Faces and (Maybe) Future of ‘Occupy’
At Delco Church Starting April 20
The past, present
and possible future of the Occupy movement will come into focus at a church in
Media, starting with a public art reception and discussion on April 20.
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The reception,
from 5:30 to 7 p.m., will inaugurate the display of Faces of Occupy
Philadelphia, an exhibit of Leroy Forney’s portraits from the encampment at
City Hall that will be on view till mid-May at the Unitarian Universalist
Church of Delaware County. Delectable, healthful refreshments will be served,
and all are welcome. At 7 p.m., activist J. Alexander Sheppard will share his
insider’s views on where the movement has been and what is happening now.
Sheppard has worked on many aspects of Occupy Philadelphia.
Forney will be on
hand to introduce the exhibit, which comprises 25 oil portraits. With each
painting is a response to the question, “Why are you here?”
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Setting up his
easel on the City Hall plaza in autumn 2011, Forney began painting portraits of
the Occupy participants. The artist says: “I painted these 25 portraits
on-site, many before Occupy Philadelphia had been evicted from its City Hall
campground [in late November]. I want the viewer to confront the essence of the
individuals who were attracted to the site, whether they were or were not
participants. I wanted to show that
these were/are concerned, real people and not wild-eyed revolutionaries or
spoiled dropouts of society, as they were frequently portrayed in the media at
the time.”
Sheppard will
give us his take on how Occupy and other activists are addressing economic
inequities. Having participated in Occupy Philadelphia from the start, the
Delaware County resident will recount a little history before discussing the current
state of the movement and what he’s doing to contribute to it. Sheppard, 34,
has a master’s degree in public health and works as a medical director.
The April 20
activities and the exhibit are sponsored by
the church’s Occupy at UUCDC group, which works to promote economic
justice.
The Unitarian
Universalist Church of Delaware County (uucdc.org) is at 145 W. Rose Tree Road,
two blocks west of Route 252. For more information, contact Neil Goldstein,
610-566-5931, neiljgold@aol.com.
