INTERPRETATIONS: A Self Portrait Painting Workshop Through Solange

Solange's When I Get Home begins with a track titled "(I Saw) Things I Imagined."

Almost like a meditation, she repeats this over and over, the production of the song sounding like a spaceship powering up to transport us into a galaxy filled with worlds of herself. A Self she finally had to embrace after running from her depth for so long.

And the album takes us through the landscapes she's created for herself, worlds that scare and excite her, that's she's made or been invited / rejected from.

We reference the older sister album, A Seat At the Table, constantly for being the album for Black women, the one that named the pain and gave us permission to stop hiding from it.

But whether we realize it or not, we have graduated from the themes of A Seat at the Table.

We are dreamers, worldbuilders, storytellers, healers who have finally acknowledged that we're not fit for the world we were forced into. So that leaves us only with the tools to create a new one.

And it starts with yourself. Like Solange taking us on a journey with this album that captures her arrival at awareness of herself and celebrates the architecture of her BEING, it's time we do the same.

2025 was A Seat at the Table. It was cracking the crust to discover the pearl beneath it.

2026 is When I Get Home. It's for holding the pearl up to the light and watching it glisten.

INTERPRETATIONS #2: Self Portraits Thru Solange is a moment to do just that.

Inspired by Solange’s self-portrait album covers and using When I Get Home as our soundtrack, we’ll spend 90 minutes interpreting the question: "What is the home you've made of yourself?" with paint, pastels, color pencils, collage, and our imaginations as our tools.

I’ll also guide you with prompts generated from the album's lyrics that can hold your hand as you explore the YOU that wants to appear on the page.

No art experience necessary, just a willingness to be curious about yourself.

Event Details:

When: Monday, January 19, 2026 | 6:30 PM - 9:30 PM

Where: Recess Grove, 327 Grand St, Brooklyn, NY 11211 (Williamsburg)

Capacity: 25 people

Tickets: $25 (all materials included)

What to Expect:

6:30 - 6:45 PM — Arrival + introductions

6:45 - 8:15 PM — Guided self portrait creation (prompts, music, materials provided)

8:15 - 8:30 PM — Gallery-style viewing (witness each other’s work)

8:30 - 9:15 PM — Group discussion (share what emerged, if you’d like)

9:15 - 9:30 PM — Closing + informal conversation

What’s Included:

✅ All art supplies (paints, markers, collage materials, paper)

✅ Curated prompts exploring arrival, self-embrace, and home-making

✅ Carefully selected music to ground and inspire

✅ A supportive container for creative exploration

✅ Food, wine, and tea available for purchase at Recess Grove

About INTERPRETATIONS:

INTERPRETATIONS is a creative workshop series that uses Black art—literature, music, visual work—as portals for personal emergence. Each event invites participants to explore themes of sovereignty, transformation, and creative nature through guided artistic expression.

We use the work of notable Black artists as doorways into deeper truths about ourselves, our becoming, our refusal to stay the same. Our first event centered Toni Morrison's Sula and asked, "What truths are you willing to meet for your sovereignty?" Solange's When I Get Home asks, "What is the home you've made of yourself?" These are artists who understood that freedom isn’t given, it’s made. That sovereignty isn’t a state, it’s a practice.

This isn’t a traditional “paint night,” nor is it a forced attempt at creating a "New Year, New You." It’s a space for depth, for honoring what wants to surface, for meeting yourself through creation. Whether you’ve been crafting for years or have never picked up a brush or cut up paper into a collage, you’re welcome here.

About the Facilitator:

Cynthia is a multidisciplinary artist, filmmaker, and writer based in Brooklyn. As a first-generation Haitian American, her work explores themes of sovereignty, emergence, and the crossroads between creativity and healing.

Through INTERPRETATIONS, she creates intimate spaces where participants can access deeper truths about themselves through art as an embodied language, and using Black cultural work as their guide. Her approach combines thoughtful curation, gentle facilitation, and a belief that everyone has the capacity to create meaningfully when given the right container.

She believes that creative nature doesn't rely on intellect. It's about the willingness to engage what emerges in the abstract. Willingness to witness yourself becoming. Willingness to defy sameness by staying rooted in who you are.

When she’s not facilitating workshops, Cynthia is painting, writing, and romantically pursuing what it means to build a creative life.

Accessibility & Inclusivity:

INTERPRETATIONS centers Black women, femmes, and queer folks, and all are welcome. The space at Recess Grove is on the ground floor. If you have specific accessibility needs or questions, please reach out at [email protected].

Questions?

Feel free to reach out at [email protected] or DM @interpretationswithcyn (IG).

We can’t wait to create with you on January 19th!

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Cynthia Francillon