On October 17th, 2005 A group of NY senior women (who has previously been active in various Peace groups) went to the Times Square Recruitment Center to enlist in place of their and other grandchildren who had been deployed in Iraq. They were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

After the arrest, rather than accept an Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal (an ACD), they decided to go to court to defend their civil right to speak out.  They were tried, and acquitted, in NYC Criminal Court.  Determined to work together to end the war in Iraq, they became the Granny Peace Brigade and continue to protest against war. Ranging in age from their 50‘s to their 90‘s, they exemplify one of their favorite placards that states “Democracy is not a spectator sport”.

My interest in this group was sparked when a personal friend was indicted for her participation as a member of the “Grannies”. I have followed this amazing, courageous group of women since then, occasionally joining and photographing their demonstrations.

Working from photos I took during protest activities. I am currently developing a series of images featuring the Grannies. The project enables me to combine my strong feeling for this group and its causes, my own history as a  peace activist/ feminist, and my aesthetic quest to create dynamic paintings where content, conviction and painterly/graphic qualities can merge.