Retrospective, 1970s – Once, Twice…

Brooklyn, 1970s: The Foundation

Raised during the Great Depression, Lorraine recalls having few materials but an unshakable desire to create. “We had no art supplies around… I would just fiddle around with whatever crayons or things I had.” A pivotal moment came when her uncle returned from WWII and enrolled at Pratt Institute. “He would come home and do his art homework at our house… I was so intrigued by all these art supplies. He encouraged me. That was the beginning.” Lorraine would go on to graduate from Pratt herself, laying the groundwork for a lifetime of visual storytelling.

Two paintings from the 1970s anchor this chapter of the exhibit — pieces made in Brooklyn that carry the muted colors of city life and the dense, layered compositions of a space Lorraine describes as “so noisy.” Yet, these early works also reveal a search for peace, expression, and validation. “I had done a painting… and brought it to a gallery in the neighborhood just to show somebody,” she recalls. “And he said, ‘I like this. I’ll take four of these.’ I was shocked. I couldn’t believe anybody would want my work in a gallery.”