The Brooklyn Cottage

Our mission is to provide space for the unleashing of our most radically creative, textured, generous and unafraid selves. Each month we offer a theme around which a variety of programs–storytelling evenings, cooking classes, meditation gatherings, writing workshops, art exhibitions–can make these ideas visible. We believe in listening. We believe in unconfined joy. We believe in the shelter of each other. We believe, in a technology-addled age, in the power of being present. We believe in grieving as necessary. We prize vulnerability and the delicious, unwieldy chaos that is part of any true creative endeavor. We believe that every one of us has “original medicine” from which others might benefit.

FEBRUARY 11

Naked Stories, Naked Food: an evening of revelry, reverie, storytelling experimentation and gastronomical pleasure.

MARCH 9

Failure as a Noble Goal: a presentation on Failure Clubs with Philip Kirakofe.

MARCH 14

Cooking Failures: an evening of culinary instruction in celebration of famous dishes invented by mistake. With chef Cali Rivera.

MARCH 21

Failure at Meditating: in which Brooklyn Cottagers failed to tame their minds, and remained sitting on their cushions anyway.

MARCH 24

Storytelling Failures: an evening of stories that didn't seek to be "good," but instead were rough, raw, real...and even bad.

APRIL 7

Sculpting from the Dirt: a half-day sculpture class with the earth as our raw material. Led by artist Will Kurtz.

APRIL 11

Cooking from the Dirt: from peanuts to pork bellies, an evening-long tutorial and welcoming of ingredients that hail from the earth, or near it. With chef Cali Rivera.

APRIL 18

Sitting in the Dirt: an evening of observing the grime and beauty of our own minds though an hour-long group meditation, with vegetarian dinner to follow.

APRIL 20

Talking Dirty: stories about dirty pool, dirty money, playing dirty, dirty minds--about how we got in the muck, and what got us out of it.

MAY 5

Exuberance: an evening in which Brooklyn Cottagers danced, skipped and sashayed our ways up the front stoop for Cinco de Mayo revelry.

MAY 11

Exuberance: an evening of laughter yoga with Vishwa Prakash.

MAY 16

Exuberance: we entered Cloud Nine, then watched it rain, then saw the sun come up again! All while meditating for an hour.

MAY 24

Exuberance: a culinary tutorial of, and tribute to, overflowing bounty and unmitigated joy. With chef Cali Rivera.

SEPTEMBER 8 & 9

An invitation to view and discuss "A Life's Work" with Yazmany Arboleda, inaugural artist-in-residence of The Brooklyn Cottage. As part of GO, a community-curated open studio project organized by The Brooklyn Museum.

SEPTEMBER 19

Work: an evening of silent meditation. Generous benefits package, no experience necessary. (A vegetarian dinner followed.)

SEPTEMBER 26

Work: an evening of culinary instruction in which manual labor--here, making food with our hands--was recognized and celebrated. With chef Cali Rivera.

SEPTEMBER 28

Work: stories about our strangest jobs, our meanest boss, a co-worker with an unusual tick.

OCTOBER 10

Ripeness & Decay: a Sunday evening of ecstatic chanting.

OCTOBER 19

Ripeness & Decay: an exhibition and reception for artist Sarah Prud'homme and "Roadkill," her in-progress works.

NOVEMBER 30

Storytelling about Family: because if you can't get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance. (With a tip of the hat to George Bernard Shaw.)

JANUARY 5 & 6

Plans & Promises: a weekend workshop on the Fundamentals of Sense Writing, with Madelyn Kent and Peggy Stafford.

JANUARY 9

Plans & Promises: an evening with Christopher Lowman, who promised himself to be of service--and went on to walk his talk in India, Kenya and Rwanda.

JANUARY 12

Plans & Promises: stories about best-laid plans gone asunder, and promises broken or kept.

JANUARY 16 +

Plans & Promises: a six-week sense-writing workshop designed to identify and support the internal and external landscapes that stir us. Led by Madelyn Kent and Peggy Stafford.

JANUARY 31

Plans & Promises: an evening of cooking instruction as homage to Sufi mysticism, led by chef Cali Rivera.

FEBRUARY 7

In Progress: a one-hour silent meditation in which all are welcome just as we are.

FEBRUARY 9

In Progress: a weekend sense-writing workshop--"To Feel is to Show"--with Madelyn Kent and Peggy Stafford.

FEBRUARY 14

In Progress: stories about finding ourselves in the thick of it (and what we did next).

FEBRUARY 22

In Progress: creative works unveiled at The Brooklyn Cottage's signature Show & Tell for grownups.

FEBRUARY 27

In Progress: a Mayan cooking fiesta with chef Cali Rivera.

MARCH 5

Soul Talk: a Living Room Conversation With Yazmany Arboleda.

MARCH 6

Soul Talk: true stories about a time we fell to our knees in deep surrender.

MARCH 13

Soul Talk: an evening talk and demonstration with John Wyrick, Karma Doctor.

APRIL 11

Stirring the Pot: a cooking class designed to agitate, awaken, provoke and move our inner cooks. With chef Cali Rivera.

APRIL 12

Stirring Cupid: an Eye-Gazing Party for Singles. With Christina Berkley.

APRIL 20

Stirring the Imagination: Show & Tell for creative grownups.

APRIL 24

Stirring the Psyche (and Taming It): an evening of shared meditation followed by a hearty vegetarian supper.

MAY 4

Exploring Little Free Libraries: a quixotic partnership among The Brooklyn Cottage, The PEN World Voices Festival and The Architectural League.

MAY 12

Crafting Little Earrings: a Mother's Day focused on the construction of whimsical origami earrings in miniature. With Varsha Mathrani.

MAY 15

Meditating a Little: when sweating the small stuff was bypassed in favor of sitting with others in spring evening stillness.

MAY 29

Making Little Dishes: a celebration of tapas with chef Cali Rivera.

MAY 30

Sharing Little Stories: tales from when we were small that shed light on the bigger people we grew up to become.

JUNE 1

Coming Home to the Body: an experiential weekend workshop for women. With Amelia Perkins.

JUNE 19

Tapping on the Body: an evening of instruction on the simple but profound power of Emotional Freedom Technique. With Jondi Whitis.

JUNE 28

Stories about the Body: tales about a time our bodies delighted us, betrayed us, embarrassed us, shocked us.

SEPTEMBER 17

Detours in Art & Mental Illness: an afternoon field trip to The Living Museum, which showcases work by patients at The Creedmoor Psychiatric Center.

SEPTEMBER 18

Detours of the Mind: an investigation via the heart--and an hour of sitting in silence together. Vegetarian dinner following.

SEPTEMBER 27

Stories about Detours: true tales about the chance conversation that changed our life, an unexpected exit, being lost and found.

SEPTEMBER 28

Detour & Destination: a Saturday afternoon workshop to reclaim our shadow times. With Amelia Perkins.

SEPTEMBER 29

Divorce as Detour, Divorce as Initiation: a Sunday afternoon workshop for women newly separated or divorced. With Jenny Douglas.

OCTOBER 20

Eating Beyond Doubt: a ripe evening opportunity to cast aside confusion and dive into beautiful food made and eaten well, together. With chef Cali Rivera.

OCTOBER 24

Presenting Yourself Beyond Doubt: a Thursday evening "how to" on public speaking with confidence and zest. With Jezra Kaye.

OCTOBER 26

Sharing Creativity Beyond Doubt: a Show & Tell for us to listen to the poem you wrote last week, taste the peanut-butter cookies you learned to make from your grandmother, sneak a peek at your in-progress animated film.

OCTOBER 27

Moving From Doubt to Personal Authority: a day-long creative workshop to explore the rich underbelly of our doubts--and the powerful fruits that lie there. With Donna Ayako Tsufura.

NOVEMBER 25

Just Ask: A devilish plan to unveil what we want--and ask for it over ten days. With Amelia Perkins.

DECEMBER 12

Feast of Forgiveness: A holiday gathering of a wholly different sort. With Jondi Whitis.

JANUARY 5

The Dance of Divorce Recovery: An intimate Sunday afternoon workshop for the newly separated or divorced. With Jenny Douglas.

JANUARY 17

An Evening of Meditative Drawing. With creative art therapist Marianne Gunther.

JANUARY 18

An Evening of Show & Tell: Creative grownups share their work.

JANUARY 22

In Celebration of Sitting Still: a winter evening's opportunity to share silence (and later, food and speech).

JANUARY 23

A Narrative Medicine Workshop. With Lynne Mijangos and Nina Collins.

JANUARY 25

The Banquet of Scent (and a Chance to Create Your Own): A Saturday afternoon workshop with master perfumer Julianne Zaleta.

JANUARY 26

The Triumph of a Peaceful Dog: Rrivate sessions for Fido with canine reiki master Marla Bosworth.

JANUARY 29

Tarot and Your Inner Architect: an exploration with Tarot expert Carolyn Agis.

FEBRUARY 28

Crafting Home: A subversive pop-up art show curated by Iviva Olenick.

MARCH 13

Death in the Tarot: Personal readings and a glass of wine--to toast your life's endings and new beginnings. With Carolyn Agis.

MARCH 14

Life on Death Row: stories and discussion with Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Jonathan Stack (director of "The Farm").

MARCH 19

Death Over Dinner: Explore ideas on how you'd like to die, while passing the potatoes.

MARCH 26

Never Too Early: Plan your own funeral, with funeral director Amy Cunningham.

MARCH 28

Stories about Death: Share a true tale about life's final passage (and expand our appreciation of all that it can be).

MARCH 31

Not Dead Yet: Write your own obituary while you're still alive. With Jenny Douglas.

APRIL 6

Money & Life: An exploration of net worth's relationship to self-worth. With documentary filmmaker Katie Teague.

MAY 22

Cocktail Alchemy: Learn the craft of artisanal cocktail-making, then enjoy the fruits of your labors in the Brooklyn Cottage garden. With Julianne Zaleta.

JUNE 11

Writing Lust: A Workshop with Diana Raab & Julie Metz, to discover and claim what lust means to you, right now.

JUNE 13

Storytelling Lust: An Evening of Sharing True Tales About the Stuff That's Made You Swoon.

JUNE 17

Eating Lust: A Deliciously Naughty Session in Culinary Instruction with Chef Cali Rivera.

JUNE 19

Living Lust Though the Tarot: Personal Readings and a Glass of Wine with Carolyn Agis.

SEPTEMBER 25

Springboard: a three-part invitation to get you making the creative work that's been calling you. With Corinna Snyder.

OCTOBER 15

The Dance of Divorce Recovery: an evening meander through the woods of grief, gratitude and freedom, for anyone departed from marriage. With Jenny Douglas.

OCTOBER 29

Totems & Talismans: Transmuting the Sacred. Opening reception for art exhibition curated by Iviva Olenick, featuring works by Nicola Ginzel, Ian Trask and Jack Henry.

JANUARY 21

After Ferguson: Where Do We Go From Here? A panel discussion conceived and organized by writer and activist Kambi Gathesha.

FEBRUARY 26

Rapture though the Tarot: Your burning question about love, ecstasy, or the erotic answered over a glass of wine on this Valentines month. With Tarot expert Carolyn Agis.

MARCH 19

The Whiteness Conversation: an intimate exploration of white complicity, privilege, culpability and possibility in our multi-cultural reality. Led by Kent Shell and Kim Irwin.

MARCH 26

Brooklyn in Black & White: a workshop and conversation about race as a social construct, and our participation therein. Presented in partnership with--and hosted by--Old Stone House & Washington Park.

APRIL 10

The Fool: an evening of storytelling about being a fool for love or for money, about an April fools prank gone awry, about the fool on the hill.

MAY 20

Spring Cleaning for the Creative Mind: a step-by-step process for decluttering the mind—and unearthing your optimum habitat for innovation. With Ideasmyth’s Victoria Rowan.

JUNE 10

Artists Who Write, Part One: The first of a continuing new literary reading series seeking to celebrate the value of hybrid & interdisciplinary art practices. With Seldon Yuan, Yazmany Arboleda & Kent Shell.

JUNE 17

Artists Who Write, Part Two: A continuation of our new literary reading series. With Swati Khurana, Montana Ray & Iviva Olenick.

SEPTEMBER 30

Writers of a Certain Age: readings of original poetry, stories and essays by people 60 and older. Co-curated with Iviva Olenick.

OCTOBER 28

Himself: conversations between men, organized by Kent Shell.

NOVEMBER 12

Poetry on the Go: with Amy Tingle & Maya Stein.

DECEMBER 2

Darkness and Revelation: an Intimate Exploration of Grief, with Nicole Skibola and Colleen Doyle.

JUNE 2

Stories about Risk: come share a story about a time you risked it all, for money or for love. About a risk you took to fall on your face, about the risk you wish you’d taken, but didn’t.