Columbine’s Redemption

From the Heart

Remembering ColumbineTwenty years ago, the Columbine High School tragedy happened. America sat in shock, frozen before the television. Kids were gunned down. At school. The killers laughing. Like playing Fortnite. In real life.

Sadly, history replayed. A few years later a milkman locked ten Amish girls in a Pennsylvania school house and pulled the trigger. Again. And again. And again. America shuttered, imagining the unimaginable: the last moments of the pure of heart.

Then Sandy Hook. No, not six-year-olds. America dropped to her knees, reeling in anguish.

In response to America’s heartbreaking school violence, Craig Scott, a former Columbine student, talked about his struggle with anger and hatred, and Frank DeAngelis, the former Columbine principal, said tougher gun laws, mental health services, and other supports are needed. But both Scott and DeAngelis agree that the main take away message from the Columbine tragedy is this: be kind to one another.

After the Columbine massacre while Tom and Sue Klebold, parents of one of the shooters, hid from America’s anger, their neighbors displayed a large banner to shift the narrative: “Sue & Tom, We Love You. We’re Here for You. Call Us.” These neighbors extended unconditional love.

Anne Marie Hochhalter, still paralyzed as a result of gunshot wounds at Columbine, demonstrated grace by writing a letter to the mother of her assailant: “I have no ill-will towards you. Just as I wouldn’t want to be judged by the sins of my family members, I hold you in that same regard. It’s been a rough road for me…because of my spinal cord injury and intense nerve pain, but I choose not to be bitter towards you. I have forgiven you.”

Twenty years after the bloodbath at school, these powerful examples of mercy and kindness show us how to step into our pain with healing. They show us how to embody divine beauty—in our brokenness. That horrific first, Columbine, has shown America something else: it has shown us how forgiveness and love can stop the hatred of bullets.

Open Hands: Compassionate Action

Behind the Artwork

Open Hands line drawing with Create message

“How would you help heal our broken world?”

As an artist, I was delighted when one person responded to my question with the word “create.” This traveling art project purposes to start a movement of healing through interactive and collaborative art. To participate, individuals are invited to trace their hand on a piece of map and write a personal response to the question.

The map, representing our world, helped people to see their compassionate actions have the potential to affect many lives and make a global impact. I created Open Hands to inspire us to be a healing catalyst in our families, our communities—and our world. The redemptive work encourages personal application as a way to make a difference.

Open Hands line drawing with Caring message

A child nailed it when he wrote: “I would make everything peaceful.” I loved this simple response. An interactive art exercise turned into a child’s prayer.

Open Hands line drawing with Peaceful message

Another young man wrote “Caring” on his handprint. If this thoughtful response turned into action, it would transform our culture into one where we thrived and flourished. In other words, if all of us demonstrated a caring attitude to the people around us, even to those we disagree with, collective healing would flow from one hand to the next.

Open Hands is my peaceful and creative response to the culture war of shifting values raging within our nation. Every issue in our family or nation may not be resolved in the way that we would like. But together, if we choose to be a healing agent, we can make a difference by attempting to reconcile our broken relationships and fractured communities, demonstrating respect for those who think different from us, and restoring a culture of hope.

Where will Open Hands pop up next?

Follow us on Instagram to find out where and to help us reach our first goal of one thousand handprints for a future exhibit.

Open Hands—healing dialogue and compassionate action—one hand at a time.

Open Hands: Healing Dialogue Part 2

Behind the Artwork2 Comments

A young woman creating an Open Hands line drawing in NYC

Over the past year, I’ve been engaging people on the sidewalks from New York to San Francisco with this question: “How would you help heal our broken world?” Random people have been pausing to write well-thought-out answers on pieces of maps. Their unique responses, which included a tracing of their hand, have sparked the following interactions.

Woman creating her Open Hands line drawing with Patience message

A young woman, who had been watching me engage others, invited me to join her at a nearby sidewalk restaurant. After sitting down and ordering a salad, I explained the purpose of this traveling art called Open Hands. Enthusiastically, the woman picked up a Sharpie pen, traced her hand, and wrote her answer on a piece of map. A few moments later, the woman thanked me for the opportunity to participate. She said, “The art engagement has helped me to relax and feel good.” Then she left the restaurant, smiling.

German man creating an Open Hands line drawing

A German man creatively responded by writing these words—“love,” “respect,” “smile,” “nature,” and “kindness” on each finger in his drawing. I loved his artful expression—using each finger. What would be the result if all of us intentionally used each of our fingers to show compassion to a hurting world?

I really enjoy engaging people through collaborative art. Open Hands participants also appreciated a chance to voice their ideas; the art provided an opportunity for them to be heard.

Where will Open Hands pop up next?

Follow us on Instagram to find out where and to help us reach our first goal of one thousand handprints for a future exhibit.

Open Hands—healing dialogue and compassionate action—one hand at a time.

Open Hands: Healing Dialogue Part 1

Behind the Artwork

Open Hands line drawing with Teach message in NYC

While creatively traversing the country from New York to San Francisco, I’ve been asking random people on the streets or in coffee shops this question: “How would you help heal our broken world?” In response, individuals are invited to trace their hand on a piece of map, representing our world, and record their answer. This traveling art called Open Hands represents a commitment to start a movement of hope and healing in an age of culture wars—by taking personal action.

Many of the participants, while thinking about how to respond, want to talk about all kinds of interesting subjects like women’s rights, bullying, refugees, and sexting. The following vignettes are a sample of some of the Open Hands interactions.

Open Hands line drawing with Respect message

One woman shared her story of being bullied as a young teen. She described how an older male student pressured her into texting a nude image of herself. While tracing her hand, the woman shared the results from seeking peer approval in a risky way. The consequences of playing emotional “Russian Roulette”—when she pulled the trigger by tapping “send”—lasted for weeks as her image spread across the internet. As our conversation ended, the young woman wrote “Respect” on her handprint.

Open Hands line drawing with Kindness message

A student with a unique hand wrote “Kindness.” At first, I thought she had made a “Hang Loose” gesture and then traced her hand. But after catching a glimpse of her hand, I realized that most of her fingers were missing except for a thumb and a partial pinky finger. So, her drawing actually portrayed her own beautiful handprint. With the word “kindness” written across her tracing, the artwork communicated a profound message.

Open Hands has sparked many spontaneous discussions about important issues. Although we may not always agree on how to solve our culture’s challenging problems or personal dilemmas—this interactive art helps connect individuals through mutual understanding and respect—and facilitates healing.

Where will Open Hands pop up next?

Follow us on Instagram to find out where and to help us reach our first goal of one thousand handprints for a future exhibit.

Open Hands—healing dialogue and compassionate action—one hand at a time.

Artist Journal: Time for Creative Rest

From the Heart8 Comments

Snow covered mountain cabin retreat

Over the last decade after creating large healing art installations for ArtPrize in Grand Rapids, Michigan, serving tens of thousands of visitors, managing around fifty volunteers a year, figuring out how to financially sustain my art business, struggling to secure a venue to host my work, and buying over 335,000 interactive supplies for the ArtPrize audience, I needed time for solitude and creative rest.

The whole idea started while meeting a new friend for coffee at Union Station in Denver. While discussing all my exciting adventures in helping tons of people experience healing art over the last ten years, my friend, Laurie, simply said, “Pamela, I think you need to take time for rest and recharging.”

I admit I was tired. In fact, I was worn thin. I had worked really hard for a decade. For an artist, the creative journey is often uphill. I’m not whining here; I’m just making a statement about the typical artist’s way.

Laurie proceeded to offer me a week of solitude at her guest cabin on her ranch in the mountains. Wow! How could I turn down such an unusual and generous gift?!

So, this January with great anticipation, I packed my heavy snow clothes, boots with Yaktrax, journal, pens, and a few carefully selected books—and headed west. Before reaching Denver, I had arranged rides to my mountain retreat and back. Of course, my week of solitude was carless. I mean Ernest Shackleton didn’t have a car on his arctic expedition, right?

After driving into the mountains, a quaint, snow-covered cabin, my home for the next several days, came into view. Then a new and unexpected feeling prickled through me: anxiety. A week…alone and carless? I almost started crying as I watched my ride disappear back down the slope. But the discomfort passed within a few moments when I sat down to plan my schedule—and unplugged from social media.

Here’s a quick glimpse at my week: Life becomes very simple with no car and no Internet.

Day One: Put away my paintbrushes for a bit and fell back into the deep snow to stare at the big blue sky.

Day Two: Made a gratitude list.

Day Three: Watched a herd of elk disappear over the ridge and went snowshoeing later in the day—following the elk tracks.

Day Four: Read and reflected.

Day Five: Set goals and evaluated my art direction.

Day Six: Packed my suitcase and headed back to Denver with a renewed spirit—ready to create new art!

Elk, snowshoes, and tracks

My friend had given me a valuable spiritual retreat. Although art had opened the door for many exciting adventures and many special new friends, I had needed something else. I had needed rest. As I headed back down to routine and busyness, I whispered a prayer of thanksgiving.

Interactive Healing Art with Youth Offenders

Behind the Artwork

Broken Wings No. 2 in progress

Broken Wings No. 2

Broken Wings to Resilient Wings

A collaborative work with Girls Court of Michigan and artist Pamela Alderman
In partnership with the generous support of PlexiCase, Inc.

Broken Wings No. 2 finished

Every year thousands of Monarch butterflies migrate from Canada to Mexico. Somehow, millions of delicate butterflies successfully complete the dangerous 6,000 mile journey in order to escape northern winters. Like the Monarch, today’s youth need to learn how to push through many treacherous obstacles for survival.

As a dozen of us—Girls Court participants, 17th Circuit Court Family Division staff, and the artist, tediously painted the backsides of almost 600 mosaic tiles, the girls questioned the outcome: Would our effort actually turn into something beautiful and worthwhile? None of us could imagine the outcome because the thin blue plastic covering on the front side of the tiles wouldn’t be removed until the final class. We couldn’t see our impact—yet.

As we discussed the word “trust,” one girl said, “That’s a big word.” Trust is a big word—especially for female youth offenders who have been wounded from broken families, abuse, abandonment, or even sex-trafficking. But the girls had to take a risk and trust the artistic process as our mosaic butterfly secretly developed within the creative chrysalis.

When the final tile was glued into place, the girls gathered to witness the emergence of our Monarch butterfly. Their excitement grew as they located the tiles they had personally painted. Throughout our collaborative work, we discussed the importance of using kind words when speaking to each other, learning to trust the artist’s guidance, and collectively celebrating a completed journey. Together we produced an elegant butterfly, and as a result, our broken wings grew a little more resilient.

A special thanks to PlexiCase Inc for partnering with this project for Girls Court of Kent County Circuit Court.

Pamela’s collaborative and interactive art is donor supported.
You can get involved, donate securely on the Patreon web site.