Save the dates!
Indigo Art Therapy Studio successfully launched the pilot program, Indigo Vocational in 2017, with grant sponsorship from the HEAL Foundation. This program provides career support and individualized art instruction for artists with disabilities. This year, Indigo is partnering with local organizations to create public art exhibition opportunities for artists with disabilities. Currently, our community exhibition partners are Players by the Sea, and the Jax Makerspace Gallery. We are thankful to these organizations for helping raise awareness about the strengths and abilities of individuals with disabilities.
Players by the Sea Gallery
The artists Benjamin Herskovitz and Gentry Groshell currently have artwork on display at Players by the Sea. This exhibition coincides with The Players' production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, which will run April 20th through May 5th. This play features a main character with autism spectrum disorder. Both featured artists in the accompanying exhibition also have autism.
Prescribed Expression: Relief in Healing Arts
In partnership with the Jacksonville Main Library's Makerspace Gallery, several artists from Indigo Vocational will be featured in a community exhibition entitled, Prescribed Expression: Relief in Healing Arts. In this highly personal and inspirational exhibit, art, theater, and music therapy organizations of Northeast Florida come together to promote mental, emotional and physical well-being through the arts. Indigo Art Therapy Studio will be one of several community partners in this exhibition, including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville, I Still Matter, Yellow House, Art with a Heart in Healthcare, JASMYN Jacksonville, Cathedral Arts, and Hope at Hand. The exhibition opens May 2 and will run through July 22.
Artwork by Indigo Vocational artists, Gentry Groshell, Benjamin Herskovitz, Joshua Turnage, and Lenny Adames will be featured in this exhibition. Diagnostic labels do not define the artists featured in this exhibition. The artists have each chosen to use the platform of public exhibition of their artwork to help create awareness about their unique strengths and abilities. Featured artists have intentionally disclosed their disabilities through individual artist’s statements. The artists invite the viewer to be affected by their work on an interpersonal level, putting aside preconceived notions and assumptions, to allow deeper connection and a shared understanding through the universal language of art.
“We hope to raise awareness about the strengths and capabilities of individuals with disabilities through this exhibition. We believe the artwork will speak for itself. Most of the artists we work with are nonverbal, but they express themselves through the universal language of art”
– Sarah Beaman, Art Therapist, Special Educator, Co-Founder, Indigo Art Therapy Studio
Sensory-Friendly Opening
A separate sensory-friendly exhibition opening and accessible community programming will be an integral part of this exhibition. Indigo will be donating sensory fidget boxes and noise cancelling headphones that will available for library visitors with sensitivities, and the library will have a designated sensory down-time area available during both exhibition openings.
Panel Discussion
Along with the Library's programming around this exhibition, Please join Indigo art therapist and co-founder, Kelly DeSousa, MS, ATR, RYT, for a panel discussion about accessibility in the arts. The discussion will be moderated by Hope McMath, Executive Director of Yellow House. Additional panelists include: Thony Aiuppy, MOCA Art Aviators, Barbara Colaciello, Improv to the Rescue, Allison Galloway Gonzalez, Cathedral Arts Project, and Ebony Payne English, Performer’s Academy.
Art Lab: Accessible Art Making
The library will also be offering a series of accessible summer programs for families and youth. Come visit Indigo Art Therapists Kelly and Sarah for our Art Lab stop-in session on July 3, Sensory Explorers Studio: Process Art. We will explore the sensory properties of a variety of materials that encourage open-ended art making and creative self-expression. Learn our art therapists' favorite DIY kinetic sand and dough recipes and discover tools to help the mind and body feel relaxed as you create.