SOCK MONKEY WORKSHOPS
FOR ARTISTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

2000 – Present

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YWCA of Brooklyn–Brooklyn, NY
April 2011

Each Tuesday evening in April 2011, five residents of the Brooklyn YWCA could be found stitching sock monkeys. fresh art volunteers, AnnMarie Harris-Anderson and Rebecca Sievers, facilitated the group. One of the residents brought her 12 year-old son, who turned out to be an enthusiastic sock monkey maker. Each of the participants, with one exception, was able to finish their own very cute and very huggable sock monkey.

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Park Slope Geriatric Day Center-Brooklyn, NY
July-August 2010

During the months of July and August, fresh art staff and volunteers led a
four-week sock monkey workshop for 12 seniors with dementia at the Park
Slope Geriatric Day Center in Brooklyn. Volunteers Alexandra Blatt and
Sara Greenfield, Exhibitions Coordinator Beverly Bergman, and fresh art's
Executive Director Suzanne Kreps taught the workshop along with the
Center's staff and volunteers.

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Park Avenue Womens Shelter of Lenox Hill Neighborhood House
April-May 2010

Sock monkey volunteers Cassandra Oberhausen, Suzi Bigliani, Rebecca Sievers and Suzanne Kreps taught a five-week sock monkey-making workshop to 8-10 enthusiastic participants. “Where have you been?”-one resident inquired at the first workshop. All enjoyed a good time creating wonderful monkeys.

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Park Avenue Womens Shelter of Lenox Hill
Neighborhood House
October–December 2008

Sock monkey volunteers and workshop leaders Cassandra Oberhausen and Natasha Browne taught an eight week sock monkey workshop to ten participants at this womens shelter. The women enjoyed the workshop and several created elaborate apparel for their sock monkeys.

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Bellevue Hospital's Chemical Dependency Out Patient Clinic
March 2008

In March 2008, the fourth sock monkey sewing workshop took place at Bellevue Hospital Chemical Dependency Clinic. The workshop was staffed by Intern, Jacqueline Han and Art Therapist, Lena Friedman, who demonstrated the sewing techniques to eight to ten men and women. The photographs below picture some of the monkeys the artists made for themselves. The group reported that they learned about completing tasks and raising their self-esteem.

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Park Ave. Women's Shelter of Lenox Hill Neighborhood House
March 2008

"Sock Monkeys are Back!!" declared one of the women at Park Ave.Women's Shelter on the first evening of fresh art's eight-week long Sock Monkey Workshop beginning in March of 2008. Back by popular demand, volunteers from the sock monkey volunteers sewing group
assisted intern Jacqueline.

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SCI's St. Martin de Porres Transitional Housing Residence, Brooklyn, NY
Sock Cat Workshop
November 2007-March 2008

In 2007 through 2008, the staff of fresh art created a workshop with a new twist on Sock Animals. The Sock Cat Project consisted of three separate sessions, two of which were lead by Beverly Bergman for 12-weeks each. The women at St. Martin de Porres Transitional Residence were guided to think about the difference between domestic and feral cats, how to make them look real, and how to place them in an miniaturized environment of a set design, which completed the third part of the Sock Cat Project.
The Sock Cat Project will be installed in a window display in New York City.
This workshop is funded by the Darwin Urffer Foundation.

Beginning in February 2007, fresh art began an on-going sock monkey workshop with the women of SCI's St. Martin de Porres Transitional Residence in Brooklyn. Eight to ten women attend the weekly sewing group taught by Beverly Bergman.

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Henry Street Settlement Workshops
2007 – 2008

Beginning in the summer of 2007 and running through 2008 fresh art's sock
monkey volunteers led two 10 week workshops to the residents of Henry
Street Settlement's East Third Street Residence. The five participants in
the workshop made these lively, well dressed primates.

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Lenox Hill Workshop
January 2006

Our next sock monkey workshop began in January 2006 and ran for four consecutive Wednesday evenings. Six fresh art volunteers taught ten to twelve women from Lenox Hill Women's Shelter on the Upper East Side of Manhattan how to make their own sock monkeys.

The creating of the sock monkeys, by all of these artists with special needs, has a healing effect. During the time they are sewing, stuffing the limbs, deciding on the clothing, the buttons for the eyes, these artists are engaged in the moments of creativity that make them forget they are in recovery, that they are homeless, that they are ill. The sock monkeys become an object they can make, control and manipulate in ways that please them. They become part of the sewing groups community and experience a healthy camaraderie. And when they are finished, whenever they look at their sock monkey, they will remember with pride, that they created something unique.

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Antonio G. Olivieri Center Workshop
October – November 2005

In October and November 2005, over a five week period of Saturday afternoons, the Sock Monkey Volunteers lead a sock monkey sewing workshop for women at the Antonio G. Olivieri Center, a drop in center for homeless women located in midtown Manhattan. Approximately eight to ten women took part in the workshop. The women created inspired adornments and clothing for the sock monkeys they made.

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Chemical Dependency Clinic at Bellevue Hospital Workshop
July 2005

In July 2005, the third sock monkey sewing workshop took place at The Chemical Dependency Clinic at Bellevue Hospital. The workshop was staffed by volunteer Ann Peden Robertson, fresh art Director, Suzanne Kreps and Art Therapist, Lena Friedman, who demonstrated the sewing techniques to eight to ten men and women. The photograph above pictures some of the monkeys the artists made for themselves.

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Cecil Ivory House Workshop
October – November 2004

The second sock monkey sewing workshop took place at the Cecil Ivory House, a Bowery Resident’s Committee residence in Harlem. Over five consecutive Monday evenings in October and November of 2004, fifteen to twenty clients participated in the workshop taught by six fresh art volunteers.

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Bowery Residents Committee Workshop
April 2003

A three week Saturday workshop taught by three volunteers and veteran sock monkey sewers to five residents of The Bowery Residents Committee. The sock monkey sewers helped the residents make their own sock monkey dolls.

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Grand Street Settlement Workshop
October 2000

In October 2000, fresh art launched its Art Product Development and Marketing Program with a sock monkey doll workshop at the Grand Street Settlement, in Lower Manhattan. This first twelve-week workshop taught at-risk teen girls from the Lower East Side how to sew the dolls, along with basic marketing skills.

SOCK MONKEY VOLUNTEER PROGRAM
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September 2001 – Present

In September 2001, fresh art put out its first call for volunteers to help sew sock monkey dolls to help raise funds for its Art Product Development and Marketing program. Through a posting in the New York Cares (a non-profit volunteer placement organization) newsletter, we received dozens of phone calls and began a sock monkey sewing circle with twelve volunteers.

Four years later, women of all ages and from all walks of life—editors, scientists, artists, teachers, graphic designers, fashion consultants, writers, students, retail managers and seniors come together every other Monday evening at the fresh art offices in SoHo to hand sew sock monkeys and have conversation.fresh art is blessed to have such a committed group of people who believe in the importance of supporting our artists with special needs through the donation of the sock monkeys they create.

The sock monkey volunteers also participate in fresh art's workshops at drop in centers for homeless women and at supportive housing facilities for formerly homeless men and women. At these workshops we show people how to make their own sock monkeys.

Sock monkeys can be purchased via the web site and through Pay Pal or an appointment can be made to stop by the fresh art office to see available sock monkeys.

contact us!


e-mail: info@freshartnyc.org
phone:
646-262-3273

548 Broadway
3rd floor
New York, NY
10012