| News Release - June 17, 2011 |
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News Release McCormick Home & AOS Present “Art and Soul” Annual art therapy show features resident & day program art
Entitled “Art and Soul,” this year’s show will open with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday June 23 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm in the Great Room at McCormick Home, with representatives of the Home offering thanks to the artists, art therapists, volunteers and Foundations that support the art therapy program, followed by refreshments and viewing of the art pieces, which will be on display through June 27. Both McCormick Home and AOS, which runs the largest Day Program of its kind in Ontario for people with Alzheimer Disease and related dementias, offer art therapy programs. McCormick Home offers group and individual art therapy. Last year, AOS also began offering group art therapy for its Day Program Participants, who are affectionately nicknamed “Club Members.” Regardless of their physical or cognitive challenges, residents of the Home and AOS Club Members can participate in these programs. Most of the artists whose work appears in the show do not have any previous art experience. “This is an opportunity for our residents and Club Members to share their creative spirit and energies with their friends and families,” explains Terri Guzyk, Administrator of McCormick Home. "Creative expression through art is so important to people who experience loss in language and other forms of communication due to the progression of illness,” notes Magdalen Carter, AOS Director. “It is certainly a ‘door opener’ for them.” This year’s show will feature some 150 pieces of art, a substantial increase from last year’s show, thanks to last year’s extension of the art therapy program to also include AOS. The art to be displayed includes primarily acrylic and watercolour paintings, as well as pencil work, silk dyes on paper, and silk and paper flowers. Particularly interesting are the silk pieces, as well as paintings incorporating a unique approach of ripping watercolour paper, notes Susan Richardson, who provides group art therapy for Home residents and some AOS Day Program participants. Wanda Sawicki works with Home residents individually, thanks to a special program sponsored by the Westminster Foundation. “All of the pieces are special,” adds Richardson. “They represent an expression of the tremendous courage, determination, creativity, joy and strength of our residents and AOS Day Program members to their families and to the community.” Richardson says art builds the participants’ confidence, especially when recognition from others occurs at the show. “Identifying their own preferences and clarifying their unique abilities through art brings a sense of calm, greater self-esteem, and sense identity in a setting where so many choices have been taken from them due to physical and cognitive challenges.” McCormick Home (www.mccormickhome.on.ca) is a fully accredited, nonprofit 160-bed Home based in London, Ontario with a proud history of providing high quality care for seniors and others requiring long term care since the late 1800s. Alzheimer Outreach Services of McCormick Home (www.alzheimeroutreach.org) is an accredited, London-based non-profit organization offering a variety of high quality programs and services for families coping with Alzheimer Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). Operating out of McCormick Home since 1985, AOS offers a popular day program for individuals with ADRD, the largest of its kind in Ontario, as well as various specialized respite and support services for caregivers, managed by dedicated and experienced professionals including nurses, social workers, recreational therapists, and numerous volunteers. For more information, please contact: Ruth Adams |
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