Catherine Kennedy never picked up a paintbrush until she experienced a nervous breakdown from overworking in 1980.
She would paint sporadically until her daughter’s death in 2009, when Kennedy came to terms with her mental illness.
Though she suffered, her art blossomed. The 3-D mane of “Mother Nature,” a concoction of paint, jewels and dried magnolia leaves, contrasted “Father Time,” a dark depiction of the man in the moon with the rough texture of bark bathed in metallic silver paint.
The texture and color of both pieces have morphed over the past five years, evolving with Kennedy’s emotional growth.
“No one wanted to hear my woes,” she said.
Kennedy, a 67-year-old from Alachua, showcased her work at Reframing Recovery, an exhibit hosted by the Gainesville Opportunity Center on Saturday, featuring artists battling mental illnesses who use art in their recovery. While visitors perused art on sheet walls framed with white string lights, poets recited free verse, and musicians took the stage in a donated space inside Cymplify at 5402 NW Eighth Ave.
Kennedy joined Gainesville Opportunity Center as a cook shortly after her daughter’s death.
“It’s not so much medication as it was actions, like speaking about what happened to me,” she said.
The event’s volunteer organizer, Maggie Hannon, a recreational therapist with UF Health Shands Hospital, created the exhibit not only to display the talent of Gainesville Opportunity Center’s members, but also to raise awareness about the social stigma of mental illness. She asked each artist to type an explanation behind what inspired his or her art and give visitors insight on the struggle with mental illness.
“We wanted to show that people who have mental illness are part of all of us,” Hannon said.
Pam Demers, executive director of Gainesville Opportunity Center, said the center uses a “clubhouse model” to help its 104 members recover from mental illness. Each member holds a day-to-day task to keep the center functioning, from writing grants to washing dishes.
“To see people who are expressing themselves in a way that’s so beautiful, it’s spectacular,” Demers said. “It’s neat.”
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 10/3/2014]
Event coordinator Maggie Hannon displays “Father Time,” a mixed-media piece by Catherine Kennedy, at the Reframing Recovery artisan exhibit for artists overcoming mental illness Saturday at Cymplify.
