Former West Bloomfield Resident's Painting Featured in Art of Aging Exhibit

Nancy Forsberg never knew she had any artistic talent at all, until she walked into an art class at Fox Run senior living community in Novi.

Now the former West Bloomfield resident's artworks line the walls of her apartment, and one was featured in last month's 14th Annual Art of Aging Successfully exhibit, held at Greater Grace Conference Center in Detroit. 

Forsberg worked with Bloomfield Hills Schools for 30 years, including 11 years at Lone Pine Elementary. When she moved to the senior living community nine years ago, she met another resident who did beautiful colored pencil drawings. Forsberg decided she would give that a try and ended up taking an art class with a Fox Run instructor.

"She showed me how to make a tomato, and it actually looked like a tomato," Forsberg said. 

She began working with colored pencils, drawing a ship that she saw in Sweden while on a trip with her son. Forsberg said she works from photos, her own and others she finds. Sometimes, she adds special touches, like slipping an image of her own cat, Tessa, into her rendering of a calendar photo. 

Forsberg has also sketched her grandchildren and sends out hand-drawn greeting cards. Her Art of Aging entry is a painting of Bourne's Beach in upstate New York, where she was raised.

The March 21 event, hosted by the Wayne State University Institute of Gerontology, featured a gallery of art work from seniors all around metropolitan Detroit. Workshop topics included gardening, memory tips, exercise, nutritious cooking, and speakers from the Motown and Detroit Historical museums.