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Mixed Media Artist & Storyteller | Teacher | Founder @bfcfund | @rutgerscomminfo ‘97 | @mfavn ‘19

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Thank you @lifetime_arts for providing me with more tools and resources for facilitating art experiences for older adults and for introducing me to some amazing creative aging practitioners! #grateful #creativeaging by @explorations.media

Come for the morning Highland Park Community Garden cleanup day on 10/10/26. Stay for the art making experience afterwards. by @explorations.media

$My research at the @newberrylibrary, for which I received a generous @nehgov grant, evaluated critiques of the Mercator Map Projection. The topic was introduced to me by @revolutionaryhats, who is a better history teacher than any I encountered in 16 years of professional schooling. 🙏🏼💙🕊️ I investigated the topic by examining and analyzing Mercator’s original text and images, along with the work of translators, editors, cartographers, and critics of his work. The #Mercator projection–one of the most well-known map projections in history—was created by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569. Its design revolutionized navigation by allowing sailors to plot straight-line courses over long distances on a 2D map. However, it has been widely criticized for what some argue was intentional distortion of land masses—especially Greenland, which appears similar in size to Africa rather a fraction of its size. Mercator’s projection was never intended to be used as a wall map. It was a revolutionary navigation tool that advanced colonialist ends, ends its creator likely would have supported. The critique led US public schools, including those in Boston and Nebraska, to replace the map with “equal-area” alternatives. In 2018, Google Maps replaced it on desktop applications with a 3D globe view, though users can switch back to Mercator, which remains the default on its mobile app. The World Bank also replaced it for static maps and is phasing out Mercator online. In September 2026, the UN General Assembly voted in a non-binding resolution to replace the Mercator Projection as well. The ‘Correct the Map’ resolution, sponsored by Togo and backed by African Union (AU) members, passed with the support of 164 nations six abstentions and one vote against it, from the USA. Alternate maps have their own inaccuracies and the Mercator projection remains useful for navigation. This is obvious to me when I’m trying to find my way to an unfamiliar place and Google switches to a 3D view. My research brief for educators will be published on the Newberry website along with those of my amazing colleagues. I’ll update this post and add a link when that happens. by @explorations.media$

RIP Annie Dillard.

I don’t recall if I’ve ever read one of her books but this quote from Holy the Firm was the heart of the all-time most-read post on my old blog, which is hidden behind the public facing elements of my website. (link in bio)

I published the post on Mothers Day 2011, three years after my son died, and it still gets traffic on that holiday. This year, it got 85 views.

If you look at the other stats in slide two, you’ll see that grief posts about my late son eclipse nearly all my professional work.

The only two that break through link to an article about the ethics of elective cosmetic surgery and one about a controversial art patron.

So, on behalf of all the parents who’ve buried children and been moved by your words, thank you for communicating ideas that resonate for so many of us whose life experiences annihilate superficial spirituality.

May your reward and heavenly reunions be sweet. 🙏🏼💙🕊️

#anniedillard #mothersday #mothergrief by @explorations.media

I’m honored to have had this simple watercolor selected for inclusion in Creative Freedom, a collection of works by artists who received the @creativesrebuildny grant during the pandemic era. After my @svanyc job was eliminated, it was a lifesaver. Check out the free e-book at the link in my bio or support NY artists, many of whom live below the poverty line, by purchasing the print-on-demand version. by @explorations.media

Chicago beach day. #lakemichigan #watercolor #pleinairpainting #therapeuticart by @explorations.media

What a wonderful day we had yesterday painting Highland Park Community Garden! And what a wonderful surprise it was to have four of my favorite @hartshighschool students join in the fun!

I began as I always do with blind contour drawing to relax nervous artists and help them break out of the habit we all have of thinking we understand the forms before us. Learning to see lines and shapes before objects can really free emerging artists to enjoy the process without worrying about the outcome.

From there, students often feel more confident to explore and experiment. I teach a bit of technique but I’m more interested in fostering creative outlets for students to restore themselves than I am in developing professional artists. Those with the talent and drive for that path will find it and will also benefit from relaxing into a sustainable, nurturing art practice.

Thank you to everyone who joined us! I loved hearing from one artistically insecure attendee that I’m a “great inspiration for creativity and art-as-zen”! Yes please and thank you!

#therapeuticart #pleinaire #watercolor by @explorations.media

Come join me for another #pleinair #watercolor workshop! August 15, 10am-12pm at Highland Park Community Garden in Brooklyn. by @explorations.media

This is an @edgilbreath appreciation post.

I don’t remember exactly when I met this wonderful man in person but it must have been somewhere around 2010-2012 when I began writing for @urbanfaith. He was its editor and I was first a contributor, then a columnist, and finally the News and Religion editor.

Ed introduced me to Gil Scott Heron, when he assigned me to write Heron’s obituary. There were many other introductions and incredible reporting opportunities. Whitney Houston’s funeral comes to mind, as does the Black Nativity press junket in Beverly Hills. A two-part series on diversity efforts at Christian colleges. Race-based funding disparities in urban ministry. Billy Graham’s checkered history with the Civil Rights Movement. Articles on the Obama presidency and the Southern Baptist Convention’s election of and controversy surrounding its first Black president. The Black church as an outlier in the “Rise of the Nones” story, which our colleagues initially missed.

I could go on but you get the idea. We won first place in the Evangelical Press Association’s Best General Website category in our first year working together full time, beating out @ct_mag, which had a staff at least triple our size.

Ed is the author of two excellent books (that I know of) and is working on another, which led to our meetup today. We figured out that it’s been eight years since we’ve seen each other in person.

It was a delight to meet his lovely wife Dana, who I’d only known via his social media accounts. She’s a powerhouse.

Ed is another one of those precious people in my life who’ve made a big impact but whom I’ve rarely spent time with in person.

More than just a great journalist, he’s an incredibly kind and generous human.

Thank you friend, for all you’ve given me and for all you continue to give your family and the world. by @explorations.media

I’m incredibly grateful to have received a press pass to visit the @obamalibrary while I’m here in Chicago.

It brought back so many memories from those years—some incredible and life-changing, some bittersweet, some soul crushing and life-destroying. I’ll be writing about what it was like to re-experience those years soon.

*I’ll also be updating this caption to describe elements in this reel. In the meantime, yes that was @speakerpelosi sneaking out because the gift store line was too long. Same. by @explorations.media

It’s such an honor to have my Art Memories collage in @workwellnyc’s 2026 #ArtIsLife show with some other amazing artists who also happen to be NYC employees.

Now that I’ve collaged the art I’ve been storing for decades, I plan to submit a painting next year that I’ll create in the studio for which this year’s submission made room. by @explorations.media

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