Lifting Others on Wings of Hope

Behind the Artwork

Abstract butterfly made of handprints created by Pine Grove Learning Center students

Abstract work created by Pine Grove Learning Center students and Artist Pamela Alderman, with the generous contribution of Frames Unlimited.

To my surprise, special-education teacher Anne Aurand, my neighbor, left a bag in my mailbox filled with beautiful handprints painted by the profoundly challenged students from Pine Grove Learning Center. While spreading the creative treasures across my studio floor, I had a strong sense of the value of each precious student. I wanted to take my time to find a special idea of how to honor each student. A month later, as I arranged the handprints, an abstract butterfly shape emerged. This incredible piece portrays the physical gesture of open hands lifting each student on Wings of Hope.

Our healing art involves you—because you matter!

#Art #Hope #SpecialEducation #Collective #students #2020 #hands

Creating Signature Pieces

Behind the Artwork

Historic veterans dormitory and collage painting

As an artist, I create inspiring signature pieces for the workplace or community spaces. These unique projects serve to welcome viewers into a healing place. The Cut Short commission entailed constructing the Cut Short Veterans Memorial Garden and creating the collage painting shown above. The 3 x 5 foot wooden flag was specifically crafted in a folk art style for the historic veterans dormitory built by Henry Ford in Canton, Michigan.

New Memorial Garden Honors Veterans

Behind the Artwork

Cut Short - memorial garden for veterans

Earlier this spring, while attending a memorial ceremony for fallen local soldiers, I heard one gold star mother say, “If my son were still alive, I would be a grandmother by now.” Her deep grief spoke of yesterday’s sorrow. As I listened to her heartache, the initial creative seeds for the Cut Short veterans memorial garden were planted.

Close-up of Cut Short project with plaquesThe installation, situated on the ground of the Village Arts Factory in Canton, Michigan, consists of twenty-one 6 x 6 inch white posts placed in lines like the white crosses of Arlington National Cemetery. The posts, however, are cut into various lengths representing those who served and those whose lives were “cut short.”

Cut Short provides a sacred place for families and friends to grieve. But the installation also offers a healing opportunity to honor a life of service by adding a silver plate with a loved one’s name and image. This site-specific installation collectively engages and invites visitors to embrace love, gratitude, and healing—whispering words of today’s hope.

Would you like to celebrate a life of service by adding a silver plaque to Cut Short memorial posts?

Get more information here…

Examples of plaques on Cut Short project

Broken Wings Continues to Bring Healing

Behind the Artwork

Broken Wings Courthouse project

Wow! It’s been an exciting year! Following ArtPrize, I had the privilege to work with incarcerated teens and their probation officers with the 17th Circuit Court in Kent County, Michigan. Throughout December, I guided this special group through a hands-on project where the girls created a 3×3 foot Broken Wings butterfly made of almost 600 Plexiglas tiles. While painting the tiles, the girls and I discussed the word “trust“ and how to treat each other with kindness. The finished work is proudly displayed in the Kent County Courthouse.

Broken Wings Holland Home project

From February through May, Holland Home of Grand Rapids, Michigan invited me to work with seniors across all levels of care. Around 400 seniors helped make six hands-on pieces. It was a real honor to work with this vibrant group of older adults. They probably taught me more about life than I taught them about art. Our discussions about World War II, resiliency, and leaving a legacy made a healing impact.

Broken Wings Art Mysteries

Students from schools in Virginia, Colorado, and Michigan enjoyed the creative discovery process with my Art Mystery projects. It was fascinating to see their enthusiasm and delight as they solved the Art Mysteries.

The healing art also traveled to schools in Kenya and Uganda with two different volunteer teams. I couldn’t wait to see the finished work when the teams returned back home (shown below).

Broken Wings in Africa

Thank you so much for your generous donations. Your investment has made a HUGE difference in the lives of so many individuals from ArtPrize to Africa. My next project tackles the serious issues of pornography, rape, and sex trafficking. Again, thanks a MILLION for your kind support!

Celebrating Summer 2019

General

Starbuck's sandwich board art

Photo: Starbuck’s sandwich board art

Time for a rhythm reset as we move into summer! I can’t wait to reveal some exciting interactive and collaborative art opportunities next September. Meanwhile, it’s time to enjoy family, summer campfires, and a few amazing creative adventures. Until then…

A recent interactive healing art project with school children

Interactive healing art with school children

Interactive healing art with school children

Interactive healing art with school children

Broken Wings: Kaleidoscope

Behind the Artwork

Broken Wings No. 5 in progress

Broken Wings No. 5 – Kaleidoscope

3 x 3 foot Mixed Media

A collaborative work with Breton and Raybrook Assisted Living Facilities and artist Pamela Alderman

Monarchs fly low to the ground on the southerly wind to migrate to a warmer climate. They also ride thermals, a rising column of air, like a hawk. The warm thermals lift the butterflies a few thousand feet upward, where the strong upper-air currents help them to glide forward.

Amazingly, one Holland Home resident caught a rare glimpse of the butterflies’ journey. “I watched a huge swarm of butterflies just waiting for the wind.” With the next strong gust, a kaleidoscope of color flew upward.

For Broken Wings No. 5, a kaleidoscope of talent collaborated to help assisted-living residents ride the creative winds like the Monarchs. To prepare the sponge art, one resident trimmed clothes pins with a band saw, creating a special easy-to-grip stamping tool; others cut two-inch pieces of sponges to grip with the clothes pins. Meanwhile, in Breton Woods’ carpenter shop, a group of men made the frames for the Holland Home Broken Wings Collection.

As various seniors with different abilities came together for this interactive art, one resident sat silently in his wheelchair with a faraway look in his eyes—just waiting. So, I decided to engage with him by singing acapella. Our eyes locked when I began to sing the doxology, and the elderly man mouthed each familiar word in unison. In that rare moment, two creative spirits experienced redemptive love—riding a kaleidoscope of hope upward.

Contact Pamela to schedule your Interactive Event Art.

Broken Wings: Legacy Journey

Behind the Artwork

Broken Wings No. 4 in progress

Broken Wings No. 4 – Legacy Journey

3 x 3 foot Mixed Media

A collaborative work with Breton and Raybrook Assisted Living Facilities and artist Pamela Alderman

A Monarch butterflies takes about five generations to migrate from Canada to Mexico and back again. Scientists believe the butterflies have some sort of internal mechanism that guides them tothe Sierra Madre Mountains in Mexico. Some butterflies even return to the exact fir trees as their ancestors—where they safely roost to survive the winter.

Like the butterflies, an internal moral compass exists within each of us. Grandparents can help strengthen that moral compass for the next generations—through a legacy of faith and hope. The following generations can learn to safely navigate life’s storms by following their example.

For Broken Wings No. 4, residents and staff were invited to write legacy words on marbled paper, handmade paper with colorful swirls of paint. Words that represent who they were and what they stood for. Words about their favorite memories, songs, family stories, or values. The participants wrote healing words for their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren to help guide them.

One resident talked about her difficult cancer journey as she picked up a pen. “After chemo therapy treatment, I couldn’t write at all for several months. But I was able to write on this butterfly!” Her emotional well-being took flight as this grandmother joyfully participated. After filling a couple of sheets of paper with precious words, she expressed deep gratitude for the chance to write her creative thoughts—a gift lost and then found again. Her bright smile and unwavering heart, reflected through a pen, helps align the moral compass for the next generation’s migration.

Contact Pamela to schedule your Interactive Event Art.