The Therapeutic Nature of Art-Making
April 7, 2021
Encouraging a shy student to come out of their shell can be a long journey. Maybe a smile cracks one day, then a short answer
Encouraging a shy student to come out of their shell can be a long journey. Maybe a smile cracks one day, then a short answer
We are excited to announce the two newest members of the ARTogether family: Angeera Khadka, who will oversee our Artist Support program, and Christine No, who is overseeing the growth of our Advocacy program. Although Angeera and Christine come to us from different backgrounds, they have a similar love for art and compassion for the refugee community. After immigrating from Nepal as a child, Angeera became engaged in an art center’s programming that cut through the alienation she felt from uprooting.
I think about this frequently: the way she embodied the definition of feminism, just not for herself. I think about how, in spite of my grandfather’s escapades amongst the intelligentsia; in spite of the lifelong respect he earned for being an activist for Korean independence during the Japanese occupation, it was my grandmother who ensured that he remained alive to fight another day …
Imagine going to a mall and seeing, between the teenagers and restaurants, art. That is one artist’s vision of the future. Andrea Guskin, artist, educator, curator, and San Leandro resident believes bringing art to commercial spaces is one step in making the Bay Area a more welcoming home to artists. She calls this art invasion the Filling In Spaces project.
It is easy to feel helpless in times of crisis. With most non-essential activities suspended, isolation is growing, and many of us are looking for new ways to reach out and feel connected to the world.
In August, we wrapped up our fourth annual Youth Summer Art Camp. This year we teamed up with the Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants (CERI) and the Department of Occupational Therapy at Samuel Merritt University to develop a unique experience for children from refugee and immigrant communities in the East Bay.
Ours is a story of forced migration, ours is a story of multiple worlds. As a child we knew when a relative had died back home – it manifested in my father’s silence, or my mother’s many bodily ailments. We are familiar with distant loss and nearby silent suffering.
In a studio in Oakland’s Fruitvale neighborhood, Sen Mendez readies themself, gracefully poised above a piece of linoleum. Carving knife in hand, they will cut
Miles Markstein’s shift into the social sector was with the city of Santa Cruz, where he helped draft public statements and prepare events for the
What excites ARTogether board member Goli Hashemi about art is how adaptive it can be. Goli leads ARTogether’s Expressive Arts-Based Occupational Therapy Program at Oakland
