EXPRESSING TRAUMA THROUGH LINE
I am currently teaching a class I designed at the detention center. Using pencil and paper I encourage the women to use expressive line, while teaching them drawing skills.
The positive responses of the inmates has been amazing! We have tears and laughter, discovery and transformation throughout the classes. I have watched their self confidence in their ability to express themselves grow over the course of the class.
I am acutely aware of the thin line between us. As a sexual abuse victim, I acted out of anger and fear, just as many of the women in the detention facilities have. While teaching the class, I have seen women who have had the same issues I have had, not inmates.
I choose to address child abuse and trauma in my art practice. The Bureau of Justice study in 2006 found that 57% of incarcerated women in state prisons had reported sexual abuse before they were admitted. The detention center reports that 80% of the population has reported sexual abuse. A large portion of the population has suffered from the type of trauma in which I specialize. Using art to help them strive towards wholeness is incredibly important to me.