“If you can make it, read it or think it, we’re probably open to it.” So say the organizers of Brooklyn Brainery, a new group organizing cheap collaborative classes in… well, just about anything.
Want to learn how to describe a painting you like? Where meat comes from and how to bone it, cook it, and savor it? It’s a little too late to register for classes for the inaugural session, which meets through February at The Gowanus Studio Space. But if you like the idea of learning something new for cheap ($25 for four classes), you’ll want to stay tuned to their course listings for the next session.
Every course meets once a week for a month, and the organizing philosophy is that no teacher is an “expert” in the formal, hierarchical sense. So if there’s a skill you’d like to share or explore with your neighbors, you can also reach out to organizers Jen Messier and Jonathan Soma to propose a class. Rather than being a traditional teacher who lectures and grades pupils’ work, you could wind up leading what they call a “book club on steroids”—a small, collaborative learning group tackling fun topics through discussion and a few course materials.
Follow @bkbrains on Twitter, or sign up for the mailing list at brooklynbrainery.com.
If you love the idea of collaborative, informal learning, check out this podcast we produced a couple of years ago. Organized by volunteers in Washington, DC, Learn-A-Palooza brought neighbors together in donated spaces—from coffee shops to home goods stores to the Idealist office—for a day of free classes with titles like “How to Dance at a Party” and “How to Get Out of a Speeding Ticket.” The day was fun, well-organized, and low-key but full of learning. That’s why I’m excited to learn more about Brooklyn Brainery.