“Listen with Your Eyes: A Moe Brooker Retrospective” opened in Chestnut Hill over the weekend at Woodmere’s Smith Hall. Consisting of more than 40 of the artist’s pieces, this exhibit highlights the brightness Brooker saw in all aspects of the world around him.

His main inspirations were music and his faith. He would consistently use music to guide his brush, and much of his artwork contained scripture within the meanings and descriptions. His longtime friend, Woodmere Director and CEO William R. Valerio, explained how important it was for Brooker to inspire others through his paintings.

“He wanted his art to not just feel happy in an artificial way,” Valerio said. “But he wanted his paintings to seep into people’s consciousness and bring them a deep spiritual joy.”

The show is in chronological order, with about 15 large paintings on the bottom floor of the exhibit and 30 medium to small ones on the balcony. Each piece showcases Brooker’s signature abstract style, with different messages hidden within each one.

He had a love not only for his art, but for teaching those around him how to perfect their own versions of art. Brooker was a teacher for about 40 years, delivering his knowledge to young minds all over the East Coast. His desire to educate about the importance of art and creativity never dwindled.

“Moe was as serious of a teacher as he was an artist,” Valerio said. “...That was an important part of the generosity of his spirit. He was a dedicated teacher, and he was supportive of younger artists.”

After he died in 2022, Brooker’s children, Misha and Musa Brooker, explained how his essence could be seen through all his art. Creating art for his own joy and sharing his abundance of knowledge and passion with his students and audience fueled his passions even more.

“This is the first time I walked in [to the exhibit] and wanted to cry,” Misha Brooker said. “Not out of sadness but because this is him on all of the walls and in all of the spaces.”

While his children never got verbal confirmation, Misha Brooker said she is sure her dad had the neurological phenomenon that is “synesthesia,” in which the stimulation of one sense automatically triggers another. She explained that as he drew and painted, she could see his physical reactions to music, using different colors based on the sounds he was hearing around him.

She said the art her father created that most stood out to her was his piece “What If,” an abstract cube. As the only three-dimensional piece in the exhibit, it provides a deeper look into Brooker’s internal workings.

The cube “just shows me how big he thought about art and about his art,” she said. “Obviously, with his passing, there were thoughts and ideas that were not discovered, but I think that cube really shows that he was moving forward in some kind of way.”

Moe Brooker is remembered by not only for his art, but also for his generosity and the optimism he shared with everyone around him. He was known to give away many of his pieces to family and friends, and for wanting art to be accessible to everyone despite their financial situation.

“At a certain point, I believe all six of his siblings had his art in their homes, so I was encased in it in an amazing way,” Misha Brooker said. “...And I think to him that was very important because art was life, in his eyes.”

“Listen with Your Eyes: A Moe Brooker Retrospective” is showing at Woodmere’s Smith Hall, 9201 Germantown Ave. in Chestnut Hill, until Jan. 17, 2027.