Sol De Vida’s ‘Sol Creativo’ Shines A Light On Local Women Artists

Driven by a passion to support and celebrate local women artists and the communities they enrich—on September 18, community arts nonprofit, Sol De Vida, celebrated, “Sol Creativo: Strengthening Communities Through Art.” Taking centerstage were three women—all superstars in their respective art disciplines—fine arts painter, Gabriela Perez; tech guru/artist, Valé; and spoken word performer, Sabrina Sade Parker. Also, invited guests and attendees were emboldened to get creative at the interactive workshops. “Sol Creativo,” held at RISE (Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity), was made possible through a microgrant awarded by Edgemere Community Development Grants. Judging from the glowing comments from attendees, “Sol Creativo,” was indeed a “creative sun,” inspiring all. As local resident, Florence Ferguson, remarked, “We need more of this—more experiences and creative outlets that speak to the art inside of us.”

Twenty-five-year-old fine arts painter, Gabriela Perez, was one of the artists showing her work and being celebrated at “Sol Creativo.” A native of Far Rockaway, Perez received her bachelor of fine arts degree from Brooklyn College. At “Sol Creativo,” Perez’s painting titled, “Achilles and Patroclus,” became a conversation piece about her artistic interpretation of a story taken from ancient Greek poet, Homer’s poem, “Illiad.” In the story, Patroclus was killed by the Trojan prince Hector, while wearing Achilles’ armor as he was trying to protect his friend. In Perez’s painting, a grief-stricken Achilles holds lifeless Patroclus in his arms.

Perez said, “Most of my art deals with grief and the emotions behind it. In my painting, this is the moment where Achilles finds Patroclus’ body and grieves the loss of him. I wanted to capture the shock and anger because he never wanted him to die though the two friends had a vile disagreement days before. I also like this idea of using colors and the background being so mundane and beautiful, because grief happens at any moment, any time. A gray day could be a beautiful day, or a gray day could be the worst day of your life.”

Another artist also celebrated at “Son Creativo” was Valé (Camila Morales of Buena Onda Collective). Valé is an artist/architect/educator currently teaching art and technology courses at New York University and CUNY.

Valé led a group in creating what she described as “ecos.” Weaving art with technology, the group learned how to transform cyanotype seashells into wind chimes playing RISE Shore Corps’ pre-recorded ocean sounds using RFID technology.

Valé said, “From 3D Printing, RFIDs and more—I love the whole idea of teaching people these different technologies, and how they can use them to create art. I love the Rockaways and I want to share what I know. Definitely looking forward to collaborating more with Sol De Vida.”

In 2023, Sol De Vida was founded by Rockaway powerhouse community advocates, Helen Montero-Hernandez and Brandon Jeffries. Amidst their ongoing flow of community arts pop-ups, such as the children’s community chalk walk; “Pieces,” a biweekly creative evening of art expression held at Rockaway Brewing Co.; arts & crafts at numerous schools; community murals and more—one thing’s for certain. The art-loving enthusiasts’ momentum has never waned as they continue to keep their eyes on the dream—to see Sol De Vida erect a brick-and-mortar arts museum and arts center for all in the community.

According to Montero-Hernandez, receiving a microgrant from the Edgemere Community Development Grant (ECDG) fund has been a game changer for Sol De Vida to expand its mission to bring more culture and arts into the community.

She said, “This grant awards us the opportunity to move forward with our push to support and provide a platform for local artists. We’re doing three events with the grant. ‘Sol Creativo,’ co-hosted today with  Rockaway RISE, is the first one.”

During the 2019 Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) negotiations for the Edgemere Commons development, the Arkers Companies made several commitments, including a $2 million investment in the surrounding communities of the development. With each phase of the project, new installments of funding are placed in the fund and allocated to local community groups.

ECDG funds microgrants in amounts between $1K to $3K.

“It’s an amazing opportunity that Far Rockaway Arverne Nonprofit Coalition (FRANC) is coordinating,” Jeffries said.

“Also, the grant is run by Chair Ebony Littlejohn-Beaty, executive director of Ocean Bay CDC, who is steering the type of organizations that, with a little bit of money, can do great things in the community. Sol De Vida is so blessed and honored to be one of this year’s grant recipients, which will help bring local artists to the forefront,” he said.

Montero-Hernandez added, “With the microgrant, Sol De Vida budgeted three arts-focused events for the community. So, today’s event, “Sol Creativo: Strengthening Commu­nities Through Art,” is the first one, and we thank Rockaway RISE for being a great partner. RISE not only gave us their space to host the event, but also, helped spread the word.”

Montero-Hernandez and Jeffries shared that Sol De Vida’s next event will be in October for kids at FRANC’s community space in Far Rockaway. The third event will be in November for teens at Queens Public Library’s Teen Library in Far Rockaway.

Jeffries said, “And that’s Sol De Vida! Where we’re really bringing art and community together. A centralized point where people can heal, be educated, and learn from various forms of art. So, the majority of our events, while they’re special projects, the intention is always to: (1) impact the community; and (2) impact the artists.”

Gabriela Perez said, “As a NYC artist born and raised in Far Rockaway, I think it’s amazing to have a local arts nonprofit organization advocating for opportunities for artists like myself. Most NYC artists have to cross boroughs to get a chance to exhibit their work and be exposed to different kinds of events.

For more info about Sol De Vida, and upcoming events, follow: SolDeVidaNYC on Instagram/Facebook or visit: https://soldevidanyc.org/ And for more info about volunteer or collaboration opportunities, email: SolDeVidaFR@gmail.com For more info about FRANC and grant opportunities for nonprofits, visit: https://www.francnyc.org/