Community Spotlight: Wamwega Shaw
How did you arrive at the Brookline Arts Center? What sparks your interest in our organization?
I arrived at the BAC a long time ago now. I was raised in Brookline and actually had my first encounter with the BAC back when I was in the 7th grade, or so. A group of us students from Pierce School were invited to participate in a mural painting project with the wonderful folks at the BAC. The mural is still on the outside of the building to this day.
What continues to spark my interest in the BAC is the engaging and inviting energy of the staff has always been most welcoming and open to new ideas.
Tell us about your background. How did you become interested in art/community engagement?
My background is that of a latchkey kid who grew up on Greenough Street. Lucky enough to be able to roam safely and being so close to the city, I was exposed to a multitude of opportunities to soak art & culture. I have been a performing artist as well in my teens & twenties. In my time now, I just strive to be supportive to the community in a way that I would have appreciated as a younger person.
What passions do you bring to the BAC community?
The passion I bring to the BAC community is the love of creativity and the opportunities to express it. Our capacity for creativity is so dynamic and contrasting. It is essential to provide places like the BAC to foster the tools of practice and mastery.
In your role as Community Engagement Manager for Sanctuary Medicinals, what has brought you the most joy?
The thing that has given me the most joy since taking on the role of CE for Sanctuary has definitely been our ability to raise funds for various non-profits and small businesses throughout Brookline.
What was your favorite childhood art project?
My favorite childhood art project is a split between the mural I painted with the BAC as a 7th grader & completing my first EP as a young musician.
What artists or kinds of art are you into right now?
Right now I am really into the hyperrealistic art of Jeff Henriquez. An extremely talented artist out of NYC.
What are three things that you would want the BAC community to know about you?
Three things I would want the BAC community to know about me are:
1) That I absolutely strive to be the person I would have admired and modeled myself after as a youngster. I get closer to that goal every day.
2) I am Brookline. Raised and reared here with deep roots in this community back to the 1970s.
3) I believe that when you see me, you should see you reflected back.
