15 May 2019

The Space Connects Mental Health Awareness and Art

by
The Space Connects Mental Health Awareness and Art
Mother’s Day cards, colorful T-shirts and inspirational posters are proudly displayed by their creators at the Art Works for Wellness Art Expo in Beltway Plaza Saturday. Some of the materials, such as the canvases and the silk rose corsages, were donated for the event. At left is Shaymar Higgs, founder of The Space which co-sponsored the event with the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Dozens of artists of all ages came to Beltway Plaza Mall to explore the connections between creativity and mental health wellness, at the Art Works for Wellness Art Expo, cosponsored by The Space and the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Prince George’s County (NAMI PGC).

In celebration of Mother’s Day, free corsages made of silk roses were given out to the first 100 participants, provided by Beltway Blossom Shop. Many participants chose to create cards for their mothers using the materials provided by The Space. Other activities included decorating T-shirts, making posters with inspirational phrases, free expression painting and assembling self-care kits.

Higgs, organizer of The Space, presented the event to give people an opportunity to make art while learning about mental health resources. The event was set up in the court of the mall next to TJ Maxx, with several volunteers from NAMI offering mental health information. In addition to community members, around 20 people from NAMI attended the event including volunteers, program leaders, members and board members. Collette Harris, executive director for NAMI PGC (namipgc.org), stated, “My dream for an event like this is to increase awareness of resources available for people in need and to inform people about who we are and what we do, the services and programs we provide free to all residents of Prince George’s County.”

For more of this story, see the May 16 News Review.

 

Making art
Making art at the Art Works for Wellness Art Expo.
A center court at Beltway Plaza comes alive like Brigadoon Saturday, much to the amusement of passing mall patrons, as dozens of young artists-in-residence-for-the-afternoon transform white cotton canvases and T-shirts into colorful expressions of beauty and hope. The Art Work For Wellness Art Expo was co-sponsored by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Prince George’s County, and Beltway Plaza’s own free center of artistic expression, The Space founder Shaymar Higgs, at left in the green apron, and other volunteers mingle with the artists.