Prof Abbott Receives Grant to Fund Her Latest Film

Congratulations to Professor Jillian Abbott of the English Department on receiving a prestigious arts grant!

Professor Jillian Abbott has been awarded a grant from the Queens Arts Fund, administered and funded by New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) to support her latest film project, "Urban Garden," a short documentary centered on Two Coves Community Garden in Astoria, Queens.

“I’m excited to announce that I’m a 2025 Queens Arts Fund New Works grant recipient,” said Professor Abbott. “I’m especially grateful because this grant enables me to work with outstanding filmmakers to tell the story of Two Coves Community Garden. Every gardener knows the practice of planting and growing food and flowers is rich with meaning. This grant allows me to showcase gardening’s benefits -- not just for individuals, but for the community and the environment.”

Abbott is both a plot-holding gardener and a steering committee member at Two Coves, a garden that sits between the Astoria Houses and newly-built luxury condominiums along the East River. “Like so many urban community gardens, Two Coves brings together New Yorkers who often lack access to green space,” she said. “It’s one of the few places in the city where people from different backgrounds and economic classes truly intermingle.”

She collaborated with Emmy Award–winning filmmaker Delores Edwards on the project. According to Abbott, Edwards sees the film as “an opportunity to utilize my experience as a storyteller to document a community that shares a common purpose, creating a sanctuary of diverse perspectives that fosters the growth of both the land and the individuals involved.”

The professor emphasized that her creative work is driven by a desire to understand multiple perspectives and effect positive change. “There’s no better setting for that than a garden,” she said. “A space focused on growing food and flowers, preserving green space, and building community while serving the natural world. Artists are driven to tell stories, but this grant also recognizes our role in shaping and supporting communities. It ensures the filmmakers can be compensated for their expertise and contributions.”

In addition to producing food, she noted, community gardens provide critical urban benefits, from offering cooling spaces during the summer to creating havens for pollinators like birds and butterflies. They help prevent flooding by maintaining porous soil and offer peaceful, nature-filled spaces for relaxation and reflection.

“Two Coves is a microcosm of Queens,” Abbott said. “It teaches us to work with people we might never otherwise meet. Gardening is a de-stressor, a meditation. In the UK, doctors even prescribe it as therapy for physical and mental health. It offers low-impact exercise and valuable time outdoors.”

“Urban Garden” will premiere at a free public screening during one of Two Coves Community Garden’s “BBQ and Movie” nights this summer. For more information, contact Professor Abbott at (718) 316-2034 or jillian_abbott@yahoo.com.