Arts festival gives veterans a creative outlet
Like many military veterans, Melvin T. Brown Jr. has struggled with anxiety since leaving the U.S. Air Force in 1992.
But it wasn't until recently that he discovered art - specifically, drawing with colored pencils - was a healthy way to deal with the stress he feels.
"It helps to center the mind," explained Brown, of North Chicago. "It produces a calmness and a peace."
Brown's first drawing, a colorful piece filled with biblical imagery called "Glory of God Revealed," was among the roughly 100 pieces included in the Capt. James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center's annual Veterans Creative Arts Festival.
Staged Thursday at the College of Lake County in Grayslake, the festival included paintings, drawings, photography, sculpture, creative writing and other types of artwork, as well as musical and dance performances.
Trisha Stewart, an art therapist at Lovell, said art can help veterans deal with mental illness, physical rehabilitation and other issues.
"This is so invaluable to them, to cope with military experiences or combat experiences," Stewart said.
About 100 people attended the festival, which previously had been held at the veterans facility in North Chicago.
It shifted to CLC this year because the Lovell staff wanted to team with the college's Veterans Student Services department to attract younger veterans to the program.
"It gives them more exposure," Lovell spokeswoman Jayne Legg said. "It gives them recognition. And it validates what they're doing."
Although the pieces were diverse, several contained themes of military service and patriotism. But several portrayed images of peace, such as portraits of Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi.
"It centers them," Stewart said. "They can use it to gain insight into what's happening in themselves."
First-place entries in various categories will be eligible for a National Veterans Creative Arts Festival.