Helen Taylor is working toward capturing the feeling of love in her art.
Well, that and cowboys.
Taylor is one of 40 disabled artists that has been honing her craft at the Goodwill Art Studio & Gallery, 50 Robinwood Ave., in Columbus.
“When I’m lonesome, I design stuff to make me feel like I’m accomplishing my dreams. I want to show people that even though I’m disabled, I could still do stuff,” Taylor said.
Each morning, the artists assume their workstations and create art available for purchase onsite at the gallery. The public can stop by to shop for art pieces from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Program participants work with professional artists and art educators in disciplines ranging from drawing to painting, mixed media, sculpture and more.
With a goal to increase confidence among clients, the gallery works to empower people with disabilities through the sale of their art.
AJ Ruffin, Goodwill Columbus’ art studio program manager, said this is what makes the studio special.
“There’s a lot of things they’ve been told they can’t do, or they told themselves they can’t do certain things. When they bring it up, and they’re like, ‘Well, I can’t do that,’ it’s like ‘Let’s take a beat and figure it out,'” Ruffin said.
The studio has art shows roughly once per month, providing another way for clients to showcase their abilities.
The studio asks artists to help staff prep for the shows by framing work and tagging artwork to prepare it for transportation. They are also asked to make flyers and promote the art shows to friends and family.
“Then we’ll go to the art shows, where they have their art up. When they sell it, they receive proceeds from selling their own art,” Ruffin said.
Art-making to empower
Every day, the studio is filled with as many as 20 artists, who make 70% of the proceeds from each sale. The other 30% of profits go back into purchasing materials for the studio.
The artists can even take commissions and have their own business cards.
While Taylor couldn’t remember exactly when she made each art piece, she loved each one and couldn’t pick a favorite. From abstract paintings to fiber art, she draws inspiration from movies and television series, including Beauty and the Beast and Hudson & Rex.
She said she would love to paint Elvis Presley but also wants to let the Rock & Roll legend rest.
Mornings in the studio start with coffee before the artists begin their work for the day. Sometimes the program takes the clients on outings to work on community integration.
For a music lover like Taylor, this includes singing in the Harmony Project Community Arts Program through a partnership between the two nonprofit organizations.
“I think the most meaningful part of the space is the collaborative problem-solving. Everyone comes in here with different challenges, but also different ideas. And I think it’s really beautiful,” Ruffin said.
“. . . We’re talking about ways that we can be more independent, how we can community build and help build each other up but also be able to have their own voices and enact the things that they want to do.”
Ruffin said the entire team gets invested in the artistic practice. Often, the clients opt to work on their art rather than go on scheduled outings.
“I’m an artist myself, so being able to work here is very cool,” Ruffin said.
For those who wish to peruse the art available for purchase, the studio recently released an online gallery at GoodwillColumbus.org/gallery.
This article was made possible by support from the Center for HumanKindness at The Columbus Foundation, which has partnered with The Columbus Dispatch to profile those making our community a better place. Help us inspire kindness by suggesting people, initiatives or organizations for Reporter Sophia Veneziano to profile. She can be reached at sveneziano@dispatch.com. Learn more at Dispatch.com/Kindness.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Goodwill Columbus clients express ability through Art Studio & Gallery
Reporting by Sophia Veneziano, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
