Street Roots • April 6-12, 2018
Vendors
Page 7
Lori Lematta and the healing power of art
BY HELEN HILL
S T A F F W R IT E R
andy carefully glues a picture postcard
of a parrot into her shadow box.
S
“My vision for this assemblage is to
honor my love for birds, may their humor
and beauty be protected forever,” she wrote
in her artist’s mission statement.
Johnnie lovingly points out the
tiny gumball machine, the
miniature Victrola and a row of toy
plastic cows strolling across the
bottom of his box. His theme is an
homage to his childhood and a
long-ago way of life.
The small ring of keys placed
thoughtfully in a corner of Aileen’s
creation is intended “to symbolize
the keys to the houses I have had,
left, and those I’ve wanted,” she
said.
Six participants with mental
health issues such as post-
traumatic stress disorder,
schizophrenia, psychoses, bipolar
disorder and depression met once
a week in March to create art together in a
back classroom of Scrap, a nonprofit that
encourages creative reuse of materials
through arts and crafts. The project was
sponsored by The Giving Tree Northwest
and funded by Portland’s Regional Arts and
Culture
S tr e e t Council’s
R o o ts v e Arts
n d o r Equity
L o ri L e Grant.
m a tta
co-facilitated the workshop, along with
Heather Morrill. Lematta, a visual artist, is
the founder of the Art as Therapy group for
people fresh to addiction recovery at the
Richard Harris Building, a downtown
apartment building managed by Central City
Concern.
The finished assemblages will be featured
in a gallery exhibit called “Bloom” from 6 to
8 p.m. on First Thursday, May 3, at the J.
Pepin Art Gallery, 319 NW Ninth Ave. The
exhibition will kick off May’s
commemoration of Mental Health
Awareness Month.
Lematta passionately believes the large
population of people in mental health and
addition recovery should have the same
opportunities for art classes and workshops
readily available to those with resources.
Historically, people experiencing poverty,
homelessness, and mental health and
addiction challenges have had little or no
access to community art workshops.
Lematta would like to change that.
Lematta has experienced firsthand how
creative expression in a safe community
environment can significantly affect
recovery.
“I believe doing art together brings
people out of their ruminating mind and
into new insights about themselves, feeling
a sense of relief and ways to deal better in
the world,” Lematta said.
To back up her beliefs with action,
Lematta became a state-certified peer
support specialist in 2014. She described
the program as “a partnership between two
people of similar backgrounds, (such as
mental health and addiction recovery), who
support and challenge each other.
Following her certification, Lematta
facilitated visual art and journaling
A Street Roots
vendor has
made it her
mission
to bring
therapeutic
creativity to the
underserved
P H O T O S B Y H E L E N H IL L
Lori Lematta, left, works with the artist “F iF i” at Scrap, a nonprofit that encourages the creative reuse o f materials.
opportunities,’ and 31 percent were both
living with a diagnosis and interested in art
opportunities with The Giving Tree,”
M o r r i l l s a id .
“Heather’s work with The Giving Tree
was the seed of my realization that mental
health is profoundly improved by art,
especially in an environment of support and
community,” Lematta said.
Lematta said her No. 1 indicator of a
workshop’s success is the feedback from the
participants. At the end of the March
workshop, artists had positive reactions:
“Sharing this space and creative time with
like-minded artists has truly been a gift. ”
“I am constantly inspired by my
surroundings here. ”
Sandy holds up her creation, honoring birds.
workshops at Central City Concern, Old
Town Clinic and Rose Haven Day Center for
Women and Children. She has also
volunteered at p:ear to support homeless
youths and has been an instructor for The
Giving Tree, a nonprofit that uses art and
other services for invisible and underserved
populations to “reduce isolation, increase
personal resilience, and foster healthy
communities.”
Co-facilitator Morrill, former program
development coordinator for Giving Tree,
has been working for the past seven years
to bring creative outlets to residents in
affordable housing. She decided to design a
workshop and pursue funding specifically for
people facing mental health challenges after
a Giving Tree survey circulated at the end of
last year revealed a need.
“Of the 70 survey respondents at one
affordable-housing site, 54 percent self-
report a diagnosis of mental illness, 50
percent expressed interest in ‘art
“When I am unwell I am scattered and
fragmented, when I am well I am peaceful. It
has been a calming experience to create this
piece. ”
“I am looking at things differently because
of this process and seeing more possibilities. ”
“The reason I do this work is basically
because if I don’t, then who will?” Lematta
said. “Classes such as these build
confidence and socialization in an
emotionally safe and stigma-free
environment. I have my own challenges
with diagnosed bipolar and PTSD. I have
daily struggles with many issues. That is
why Street Roots has been my lifesaver for
the last four years. I have to work when I
can work and just do the very best I can.”
Lori sells Street Roots on Sundays at
Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1624 NE
Hancock St.
You can visit the artists of the Bloom
workshop at the May 3 exhibition as they
celebrate their work and fight the stigma of
mental illness.