Experimenting with public engagement while addressing the legend that there are Alligators in the sewers in NYC, Brookie created 33 life sized Alligators and planted them coming out of the sewers, starting at 3:00 am, at 14 locations from Wall Street to Harlem.
“Pandemonium ensued- some Alligators were stolen, others run over, and other people designated themselves as the Alligators rescuers/ security detail. Chuck Scarborough stole an Alligator and did the Channel 4 news report with it on his head.
“But during Gators! and Sergeant Pepper I learned that public artworks could evoke the same unique gesture language response from people, that could leave a lasting impression” - From Bookies Career Narrative
Mentioned in The New Yorker magazine, March 28, 1988
It’s Women’s History Month! Let’s take a look at the journey of @brookieworks, the organization created in 2015 to honor and further the legacy of artist and activist Brookie Maxwell.
Brookie Maxwell Works was launched on December 1st 2015 in order to honor and to further the legacy of late activist Artist Brookie Maxwell. The organization has three main goals:
to help launch and develop the careers of emerging artists;
to create and promote programs that nurture and develop the creative spirit in children everywhere;
and to expand awareness and exposure to the artwork created during the lifetime of this extraordinary artist.
December 1st 2015, Official launch of Brookie Maxwell Works.
May 2016 the archiving process starts at Brookie Maxwell Works.
November 4th 2016 Gallery 138 furniture, personal items from Brookie’s home and the Coming Home collection are official moved into new home base in Dobbs Ferry, NY.
February 2017 Estate prep is complete. Brookie Maxwell Works can official begin making our presence known to the public. Boxes are labeled and final inventory is completed.
“The Good and Evil Sides of My Heart (front)” at Brookie Maxwell Works.
“Sergeant Peppers (In Strawberry Fields)” at Brookie Maxwell Works.
May 2017 The Brookie Maxwell Works team begins the web design process, digitizing sides, and editing photos for prints.
September 15th 2017 brookiemaxwell.com launches to public.
November 2017 Brookie Maxwell Works begins a new social phase, connecting with new artists and fans of Brookie’s work.
Follow @brookieworks on Instagram Facebook and Twitter.
Looking Back: The Life and Legacy of Brookie Maxwell.
Brookie Maxwell, artist, gallery owner, curator and activist, was born October 15, 1956 in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Daughter to celebrated author and Fiction Editor of New Yorker Magazine William Maxwell, and painter Emily Noyes Maxwell.
Brookie was born October 15th, 1956
From an early age, Brookie was surrounded by a community of the most celebrated and influential artists and authors of the twentieth century.
Brookie and Milton Glaser (close colleague and mentor)
Endowed with an artists’ DNA, she began drawing from the moment she could hold a crayon and continued a life of creative expression until her death from ovarian cancer in 2015.
Brookie and fellow artist working on “Gators!” (1988)
Brookie in her gallery / home (2009)
She is survived by her sister Katharine Maxwell and her son Ellis Maxwell who continues work on her last and most ambitious project, Coming Home: Journey, Community, Dialog.
Brookie working on “Coming Home: Journey, Community, Dialog”
View the full timeline of Brookie’s work at: brookiemaxwell.com/timeline
Brookie Maxwell Works is happy to introduce “Muses In Action,” a new featured series to our blog. Each post under this series will focus on a particular person who at one point, Brookie made to be a subject of her artwork. As this discussion unravels with each muse, we will not only highlight their role in Brookie’s artwork, but their own aspirations, accomplishments, and their memory of working with Brookie. Our goal is to provide insight into the mind and creativity of such a passionate and conscious New York artist, and what better way to do so than through those who were once a direct reflection of her vision!
As an exemplary post for this series, we decided to make Brookie herself our first subject. Below is an image of Brookie as a muse in her own work.
This painting is titled "Yemaya Rising,” belonging to her collection made in the early 90's, called Deep Water. (Mixed media on wood 4ft x 7ft)
In reference to symbolism within this piece, Brookie once explained "Yemaya, ruler of birth, is the Santeria goddess of the ocean. She also represents the maternal forces of love and the protection of children."
Deep Water in summary:
“A life-sized portrait and sculpture series in monochromatic blue, narrating the lives of inner city families. Three themes are embodied: children who are struggling in the deep waters of poverty, racism and despair; the healing and uplifting power of these children’s collective heritage; and the people who use their vision to heal their own communities.”
Brookie__ the healer, mother, activist, and artist, was very passionate about community intervention and healing, wherever in the world it was needed most. Her portrayal of the spiritual goddess, Yemaya, parallels her relationship with the inner city youth who attended the Creative Arts Workshop (C.A.W.) held during the 90′s. As the founder of the C.A.W. organization, Brookie acquired a team of individuals to help nurture her vision of facilitating a healthy and creative outlet for children of all ages in Harlem, New York. Many of those same children maintained a friendship with Brookie that surpassed her involvement with the C.A.W. Organization, which still stands today. In fact, many of those faces are muses throughout Deep Water, and can also be seen in some of her other collections.
Brookie’s was equally as inspirational as she herself felt inspired by her surroundings. Through this featured series, Brookie Maxwell Works intends to highlight those who, like Brookie, created art through the art of healing and community.
We Are Pleased to Introduce this New Space Dedicated to Brookie Maxwell’s Art!
In May of 2016, we began our official move from the Chelsea loft into our headquarters in Dobbs Ferry, New York. For the past year we have catalogued and archived all of the artwork created throughout Brookie’s forty-year career. In doing so, our team has not only become well versed in her work, but immensely passionate about and inspired by her creative service to the world. Here we intend to highlight and nurture the legacy of Brookie’s artistic and humanitarian vision. We offer our @_brookiemaxwell presence in social media as a lens through which we share in our remembrance and inspiration.
Pieces of Brookie’s original art, decor, and furniture from her loft now reside here in Dobbs Ferry, gracing our work space with her warm style each day. Natural lighting bellows throughout the airy space, overlooking a gorgeous landscape view of the Hudson River. The provided images show a few of those aforementioned special elements. Each day, we dedicate ourselves to the fruition of Brookie’s mission to engage, educate, create, inspire, and heal through art, as well put her powerful artwork back into the world.
We invite you to share in this journey with us, stay tuned to see what we’re up to!
