| In The Studio
The Passion Works studio is magical. Giant flowers hang from the walls, waves of teal, magenta and lime flow across the room and cascade into vibrant confetti patterns. Glimmering glass beads scatter across a paint-splattered table. Behind the dazzling colors lies the source of this magic—Passion Works' celebration of collaboration, ability and impact. Take a peek inside the studio to see how the magic is made.
col·lab·o·ra·tion n
1. the act of working together with one or more people in order to achieve something
Passion Works represents the collaborative process at its very best. Unlike traditional studios where one artist designs art, each piece of Passion Works art incorporates the efforts of as many as eight artists. The art is composed of many layers of talent—one artist may paint a background of swirling color while another adds layers of circles, and yet another adds an illustration and a final artist paints lines of text. Each artist is essential to the studio, adding breadth and dimension to the work.
The studio also collaborates with professional artists who come in to share their specific talents. These artists-in-residence have taught the Passion Works artists how to incorporate beads, fabric, papier-mâché, metal and even recycled materials into their art. The artists have donated their time and resources turning Passion Works art into jewelry, ceramic pieces, stationery, ornaments, rubber stamps, sculptures and music. These products are then sold and the money is reinvested into Passion Works.
One of the most exciting aspects about Passion Works is that
it doesn't confine itself within a sheltered environment. From
the beginning, the studio found ways to collaborate with the community.
Community members are invited into the studio to create art, and
the Passion Works artists have become active members of the community
by offering their art for exhibitions, installations in businesses
and parks, fund-raisers, coloring books and greeting cards. Since
its creation, Passion Works has hosted more than 20 visiting artists,
worked with more than 2,000 volunteers and hosted more than 1,500
visitors. Through the shared activity of producing and appreciating
art, Passion Works artists explore their own potential, using
art as a vehicle to express themselves and to connect with others.
Collaboration is important to the studio because the studio was built on collaborations with the Ohio Arts Council and the Athens Ohio Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. By funding and supporting Passion Works, these groups have helped to create a community organization that is uniting people of all backgrounds through the arts.
a·bil·i·ty n
1._ the capacity to do something
or perform successfully
2._ a particular talent
or acquired skill
3._ a high degree of general
skill or competence
People with disabilities are often excluded from the activities
of the larger community and are often seen as a group identified
by their disabilities rather than as individuals with their own
views and personalities. By focusing on each artist's abilities
rather than their disabilities, Passion Works allows people to
participate in the community, while at the same time enabling
them to soar as individuals. All of the art is inspired
by the artists' personal interests and abilities. Carolyn
W.'s talent for drawing flowers became the design for the studio's
famed Passion Flowers. Harry G.'s interest in current events
has been the inspiration of many of his sought-after paintings.
Because the artists have special physical needs, the studio has also developed innovative tools and techniques to assist the artists. Some artists use adaptable easels constructed to accommodate their wheelchairs. Other artists use headgear and an extension stick to hold their paintbrushes. To read poetry or stories, some artists use a light talker, a communications device for people who have limited or no speech. Usually there is a keyboard the person can access either with hands or a laser beam device that is attached to a headband.
Passion Works allows each artist's talent to develop by offering many different forms of art. While some artists have found they have an aptitude for drawing and painting, others have a talent for beadwork or quilting. By collaborating with professional artists and community members, Passion Works artists are exposed to new forms of art. Passion Works artists have recently ventured into the art of music. For years Passion Works artists have teamed up with college students to write poetry. These witty and insightful poems were transformed into songs by local musicians and released on CD. The different abilities and backgrounds add diversity and richness to the artwork and also to the lives and experiences of everyone involved.
im·pact n
1. the force of impression
of one thing on another: an impelling or compelling effect.
Passion Works gives people the opportunity to see what is possible
from people with developmental disabilities. The local community
has embraced Passion Works and has proclaimed the Passion Flower
as the official flower of Athens, Ohio. The art is also changing
perceptions about people with disabilities. An Ohio University
student was asked to write a response paper after viewing an exhibit
of “A Story of Flying.” He described that when he was a young
boy he would beat up a neighborhood child with Down syndrome.
He didn't consider this child to be human or to have feelings
like other people. After witnessing the documentary, he realized
how terribly wrong he had been.
The art has also had an impact on the artists. Initially, Passion Works artist Nancy D. demonstrated limited verbal communication. Today she maintains conversations about her painting, and is absorbed in her artwork. David D. has weak muscles in his hands and finds it difficult to do the traditional work in the vocational workshop. Through Passion Works he has been able to develop his skills as an illustrator, and his drawings have been the basis for installations, books, posters, greeting cards and the studio's logo. It has given him positive recognition and self-esteem. Ed P. was considered to have limited abilities. During an art project he was asked to draw on a ceramic tile and wrote, "To who I am writing there is a strength between our heart." Because of this and his other achievements, the staff has a new appreciation of this man's ability.
self-suf·fi·cient adj
1. able to provide what
is needed, for example, by making enough money or growing enough
food, without having to borrow or buy from others
2. able to live independently
of others
The Passion Works Studio continually strives to improve their working model for collaborative art making. The artists reach out to one another in a way that has changed the lives of these individuals. Because of this, Passion Works has been encouraging other communities to look at their achievements so that others around the country can share the same benefits by starting similar programs nationally.
The future of Passion Works Studio is as limitless as the creativity and energy of the staff, artists and volunteers. The goal of the program is to bring in more artists, develop new products, increase production of existing product lines and to move the studio even closer to their goal of becoming a self-sustaining enterprise. |
