uses the power of art, creativity, and community to enrich the journey of aging.

Our Impact: Through classes and exhibits, AWE provides older adults with a pathway for self-expression, social connection, and meaningful presence in the broader community.

“What I can tell you is that the energy in the room was ecstatic and each person so grateful to be part of this day.” — Betty R.

* Your contribution is tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law
* �Sponsorship payments can be made to Art With Elders by check or by Paypal
* �For more details or questions email to: [email protected] or contact AWE Exhibitions Director Darcie O'Brien: [email protected]

Please Join Us!
Art With Elders Annual Exhibit Opening Event
Gerald Simon Auditorium 375 Laguna Honda Bivd. SF CA
Sat. 6/13/26 2-4 pm

04/07/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the opening event at the Laurel Village branch of the Bank of San Francisco—we’re so grateful for this incredible community! 💛 Seeing Art With Elders artwork beautifully displayed in this space fills us with so much pride. Our artists continue to inspire us every day with their creativity, stories, and vibrant perspectives.

Art With Elders
artwithelders.org

03/13/2026

AWE Teammate Spotlight!
Aimée Duddridge-Picard is an AWE Teaching Artist who also assists with exhibits and media. In addition to her work with AWE, she works as a photo archivist and assistant to a Bay Area photographer and teaches private mixed media art classes for all ages. She continues to pursue her own artistic practice, focusing on collage, along with a newfound passion for papier-mâché puppet and mask-making.

Aimée is a French and British mixed media artist based in San Francisco, California. She began her art studies in 2006 at Metafora International Workshop in Barcelona, where she explored installation, sculpture, mixed media, and photography. In 2007, Aimée moved to San Francisco to attend the San Francisco Art Institute, focusing on video art, installation, and photography.

After receiving her BFA in New Genres in 2010, Aimée worked with several San Francisco art galleries and nonprofits, including Performance Art Institute (formerly Marina Abramović West), Martin Lawrence Galleries, ArtPeople Gallery, Paule Anglim Gallery, and Old First Concerts.

We’re grateful to have Aimée’s creativity, artistic perspective, and passion for the arts as part of the AWE team! 🎨

Featured Artwork: We are pleased to feature her original artwork: "Traveler" by Aimée Duddridge-Picard, 8” x 10" Collage on Wood Panel and "Aim for the Sky" by Aimée Duddridge-Picard, 8” x 10" Collage on Wood Panel.

Follow us and explore our current AWE workshop, led by Aimée: Pieces of Us: Exploring Identity Through Mixed Media
Tuesdays, March 3 – April 21, 2026 | 3:30-5:30 pm

In celebration of Pride, and in partnership with Ruth’s Table, this 8-week mixed media workshop invites older adults to explore identity through layering, symbolism, and material exploration. Our identities are made up of many pieces, memories, experiences, contradictions, and quiet truths, shaped both by who we are as individuals and by the communities we belong to. https://www.artwithelders.org/exhibit-schedule/

Art With Elders
artwithelders.org

Address

236 W Portal Avenue, # 845
San Francisco, CA
94127

Telephone

+14154412650

Website

http://www.artwithelders.org/

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