Wiser With Age

Tag: NYC

  • NY artist says to make your life a masterpiece, listen to yourself

    NY artist says to make your life a masterpiece, listen to yourself


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Artist Carol Crawford (Photo/Carol Crawford)

    Carol Crawford, originally from Buffalo, NY, has been creating art ever since she can remember. She inherited her talent from her father – an artist and calligrapher.

    “I used to watch him work,†she says. “He did gorgeous lines. He handed me a bottle of India ink when I was seven and a sable brush. I never spilled anything.â€

    And that’s how it all began.

    Crawford has had a long art career consisting of documentary photography, filmmaking, printmaking, and theater set design. In 1995, she got a masters in interior design from Pratt Institute in NYC – where she has been teaching since 1999. Slightly before that, she also founded her own design firm, Carol Crawford Environments, which specializes in sustainable interior design. And on October 7, her latest exhibit, “Time Frames: Visual Metaphors for the Passage of Time†opens in New York.

    “All the work was done in 2014,†says Crawford about her latest exhibit which she completed while on medical leave from Pratt. “I had spinal surgery, and it took a long time to heal. I thought I would go out of my mind, so I decided to throw myself into studio work. I plunged in. It was an evolution from designs from my sketchbook.â€

    She says what she loves most about art is the ability to communicate and to invent.

    “What I like about it is telling stories,†says Crawford. “I’m looking always to break new ground. It’s mixed media, because I love to shift. I’ve used a lot of wood and plexiglass, and photography has always played a large part. I used to make a living as a documentary photographer – so the camera is an important tool.â€

    Whatever she has worked on throughout her life, she says, she has loved. And she also made sure to make time for everything that was important to her.

    “I’ve been teaching in universities and colleges from California to Maryland for the past 60 years…I love teaching very, very much, but I didn’t want to give up the idea of becoming a mother,†says the busy woman who now has four grown kids and five grandchildren. “…One of the things I had to fight for was to have children and a family – so it means a great deal.”

    Crawford says she wasn’t always so sure about what she wanted. One day her father asked her why she didn’t go to Pratt?

    “We were not rich,†she remembers. “I was always a scholarship student with a job. I thought, ‘How could I do that?’â€

    And then her mother asked her, “Wouldn’t you like to be a designer? You keep doing it for free?â€

    Crawford says she didn’t know how she could go back to school with four kids, and she recently realized it all happened. She had actually graduated from Pratt and is a designer and teacher.

    “Some of the best ideas I’ve ever had was using my brain with my feelings,†she says. “Some of the best artwork has come from that as well.â€

    If she had one piece of life advice that she would tell her younger self, it would be to be true to yourself, others and stick to your dream – even if you don’t know how you are going to make money.

    “If you haven’t already fallen in love with something…listen to yourself,†says Crawford. “If you are an honest observer to life around you, you’ll come up with something that is true to you. You will have success if you do that.â€

  • Actor Tony Plana says, “Show your kids how important education is”

    Actor Tony Plana says, “Show your kids how important education is”


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Actor Tony Plana (Courtesy Twitter)

    Many might remember Tony Plana from his many acting roles from “Feo†in the film “Born in East L.A.â€Â to playing America Ferrera’s dad in the sitcom “Ugly Betty,†but many might not know his other passion is sharing his wisdom with youth.

    The 62-year-old Cuban-American actor attributes all of his success to his education, and he says he wants to pay it forward.

    For nearly two decades, Plana has been working hard to create educational programming for schools in underserved middle and high schools in the greater Los Angeles area. His East L.A. Classic Theatre program, which integrates acting within school curriculums have proven successful, because it engages students to become avid learners – it connects them emotionally to the school experience. He says young immigrant children, who have trouble speaking because of fear, to troubled runaways, have found a purpose and have learned to thrive because of being exposed to theater.

    “Theater teaches you to collaborate and identify with a group – to create and realize something together,†says Plana. “The wonderful feeling of creating something together and sharing it – it’s very powerful…I started East L.A. Classic Theatre in 1995, because I wanted to become part of the solution…I want to take East L.A. nationally, because [education] is a national problem.â€

    The experienced father of two and educator of many, says it’s all about connections when it comes to educating youth, and it starts in the home.

    “Latino children experience more regression than any other group, because it’s environmental – many are very poor and that’s not conducive to intellectual stimulation,†says Plana, who encourages role-playing with parents in school curriculums. “It’s important to educate the parents about this problem.â€

    He says he’s also created a program through East L.A. called “Creciendo Juntos†to empower parents with information.

    “You have to get involved in finding out who your kids are and what they need,†says Plana, who home-schooled his own children – whether biological, educational, whatever those needs are. “We teach them not to do things for their children, but to make them learn, and parents to become learners themselves. You teach by modeling. Become more educated so you can make more money and raise standard of living. Show your kids how important education is.â€

    Currently living with his wife in NYC, Plana also spends time advocating for other causes when he’s not acting. Most recently, he’s a spokesperson for a non-profit called TECHO, which brings volunteers and low-income families in Latin America together to combat poverty.

  • An iconic Colombian photographer finds new life in NYC at 92

    An iconic Colombian photographer finds new life in NYC at 92


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Nereo López in Queens, New York. (Courtesy Facebook)

    Nereo López isn’t a typical 92-year-old; he’s more like a typical young, starry-eyed artist who wakes up at noon and gets inspiration from everything around him. His small frame is overpowered by his bright blue eyes anxiously anticipating what is about to come next in his life. López has not only rediscovered his art, he has gotten a second chance at a successful career and fulfillment.

    The Cruz de Boyacá winning photographer — one of the highest honors in Colombia — who had traveled the world taking photos, giving nearly 20 exhibitions, and published more than 10 works, saw his career plummet 12 years ago.  The man who met Gabriel García Márquez and Pope Paul IV had his center, the Nereo Center of Teaching and Culture of Photography in Bogota, Colombia, shut down due to lack of funds. He says after the age of 40, in Colombia, it is very hard to find work because you’re considered too antiquated.

    López says he was having thoughts of ending his life when a friend called from New York. She heard the distress in his voice about not being able to find a job, and how he was feeling depressed, so she bought him a ticket to the city that never sleeps — arriving the next day — to see if he’d like it better. He says he didn’t just like it better, he found another reason to keep living.

    “As soon as I arrived, I ran to all the photo galleries,†says López, describing his eagerness like a kid in an amusement park.

    The title of his photo book published last year, called “Nereo López: Un Contador de Historias,†describes what he is precisely — a storyteller. He says there was a time he used to have 14 cameras of different sizes to tell his stories. Now, he just uses one to make his life simpler and lighter — a compact Canon G9.

    “Photography still fascinates me,†says the man who one day started observing the faces of people leaving the subway and started a series of photos of just that. “What I have learned is to see.â€

    The talented López wasn’t always a photographer. He lost both parents at age 11, and started working when he was a teenager in a movie theater in Colombia, where he was promoted to manager after 10 years.

    “It was World War II, and you couldn’t travel in a plane with a camera during that time,†says López, explaining how his photography career began. “A friend asked me to watch his camera while he went on a trip, and I started to practice with his camera.â€

    He says he learned on his own with a book and a correspondence course that he never finished, and he was always asking questions.

    “I started taking photos in a series — like a movie,†he says. Still today, he says he’s always thinking in series — perhaps because of the many years of films he’s seen in the movie theater where he worked. “I always have my photos in my head, and I figure out what series they will go in later.â€

    When he was 27, he quit his movie house job, and started working as a photojournalist at one of Colombia’s largest newspapers, El Espectador. That is when he says he started to travel all over Colombia and started his photo collection for the book, “Colombia: Que Lindo Eresâ€/â€Colombia: How Beautiful You Are.â€

    “The subjects I most gravitated towards were children,†says Lopez who also has a series called, “Niños Que No Rienâ€/“Children Who Don’t Laugh.†“Perhaps because I didn’t really have a real childhood.â€

    In 1957, he became a chief photographer of the photographer’s magazine, Cromos, in Colombia. He says he was a photojournalist for 15 years before he started his center of photography where he taught up to 100 students at a time.

    Since he’s been in New York City, he has not wasted any of his precious minutes. He’s been recognized by the New York City Council and has shown his work at the Queens Museum and El Museo del Barrio.

    “It hasn’t been easy, because I don’t speak English,†says López in his native Spanish.

    He says he’s happy to not have to develop photos the old-fashioned way anymore. He’s well-equipped in his new one-bedroom apartment, in a building for the elderly, with bare white walls lined with varied books, including “Macs for Dummies.†The centerpiece of his living room is a shiny new 27-inch Mac computer, complete with scanner and printer. He explains he loves his craft even more now with modern technology.

    “For me, paper is obsolete,†he exclaims, laughing.

    One of the highlights of his week is going to a senior center in Queens, NY. Even though he moved to a different neighborhood, he still goes on Tuesdays, because that’s the day the seniors dance after lunch.

    “To see these seniors dance and have fun is life,†he says, joking that no one is older than him. “They have a desire to live. I take photos demonstrating their desire to live.â€

    He says he would like to publish a book of these photos called â€La Primavera del Ocasoâ€/“The Spring of the Sunset,†but he’ll only do it if it can have that name. He also started making goals for himself again — to be featured in a large museum such as, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and to live in Spain and Paris one day.

    “When I came to New York, I said to my friend, ‘I came to New York too late,†says López, eager to start on a new project with some young artists he’s encountered. “My friend responded, ‘You never arrive too late to New York, you just came with less time,’ but I hope to live 100 years more…I haven’t arrived to where I wanted to arrive, but I’m on my way.â€

    López says when he came to the U.S. and obtained his residency, and citizenship five years ago, he saw a new horizon.

    “When one sees a horizon, one sees life,†says the photographer with never-ending vision. “Here is where I’ll stay.â€

    This article was originally published on NBCLatino.com on January 10, 2013. 

  • Long-time NY businessman and marketer gives back by teaching

    Long-time NY businessman and marketer gives back by teaching


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Myron Gould (Photo/Greyson Cage Stock)

    “When I was much younger, I wanted to be a chemical engineer, but as I got a little older, I guess my mind turned more towards business,†says Myron Gould, 68. “My father was a very big influence in that decision. He was a person who was in business…he was a role model in that regard…I would sit in the car and listen to him and listen to what was going on – it was interesting. He sold machine parts, adhesives, all material used by manufacturing firms.â€

    The born and raised New Yorker has worked four decades in the business and marketing arena. In addition to being the CEO of his own business advising firm, where he helps people build business plans, he is also starting a new consulting firm to teach companies to keep their employees engaged. Gould is also an adjunct professor of marketing and management at New York University.

    “It’s my 20th year at NYU,†says Gould. “I was sitting in a friend’s office – a recruiter who dealt with direct marketing people…He got a phone call, and he said to the person on the phone, I have somebody right here. [The person] asked if I’d be interested in teaching a class, and I never stopped.â€

    And Gould never stops working it seems. In addition to running his business, he says he recently created a new capstone at the University – an option to writing a thesis for students which involves writing up a business plan instead and learning about entrepreneurship.

    “I get a considerable amount of e-mails from clients, I grade papers, then I go through many projects that I’m working on,†explains Gould. “My classes are from 6 to 9 pm, and this coming term four times a week – it varies. I have dinner at 9:30 or 10:30, then work another four hours.â€

    He says he’s making an effort in getting more sleep, however.

    “I love what I do,†says Gould. “I feel like I’m helping people.â€

    When Gould was starting out his career in the mid-1960’s, he says marketing wasn’t even called “marketing,†but “distribution.†One of his favorite jobs was at Columbia Records in his early 30’s.

    “It was a great place,†he remembers. “Sometimes I debate whether I should have left or not. I was recruited for a consulting firm.â€

    Today, he thinks video is the way to go. He uses green screen technology to create videos to complement his teaching.

    “I have virtual sets,†says the high-tech professor, excitedly. “I can put myself into a green room…Like where a weather person delivers the weather. I create videos of some of my lessons and make them available for people…I can be doing my work while sipping piña coladas on a ship.â€

    What advice would he tell his younger self about life?

    “I would talk about getting enough information to make good decisions,†he says. “A lot of times we make decisions impatiently, but sometimes it’s better to slow down a little bit. There were times in my life where I could have made a better decision by not acting so quickly.â€

    He adds his biggest project currently is getting his grandson, who just turned 4, to have a good life.

    “What he does with his life is his choice, but I want him to be equipped to make those decisions,†says Gould.

  • Master yogi, 75, is expert in 1,350 postures

    Master yogi, 75, is expert in 1,350 postures


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Sri Dharma Mittra near the lake at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, New York, August of 2009. (Photo/Lily Cushman Frindel)

    While most New Yorkers are scrambling around, stressed, and in a hurry, Master Yogi Sri Dharma Mittra is often in a faraway, much more peaceful place mentally, and sometimes physically upside down.

    Often referred to as the “Teacher’s Teacher†by his hundreds of students at the Dharma Yoga Center in New York City, Mittra has taught many prominent yoga instructors in the city since he began teaching the ancient art in 1967. Today, at 75, he still teaches yoga twice a day, five days a week.

    “My favorite pose is the headstand, because the blood comes down to the head, and it increases mental ability,†says the yoga guru.

    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Sri Dharma in London, Summer of 2010. The pose is a variation of Nirlamba Shirshasana — a hands-free headstand. (Photo/Hugh Herrera)

    Mittra is an expert in more than a thousand poses, however. When he was 45, he photographed himself in 1,350 postures as an act of devotion to his guru – Yogi Gupta. The Master Yoga Chart, which hangs in yoga studios worldwide, is made up of 908 of these photos. And, 608 of these photos were published in his book “Asanas.â€

    “I moved to New York City in September, 1964, and I lived here since then,†says Mittra who was born in the remote village of Pirapora, Brazil and was raised Catholic among a poor family of five children. “I came here for more opportunity…there is also more freedom here, and my guru was here, so I had to be here.â€

    He says he was around 17 or 18 when he learned about yoga through the books his younger brother was studying.

    “As soon as I learned that the purpose of yoga was self-control, I got really enthusiastic about it,†remembers Mittra. “Yoga comes from about 5,000 years ago in India. Now, we have yoga styles that fit all types of people on the planet.â€

    He says he usually follows the form called Asana – the one based on postures.

    “That technique gives you mental, physical and spiritual power,†says Mittra. “We use these three powers to achieve success in whatever we want. More mental control – your mind becomes extremely sharp…It is like going from AM to FM radio – better quality of music.â€

    Being a follower of Asana, requires Mittra to also be a vegetarian.

    “Being a vegetarian, you rarely get sick,†he says. “I haven’t seen a doctor for 50 years. When you do the poses, your body doesn’t hurt much and you get less injuries.â€

    Mittra is also a champion of meditation – an integral component of yoga, he explains. He has been doing it for so long now, that it has become almost an involuntary habit for him.

    “Meditation doesn’t mean you have to be sitting – you can be walking,†explains Mittra. “I also meditate lying down on the floor, but not sleeping. I put my body in a deep relaxation. Deep inside you ask yourself where you are in your heart, your mind, and you go outside of body consciousness. I keep my mind somewhere else, not on worries.â€

    For today’s youth, he advises them to have compassion for all beings.

    “Learn how to see yourself in others,†says Mittra. “From there, you become more respectful… Form a good diet. Be vegetarian, and don’t cook food too much. If you don’t like yoga, you must be active. Be moderate in sex. Get involved in meditation. Without it, you won’t have inner peace.â€