Supporting Well-being Through Art

“Hope, Community, Dignity” by Michael Ezzell at Community Care Alliance in Woonsocket

This spring, we were delighted to bring five artists together with organizations as part of a strategic partnership intended to support community well-being through art.

The murals were installed at five harm reduction sites operated by RIDOH partner agencies around the state: Project Weber/RENEW locations in Pawtucket and Providence, Parent Support Network locations in Warwick and Westerly, and the Community Care Alliance site in Woonsocket.

The project supports Rhode Island State Arts and Health Plan goals by exploring the ways public art can inform health and well-being. TAC and RIDOH engaged local artists to create welcoming environments that connect and reflect the communities the project serves.

RIDOH’s federal funding from the Overdose Data to Action grant was given to partner agencies that provide harm reduction services in overdose hotspots throughout the state to create public art. The organizations that were selected had existing partnerships with RIDOH’s Drug Overdose Prevention Program to provide weekly data-driven outreach and response to the overdose crisis. 

TAC facilitated the project, in collaboration with partners, providing curatorial and operational expertise to deliver high-quality murals. Partner agencies developed themes and goals and identified space for artists to execute their creative vision in response. Artists were identified for each site by TAC based on the themes and goals determined by the partner agencies. 

“People and communities connect through public art. It offers healing and lets those who are served know that we care about them and their caregivers,” said Yarrow Thorne, TAC founder and executive director. “I salute our partners at the Rhode Island Department of Health for their vision and leadership in using public art to support public health.”

“In 2021, more Rhode Islanders died from fatal overdoses than any other year. These preventable tragedies take an emotional and professional toll on our partners who provide direct services in the community and it intensifies challenging and triggering work,” said Interim Director of Health James McDonald, MD, MPH. ”RIDOH is grateful and humbled by the work of our community-based organizations and we know that the death toll would be even higher in the absence of their day-to-day dedication to improving lives. Our hope is that the powerful art facilitated by The Avenue Concept in partnership with talented artists and organizations will provide some healing and brightness for both our partners and the people they serve.”

Murals, partners and artists:

• “Health Safety and Support Live Here”
  by Greg Was Here, aka Greg Pennisten
  Project Weber/RENEW, 124 Broad St., Pawtucket
• “Growth”
  by Ryan Richardson
  Project Weber/RENEW, 640 Broad St., Providence
• “There is Hope in Recovery, Together We Shine”
  by Yenny Create
  Parent Support Network, Hope Recovery Community Center of Washington County
  55 Beach St., Westerly
•  “There is Hope in Recovery”
  by Joanna Vespia
  Parent Support Network, 535 Centerville Rd., Warwick
• “Hope, Community, Dignity”
  by Michael Ezzell
  Community Care Alliance, 245 Main St., Woonsocket