- Hi, I'm Satori Shakoor, and here's what's coming up on "One Detroit Arts and Culture."

Nature provides a unique canvas, a henna artist, and a treatment center for substance abuse and homelessness utilizes the arts to heal.

It's all this week on "One Detroit Arts and Culture."

- [Male Announcer] From Delta Faucets to Behr Paint, Masco Corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support for this program is provided by the Cynthia and Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV, the Kresge foundation.

- [Female Announcer] The DTE foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit Public TV.

Among the state's largest foundations, committed to Michigan-focused giving, we support organizations that are doing exceptional work in our state.

Visit DTEfoundation.com to learn more.

- [Male Announcer] Nissan foundation, and viewers like you.

(upbeat music) - Hi, and welcome to "One Detroit Arts and Culture."

I'm your host Satori Shakoor.

Thanks for joining me here at Janice Charach Gallery inside the Jewish Cultural Center in West Bloomfield.

This gallery has four to five different and very unique exhibits each year, featuring works from emerging and established artists.

Coming up on the show, bringing the Indian art of henna to Michigan.

An organization uses art as therapy for those who come through their doors.

But first artist, Jennifer Lanzilotti, knew she had a lot of creativity inside of her, but it wasn't until a few years ago that she let it all out.

She now specializes in creating beautiful paintings on actual fallen leaves.

Detroit Performs caught up with her to see her creative process.

(gentle music) - You're working on a canvas that is part of the earth.

And then if I paint on this leaf I'm giving a piece of earth back to somebody.

(gentle music) So I actually don't have a background in art.

It's really funny.

My background is in social work.

I gave up social work to be home with my kids and that's when I started writing.

So I wrote some action-adventure romance and I kind of did it with the idea in mind that my kids would read it one day.

They're kind of the movies that I had going through my head that I thought, I need to get this on paper.

This series is called "Heal Me" and the first book is "Heal Me," and the second book is "Healed."

And it's actually about a woman who has the ability to heal.

And so at a time when terrorists have hit nuclear power plants, a government agent is sent to find her and bring her in.

And he ends up learning that this person's not who the world thinks she is.

For "Chickory Island," there's an organism in the water.

And it's the fear of if something happens to our drinking water, to the Great Lakes, and I'm obviously a big nature person.

I love nature so much.

And I'm all about like protecting the water and the Great Lakes.

And I spent years writing as a stay-at-home mom and I'd never painted before, ever in my life.

And the opportunity to paint on leaves literally fell on my car.

(Jennifer laughing) I parked my car under a maple tree and it was in the fall.

And when I came outside my car was blanketed with maple leaves.

So the opportunity was right there.

So I picked one up and I remember thinking this is flawless.

And I thought I'm going to try it.

I'm going to just try painting.

And I honestly didn't even have any good paint.

I didn't have a good paint brush.

And I realized for the first time that I'm really drawn to landscapes.

And it was a learning process for me.

I can collect a hundred leaves and out of all those leaves, only 50 of them are going to be worthy.

So I bring them home, I soak them in the sink and water, and then I dry them with paper towel, and I press the leaves.

I have a really good friend who made me this really great leaf press.

I wait the three weeks and then when they're completely dry, and I'm happy with it, I'll take it outside and I'll spray it with a protective spray.

And then, it's ready to be painted.

I have always loved nature.

And the idea of bringing nature inside.

It's almost nostalgic, a leaf, fallen from the earth.

And so you're collecting a leaf that has died and you're giving it life.

It's being reborn in the form of a painting that will be forever preserved on someone's wall.

And I love that idea.

So once I released this inner artist, that I obviously always had, but didn't know it until recently, I started viewing everything differently and I'm obsessed with trees.

I love birch trees.

The initial is to look at something and that inspires me, but by the time I'm done with it, I have gone off in a totally different direction.

I've added my own twist to it.

And it's all just almost like beginner's luck.

Every day I'm inspired.

I want to paint, or I want to write.

I'm writing another story.

It's like creativity overload.

There's so much I want to do.

I started doing bottles.

I ran out of leaves and then I thought, well, let me paint on a bottle, make it one continuous scene around the bottle.

My friend gave me the idea to turn them into incense bottles.

It works, it makes a really nice incense bottle.

It's also a bottle that you would've just thrown away.

So the same concept, you're repurposing it, recycling a bottle.

Pallet wood is really popular right now.

And I remember thinking, I wonder if I could paint on canvas something that would look like pallet wood.

And so I took the canvas and I made a stencil and I painted it and worked on it all afternoon.

And when it was done, it actually did look like painted pallet wood.

I think somewhere with being a mom and a parent, I dropped the idea of, I can't.

I used to maybe look at something, and oh, I could never do that.

But now I have this attitude of, hey, all I can do is try.

I don't know if I can do it, but I'm going to try it.

And so I did, and it's one of the things I'm most proud of, out of all the things I've ever done.

It took me 30 some hours to do and tons of paint.

I'm still in the beginning stage where if you really like my art enough to want to hang it in your house, I'm just thrilled to pieces.

More than anything, I think I'm really grateful that I was able to be a stay-at-home mom, because that gave me the extra time.

And this was a discovery for me.

I don't ever want to quit painting.

I want to keep going and pursuing it.

I'm just so grateful that I have this.

I would definitely like to keep selling and I'd like to get my books published.

And I would like to really get my name out there.

I'd just be happy to have more than a hundred followers on Instagram, to be honest.

(Jennifer laughing) (gentle music) - Next up, henna artists, Lydia Hannah Wilson, moved to the US from India just a couple of years ago.

What she brought to our community was the tradition of henna.

She found out that Metro Detroit gave her a space where she could explore every avenue of her creativity.

Take a look.

- I think any field, any art, it has to give hope, a sense of living, to the person who is seeing it.

Not depress them, but encourage them.

I grew up in a place called Hubli in Karnataka, South India.

In India, that's not really common that people study fine arts, but for me, I always loved design and any empty space, me designing was my thing.

Nature taught me so much more than what textbooks taught me.

The way how wind moves.

The way how, actually Thomas describes nature really well in the Bible.

And that really moved me.

I mean, if he was able to make songs out of it, why was I not able to do something with paint?

That really triggered my brain.

Henna is an ancient art form.

In Indian culture, all the brides apply that, like up till here.

It's really crazy, but it takes about seven to eight hours just to work on their hands and their feet.

The reason why they do it is, they think it enhances the bride.

It's just an adornment to yourself.

And it has a lot of health benefits too.

It cools down your body temperature.

And it's more like a spa treatment because of the oils and all the beautiful aromas you get in the henna.

There's a chemical reaction that happens in the paste.

After 5, 10 minutes, the stain starts releasing.

So it reacts with your skin, which is perfectly normal and organic.

It's nothing to be alarmed of.

So the longer I keep the henna paste on my skin, the longer the dye releases.

So I started doing henna when I was 10 years old.

My neighbor was a Muslim and it was her wedding.

And she got her hands all decked up with henna up till here.

And that amazed me.

And after two days, her stain was still there.

And I was like, "Oh, this is cool.

I mean, this just doesn't go off.

And I wanna do that too."

There are different applications, also.

People use a needle-based tube to do henna here.

I prefer cone.

Cone is nothing but a plastic roll that you roll and then you tape it with a pin.

So the pin gives a proper diameter, like for the thickness and thinness.

I like to work with a fusion of thin and thick lines.

So it gives a lot of depth, I feel.

There are a few traditional designs.

For brides especially, we do a lot of portraits in henna, like the bride with a dupatta on her head.

The rich heritage and the rich culture, which is in India, many people don't know in Detroit.

So when I do those designs, they're like, "Oh, what is this?

What kind of design is this?

What kind of an art form is this?"

So when I explain them, they're aware of the culture.

They're aware from where it came.

Other forms are the Arabic forms, more contemporary forms.

When I do brides, I use the embroidery, which is on her dress.

So I use those as my inspiration and the love story of the bride.

I mean, how the bride met the groom, where did they meet?

What is the common thing between them?

I sit with them for eight, nine hours and they explain me their entire story.

And as they explain their story, I, on the spot, I build their story up in the henna.

I think that lightens them and they feel good about it.

For me, the time has to stand still when I paint.

I want people to see hope when they see my paintings.

I recently learned this fluid-based acrylic art.

So I wet my entire canvas and I play soft music.

This is therapeutic to me.

I just put a lot of water on the canvas and just release a little bit of paint and let the paint move in the way it wants to move.

It creates its own form and it's not bound by any thought or any imagination or something.

It just moves freely.

And I love the freedom of it.

I like painting faces of people, just to capture that emotion, just to capture what they feel at that moment.

Capturing that story, it's challenging to me.

And I love to take that challenge.

There are a lot of news things I've seen, and that really saddens my heart.

I was inspired by the persecution that's happening in China.

So that's a lady.

She is tired, she's fed up off all the chaos of this world and all the disappointments and heartaches everywhere.

And she's longing for a place, which is serene, which is pure, but she's not finding it.

And she's just wondering one day, will there be one day?

So I like to capture that, "Will there be one day?"

on her face.

In India, not many people know about fonts, and so in my fine art college, I came across this beautiful handwriting and it was calligraphy.

That's when I thought, I would say, it's so gorgeous.

I would want to learn that, but I never found the supplies to learn how to do calligraphy.

When I moved to US, I found the proper techniques of calligraphy.

And that's how I learned calligraphy.

The thin and the thickness.

It's more like pen and ink dancing.

Calligraphy and handwriting is a ballet for me.

I mean, it's just beautiful, the way it curves when perfect sleek lines, and then the way it's elaborated.

I just love it.

If my paintings are hung anywhere, even in the window, or somewhere on the street, if one person is walking by and if he's having a hard time in his life and if my painting could speak life or hope to him, that's all I need.

(gentle music) - Now let's head to Mariners Inn, where they use alternative therapies, rooted in creativity to help alleviate the problems of homelessness and substance abuse.

- I was in the dark place.

And as I was coming here, I could see a little light.

- We know people have problems.

They need help.

So this is a place where they can come.

We need places like this.

- This place always shows me how common we all are.

Regardless of age, race, background, where you grew up, it just shows you the connections we all have as human beings.

- I see the guys that come through here as people who've just been through a lot in life.

They've been through an incredible amount of trauma, who haven't had the coping skills to deal with it effectively.

- [Participant] This is the kind of atmosphere that I wanted to be in, because they treated me with dignity and respect.

- Mariners Inn helps men who are dealing with homelessness and substance abuse.

This is a treatment center and shelter.

So they seek therapy.

So a lot of times, words can't express what they're going through, especially with trauma.

So the art gives them a way to express what they've gone through.

- Art therapy is so important because it's a way to reconnect with the self.

We believe here at Mariners Inn, that drug use and alcohol use is just a side effect of the larger problem.

We believe that the larger problem is disconnection.

And so through art therapy, through that form of expression, so much can come out.

- Well, I had a drug problem.

I had an addiction and I was homeless and I seen myself going down.

But I had the second chance to get myself together.

That's why I came here.

- I've had a problem with addiction to drugs for a while and it's caused problems in my life.

And I know I want to change, but that change is difficult, but I came to Mariners because I wanted help.

- Trying something new and exposing them to the arts and art therapies is a risk.

And it's a way to show them, hey certain risks are good.

And they have an awesome payout.

- Lloyd is very sweet and he's used this creative process to really move through what he needed to get through.

- I love art therapy because I've been making masks.

I've been making belts.

I've been making me little bracelets.

It's a lot of things you can do down there.

The music she plays and the fragrance that's be going on, it just soothes you.

And it puts you in a different place.

- [Karianne] You can see how they use the art media to express what they're going through.

So I can use different art media that help push them in different directions, as far as learning more about themselves.

We did a painting all about recovery.

So they write down a word or phrase that is helpful to them.

And then we did watercolor over top.

So that media is very fluid.

So it kind of helps them to let go of needing to control something.

- It's not just about doing art either.

It's they come together and talk about what's going on in their lives too and how it relates to the art that they're doing.

- So when Ryan first got here, he was really reserved and he really thrives in the art room.

He's really good at using the art media to express what he's going through emotionally.

I always want them to leave here and know this is something that they can do on their own, to give them a way to move through their conflict.

- Remember who you are.

Don't slip back into senility.

Move forward and erase.

Pace yourself, speed and agility.

Carry yourself with honor and some sort of civility.

- [Brittany] Everyone has a story, especially our clients, that they want to tell.

And so poetry is an excellent way to get your story out, to establish a voice, to reconnect with your voice.

- You gotta speak things into existence.

So when I write, I try to write most positive things that I can.

- We meet in the library.

We talk about our days.

We just kind of soak up how we're feeling at the moment.

This is my break from my mind and my little stuff that I think is so important, stuff that gets me down.

I come here and kick it with bros. We all have different experiences and it puts mine in perspective.

Just appreciation of being alive.

The best poetry is honest.

So this is a place that demands that you be honest about your life, so you can come out of here as a better person.

- I refuse to let go of my addiction altogether.

I need some motivation, to my heart will I tether.

- Guys are just sharing about regret, about love, about life, about authenticity, which I think was the theme today, which I really felt was just telling your own story and not judging someone else's.

- Mind tripping different ways, am I my coming or going?

I got a whole bunch of energy when you tell me you love me.

- They spent the time expressing themselves, getting proficient and they learned how to do it, and they did it, and they executed it, and they knocked it out.

I think that's beautiful.

(group beating drums) - The drum circle is really cool, something different.

And it teaches you kind of focus and concentration.

- It's all about harmony, balance, connection.

Connecting with a rhythm.

(group beating drums) Our clients are so diverse.

They come from all walks of life.

And so that drum circle is a way to bring everybody together and connect with the pulse.

(group beating drums) - The drum is also a healing piece.

Here we wanted to really reach into the gentleman's soul and get them some positive energy to do this.

But it's important for them to understand that they are important no matter what they have been through.

So we try to push from the drumming aspect is positive energy in their lives.

(group beating drums) - You kind of gotta step back and realize, it's a kind of a team thing.

And it sounds good when everybody's playing together and on the same page.

- What I see in, in terms of their growth, is that they really tend to be much more confident in themselves.

A lot of times they've just been focused on the negative part of themselves and all the mistakes that they made.

And then they realize through connecting with the arts that they have this amazing creative side where they're able to create this beauty.

And so there's, it's like there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

- If you don't see humanity in someone else, you look at someone else, oh they're begging, and we turn our nose up.

We keep walking.

This is a person.

This is a human being with a really valid, real experience in life.

And this place reinforced the fact that these are human beings, these are men just like me.

And it's really important that we all learn and learn from each other and learn to love each other in a proper way.

- I'm thinking clearer.

I know I have a lot of responsibility.

It's not an end to this.

It's something that I have to continue.

- The staff and the other residents here have empowered me to think about what I want in my life and the things that I'm good at and talented at.

- They have so much hope.

And I love that.

They've taught me a lot about just staying strong and that it's possible to completely change your life.

- Well, I hope by them seeing me, that I can influence and let them know that you can stand up and be somebody.

- Recovery is real and it begins that Mariner's Inn.

(gentle music) - For more information on Mariners Inn, and all of our arts and culture stories, go to our website at onedetroitpbs.org.

Thank you for joining me and thank you to Janice Charach Gallery for having us.

That's going to do it for tonight.

Enjoy, and I'll see you next Monday.

(gentle music) ♪ First time I seen you arrive ♪ ♪ I couldn't believe my eyes ♪ ♪ The way you walk, your talk, your smile ♪ ♪ truly left me mesmerized ♪ ♪ When you first let me come take you out on a date ♪ ♪ From that every night I knew you would ♪ ♪ you would change my fate as time goes on ♪ ♪ I love you ♪ ♪ Promise to you love you right ♪ ♪ Walk me right through the night ♪ ♪ Never letting go ♪ ♪ As time goes ♪ ♪ I need you ♪ ♪ Please give me your loving hand ♪ ♪ You I will always stand ♪ ♪ Cause I'm your man ♪ ♪ When I first saw you boy ♪ ♪ I couldn't believe me eyes ♪ ♪ That stare, that glare ♪ ♪ How you dare ♪ ♪ You took me by surprise ♪ ♪ That night we talked ♪ ♪ For hours at a time ♪ ♪ That's when I knew ♪ ♪ That you would forever be mine ♪ ♪ As time goes on ♪ - [Male Announcer] From Delta Faucets to Behr Paint, Masco Corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support for this program is provided by the Cynthia and Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV.

The Kresge Foundation.

- [Female Announcer] The DTE foundation is a proud sponsor of Detroit public TV.

Among the state's largest foundations, committed to Michigan-focused giving, we support organizations that are doing exceptional work in our state.

Visit DTEfoundation.com to learn more.

- [Male Announcer] Nissan foundation, and viewers like you.

(upbeat music) (piano keys playing)