The Art of Possibility Abounds for We Make, Autism At Work

Princeton, NJ—We now know that the visual arts are very impactful in the improvement of cognitions, visual and spatial discrepancies, fine motor skills, and coping. Many persons with autism or an autism related disorder (ASD) grapple with communication and are often visually intelligent. Art fits organically with autism in that it offers those with ASD an opportunity to express themselves through images while also being a soothing activity.

This Sunday, We Make, Autism At Work will host their third annual Harvest Event with the theme, The Art of Possibility. The brainchild of Moe Siddiqu, We Make’s Executive Director, Harvest and this year’s theme will focus on the potential in our community and celebrate how far the agency has come in its five years of existence.

Tony Lesenskyj, We Make’s Founder and Chairperson of the Board of Directors stated, “We love to provide the opportunity for the community to come together, to celebrate and to raise awareness for employment opportunities for persons with ASD. It’s hard to believe that We Make has been serving the community for five years! We have built a beautiful agency together, and it is time to recognize our hard work and thank everyone who has contributed to this effort.”

One way of expanding the organization’s reach is to offer partnering opportunities to businesses and nonprofits in the area. Johnson Atelier is providing We Make with sculptures for the Harvest event. Harvest attendees will have the opportunity to “live” with five sculptures created by Seward Johnson and on loan to We Make for the event.

Lynn DeClemente Losavio, Program Officer at the Johnson Atelier stated, “Seward Johnson believed in building community, this partnership is a way to highlight the potential of collaboration and making meaningful connections. Our hope is that these sculptures encourage new conversations to promote opportunity.” In 2023 the Hopewell Valley Arts Council and the Johnson Atelier are partnering to host a year-long celebration of events and activities within the Hopewell Valley that support these ideals. For more information, please visit https://hvartscouncil.org

Robin Resch, a local artist and photographer based in Princeton is known for her spontaneous and natural portraits as well as her fine-art photography. She will be displaying her artwork at We Make’s Harvest event and will contribute a percentage of her sales to We Make for their employment programs. Robin commented, “I believe it is important for art to connect with people and that it shouldn’t exist in a vacuum as art has the power to help build community. I also feel it has the potential to be impactful in another person’s life. I really admire how We Make creates a sense of community and pride for individuals who might otherwise not have the opportunity to experience the empowerment of employment. It is a beautiful initiative that I want to support.”

Tickets to attend Harvest, The Art of Possibility are still available for purchase on EventBrite or you can click here. Harvest will be held at We Make’s facility in Pennington, New Jersey this Sunday, November 6th from 1 to 4PM.

To support We Make with a financial contribution, click here. (https://wemake.works/support-us/ )