ARTZ-Connect:

Still Connecting, But Online

Our commitment to protecting the well-being of our community led us to suspend all in-person programming early in the COVID-19 pandemic. True to our mission, we searched for ways to combat the increased isolation and decreased opportunities for creative and social engagement among people living with dementia and their care partners. This led us to create ARTZ-Connect. Now you can attend some of your favorite ARTZ programs from the comfort of your own home!

This program is free of charge to participants.

Program Details

ARTZ-Connect is the same ARTZ programs you know and love, but facilitated over video conferencing software.

All you need to join is a computer, phone, or tablet. Just like in our in-person programs, we visit the collections from museums like Woodmere Art Museum and the Brandywine River Museum. We’ve even introduced some new programs that are unique to ARTZ-Connect!

As always, we aim to create an inclusive environment for everyone, where participants are free to share their thoughts, their laughter, and their joy with each other. Sharing space with you online even allows us to do some things we’ve never been able to do before! Read below to learn more about how ARTZ-Connect differs from and overlaps with our in-person programming.

In Person vs. ARTZ Connect

Through ARTZ-Connect, many of our programs are now available online

Our ARTZ-Connect programs all have the essential attributes of ARTZ Philadelphia programming:

small-group conversations inspired by art or small-group art-making
a safe space in which people with dementia, their families and friends can come together, free from judgment and supported in being fully themselves
a comfortable space in which imaginations soar and a sense of community is established through mutual trust and respect
a place where “communication” and “conversation” take place in all sorts of ways, from smiling eyes to evocative words to eloquent gestures to joyous laughter.

ARTZ-Connect programs also have some qualities that are only possible with online programming:

the comfort of attending from your own home — no need to drive anywhere
program attendance has no geographical boundaries, our participants can visit with us and get to know each other from across the street or across the country
when we look at works of art together, we can get close enough to touch them and can see details we’d never be able to see in a physical gallery space