(Gentle music Playing) - The Underground Art Studio at Oasis is a space for young people to come and experience art, creativity.

We're open to all young people across Nashville and even work with youth outside of the city, outside of Davidson County.

Primarily we work in visual art mediums, but we've also done three-dimensional work and had artists come in to do improv and so we try to bring as many different experiences as possible.

We're part of a building called the Youth Opportunity Center.

The Underground Art Studio is in the basement level of the building and is one of almost 20 programs here at Oasis.

And while we have this dedicated space, art and creativity have long been honored, celebrated, and a part of our agency throughout its history.

So the mission of the Underground Art Studio has adapted recently, considering the past year and a half, And the challenges that the pandemic and heightened awareness around anti-racism efforts has brought into the lives of our young people and their families and our communities.

So we are now focusing on supporting the anti-racism work of Oasis center and putting a lot of efforts into restorative arts.

Through my experiences here in the Underground Art Studio, I have seen the arts be an opportunity for conversation to happen that might normally not happen if we were just sitting across the table from one another.

So through those relationships that are built, I get to then find ways to more intentionally support them and connect them to other opportunities.

And that has been really successful in just providing a healing experience and opportunity for our youth.

- This NPT arts break is made possible by the generous support of the Martha Rivers Ingram Advised Fund of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.