{"id":2860,"date":"2022-06-14T02:37:04","date_gmt":"2022-06-14T02:37:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alsoweb.org\/?p=2860"},"modified":"2023-12-29T19:43:18","modified_gmt":"2023-12-29T19:43:18","slug":"disability-art-shows-us-whats-beneath-the-surface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alsoweb.org\/nonprofit-blog\/disability-art-shows-us-whats-beneath-the-surface\/","title":{"rendered":"Disability Art Shows Us \u201cWhat\u2019s Beneath the Surface\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Disability Art Shows Us \u201cWhat\u2019s Beneath the Surface\u201d<\/h1>\r\n
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Mike Marble at his home studio.<\/em><\/em><\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201cA lot of times, at a restaurant or a store, people just look at the wheelchair and don\u2019t get to know the person behind the disability,\u201d says Mike Marble. \u201cOftentimes the person behind the disability has a lot to offer, if people would just look\u2026Art gives you a way to show people what\u2019s below the surface.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

As one of the artists at ALSO Arts<\/a>, a community art studio and art program for adults with developmental disabilities, Mike has that opportunity. ALSO Arts provide Mike\u2014and eleven other artists\u2014with the means to create, show, and sell their art. Through this program, these artists are able to show people what\u2019s beneath the surface. Students receive coaching from lead studio assistant\/gallery manager Amanda Smith, as well as other volunteer artists. They get studio space and materials, professional framing from award-winning framer Donna Erwin, and wall space in a professional gallery that fronts Troutdale\u2019s historic downtown. This gallery displays work from students as well as outside artists.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The respect that comes from having art exhibited in a professional space is important to the artists, as is the money. \u201cWhen pieces sell, our student artists get 70 percent and 30 percent is rolled back into the art program\u201d says Amanda. Outside artists receive a more traditional 55\/45 split, though that can change. Many of the artists receive Social Security Insurance<\/a>, which is around $841 a month, but are not employed elsewhere. They consider selling their art a business opportunity. \u201cI come from an artistic and entrepreneurial family, so I\u2019m just following in their footsteps\u201d says Mike. \u201cIt may not be mainstream, but this is still a business and I\u2019m trying to grow it\u2026ALSO is helping me with the business of art.\u201d Other ALSO artists agree. Mike Kordowski says he sometimes makes choices on what to paint based on what might sell. Tina Schultz is always happy when one of her pieces sells, \u201cbecause [she] likes to shop.\u201d And Tanysha Quade enjoys the fact that she\u2019s been selling more and more. \u201cIt gives me confidence,\u201d she says.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Mike Kowdowski with his crow painting.<\/em><\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The art is so much more than a business for all of the artists. \u201cIt\u2019s a way to express myself,\u201d says Mike Kordowski. \u201cIn a healthy way,\u201d Amanda adds with a smile. \u201cI think it\u2019s relaxing,\u201d says Tanysha. \u201cEspecially on stressful days when I come in here I tend to relax. I do artwork at home, too, just to get away from the craziness.\u201d Mike Marble creates abstracts in part because he has difficulty with fine motor skills, however, he says his art is not influenced by his disability, but rather by his personality. \u201cI\u2019m very loud, outspoken, and opinionated and can be a bit intense sometimes. You can see that in my artwork, in the very bright, very loud, very intense colors.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Art can also give people a way to communicate. When Tina Schmidt first came to ALSO, the artist working with her did not know American Sign Language, so Tina was unable to tell her that she wasn\u2019t feeling well. She painted herself green to communicate this.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Tina painted the picture below her portrait just a year and a half after joining the art program at ALSO, demonstrating the value of the professional instruction available to the artists. Her skill has only increased over the years. \u201cLook at this piece,\u201d says Amanda. \u201cThis looks like it could hang with masterpieces.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Often, adults with disabilities arriving at ALSO have had little opportunity for art lessons. \u201cIn public school, when you need extra help, they don\u2019t pull you from math class, they pull you from art class,\u201d says Amanda. Mike Kordowski says his art has changed dramatically since working with ALSO Arts. \u201cStuff didn’t go together that great when I first started. Later down the road it progressed, and stuff started to make sense and look good.\u201d Mike Marble, who created only digital art before coming to ALSO Arts, says, \u201cAll of what I know how to do with a paintbrush came from them. Everything from color theory to composition to how to show my art.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Artwork by Tanysha Quade<\/em><\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

ALSO Arts students also get the chance to explore. \u201cIt\u2019s not like a classroom,\u201d says Tanysha. \u201cYou get to do whatever you want.\u201d One time, Tanysha, who likes to work in mixed media, brought back sand from the beach to incorporate into one of her pieces. She says, \u201cI swear the canvas weighed 50 pounds by the time it dried.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

There\u2019s another, less obvious benefit to participating in ALSO Arts. \u201cThere isn\u2019t anything else out there like this,\u201d says Tanysha. \u201cWe have friendships here, more like family. It\u2019s not just about painting or the selling of art. It\u2019s about the friendships.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201cIt (ALSO Arts) provides us with an outlet to meet people; to create friendships and build relationships with fellow artists, opportunities we most likely wouldn\u2019t have had,\u201d says Mike Marble, who encourages other adults with disabilities to join them at the community art studio. \u201cA lot of people with talent don\u2019t really have the outlet to express themselves, or know how to put themselves out there, or find the people that can help them grow creatively.\u201d It\u2019s important to Mike personally, too. He wants people to see below the surface. \u201cI do not want the world to pass me by,\u201d he says. \u201cI have too much to offer.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Adults with developmental disabilities who are interested in joining ALSO\u2019s art program can talk to their case manager or service provider or contact Chaz Volavka at cvolavka@alsoweb.org<\/a> or 503-758-8576. Volunteers for the community art studio are also welcome, especially artists with teaching skills, and can email Amanda at asmith@alsoweb.org.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Disability Art Shows Us \u201cWhat\u2019s Beneath the Surface\u201d Mike Marble at his home studio. \u201cA lot of times, at a restaurant or a store, people just look at the wheelchair and don\u2019t get to know the person behind the disability,\u201d says Mike Marble. \u201cOftentimes the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-blogs","category-also-arts"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCommunity Art Program | ALSO Oregon<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn about ALSO\u2019s community art program, studio, and gallery and the impact it makes in the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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