Lois likes visits from her daughter, Victoria. Conversing through art is an effective way of bringing deeper communication and understanding. Victoria watched her mom paint, listening to her explanations with each stroke. In turn, Lois watched Victoria paint, making comments as colorful images of gourds appeared on the page.
“Art is to be shared and not hoarded, because art becomes alive when shared and so do you.”
This is Barb’s statement after doing a still life painting and turning it into a unique cartoon with musical gourds and a dancing pumpkin….to give to someone. After I took this photo, she said, “Since I have been doing art, I have noticed improvement in my interests, attidudes and peacefulness.”
Three of our residents went to the park to paint all the bright colors by the river. It was interesting to see the different interpretations. It came spontaneously from within. It was not the kind of picture you would take with a camera. It has emotional aspects, and personal interpretation stemming from all that is within. Observe the similarities and the differences in the two paintings that were painted at the same time, and of the same subject matter.
Both of them are vibrant.
“Look at that happy face.” Louise, an Alzheimer’s patient was looking at the sports page at a cheerleader. I had my watercolors there and so I casually started painting the face as she watched.
“What do you think she might be saying?” I asked.
” I think she is saying ‘I can’t believe it.’”
I asked her to help me to write a story about her. What is her name? What did she do? When? Where? What?, etc. Here is what she dictated to me:
Once there was a girl named Mary. She taught school at Milan. One day, she taught something very important – how to treat other people. The children laughed because they thought she said “how to cheat other people.” Then she laughed.
Easel by the window and a piano CD in the lobby of our nursing center was the perfect setting for one of our residents to paint a rain picture. With no hesitancy of what to paint, it came from the soul with big beautiful strokes blending into what is titled “Rain Forest”.
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