SMC Emeritus Celebrates Release of “The Ongoing Moment” 2025 Edition

“The Ongoing Moment” Opening Reception and Author Readings at SMC’s Emeritus Art Gallery Nov. 20

Collaborative Art and Writing Exhibit Runs Nov. 20, 2025-Jan. 9, 2026

SANTA MONICA, CA — SMC’s Emeritus Art Gallery announces the latest edition of “The Ongoing Moment: Literature and Art from SMC Emeritus,” a collaborative journal/exhibition of original writing and art created by Emeritus Program students in the Autobiography writing class led by author Monona Wali, the Watercolor Studio class taught by artist Catherine Tirr, and the Writing for Publication class taught by Kathleen MacKay.

The free exhibition will run Nov. 20, 2025, through Jan. 9, 2026, in the SMC Emeritus Art Gallery, located on the first floor of SMC Emeritus, 1227 Second Street, Santa Monica. An opening reception with author readings — also free to the public — will be held Thursday, Nov. 20, from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Author readings will start promptly at 5 p.m. in Room 107, and be followed by a reception with light refreshments in the gallery, hosted by Tirr and Wali with Emeritus Gallery Curator Jesse Benson.  Additional details are available at smc.edu/emeritusgalleryor by calling 310-434-4306.

In an excerpt from the introduction to this year’s edition, Wali and Tirr write:

2025 started out with the news story of two major fires in Los Angeles, one in Pacific Palisades and the other in Altadena. One-hundred-mile-per-hour winds fanned flames that burned whole towns to rubble and ash. It was something none of us had witnessed in our lifetimes.

The Palisades fire impacted many SMC Emeritus students. Many lost homes and many more were displaced. The fires brought to our doorstep the very real impact of climate change.

In writing class, the scale of the disaster made me think about our students, what they have lived through, and what inner resources they cultivated to get through hard times. After all, they have lived through many turbulent world events, as well as the inevitable life crises from loss of partners to divorce to health challenges. As our children and grandchildren look to the future of their existence on this planet, they are asking themselves how they will survive.

I felt strongly that our students — who range from 60 to 90+ years in age — might, in telling their own stories of hardship, have some important lessons to convey to the generations who come after them. I prompted them to write about experiences when they felt there was no 'plan b.' How did they come through? What inner resources did they draw upon? This issue of The Ongoing Moment is a collection of those stories that, hopefully, will inspire readers, particularly younger readers, to know that whatever the circumstances, inner resilience and wisdom, so amply demonstrated in these stories, can prevail over the hardest of times.

As usual in art class, I began the semester with a collage assignment. Students worked individually, at their own pace, to develop their ideas. Once a composition was established, we used the collage as a still life to work from, while exploring a variety of watercolor techniques.

I asked, “What is our way forward? How can we be resilient in the face of adversity? What methods can we use to overcome difficulties?” Rather than dwell on the negative experience of loss and devastation that affected all of Los Angeles at the beginning of 2025, I sought to focus on each individual’s greatest strengths. We recognized as a community that, by acknowledging and embracing these characteristics and showing self-compassion, we were able to find a means to navigate the troubles in life with grace and fortitude. The search for emotional balance cultivates hope and a positive mindset. It has been truly humbling to witness just how resilient human beings can be.

This year’s edition of “The Ongoing Moment” features written works by Shirin Bazleh, Gordon Blitz, Marianne Borgardt, Lois Bostwick, Kathleen Carey, Katya Chelu, Dorothy Chin, William Doran, Bec Edelson, Wendy Fairbanks, Tina Feiger, Frances Feinman, Elizabeth Fenjves, Cathy Fickes, Camille Gaon, G.N., Nancy Gimbrone, Hannah Heineman, Linda J. Hernandez, Brett Holler, Esther Lainer, Jeanne Lee, Margaret Lenzey, Harriet Lipson, Bill Megalos, Janice Nishida, Sean O’Shea, Martin Pearlman, Ann Pellant, Veena Sadana, Evelyn Salem, Joe Samuels, Jeanne Shamji, Frima Telerant, Sharon Valente, Nancy Vinicor, Shifra Myerow Wylder, Lisa Zarowin, and Helene Zimmerman.

Artwork in this year’s edition was created by Darshini Aithal, Nadia Akashi, Abbe Barron, Jill Benham, Brenda Cain, Mina Choksi, Linda Freedman, Caroline Gray, Kathleen Higgins, Kate Kausch, Eunjin Koh, Jennifer Jesswain, Sun Lau, Erica LeBlanc, Cheryl Lee, Marie Lehman, Marion Levine, Linda Librizzi, Francine Lucey, Pim Manivat Nilsen, Janice Nishida, Bea Pomassnoff, Jan Reisner, Jeanne Shamji, Leyla L. Shams, Edwin Torres, Judy Weiner, Judy Wolf, and Adam Yu.

Copies of “The Ongoing Moment” will be available for purchase online (while supplies last) at foundation.smc.edu/ongoingmoment or through the gallery website at smc.edu/emeritusgallery. The cost is $10 per copy. SMC’s widely praised Emeritus program, founded by Santa Monica College in 1975 to serve the lifelong learning interests of older adults, offers more than 120 noncredit adult education classes and special programs that serve more than 3,000 students each year.

# # #