Midway Reflections

The Vet Art Project is about midway through our time in the Studio Theater and the gifts are many. Some incredible things are happening. Connections among the veterans are being built and between veterans and artists, between veterans and those who are still active in their service. Decades may separate the veterans yet many elements of their journeys are the same: estrangement from self, from others, a shattered self, the loss of one's soul. We paint it, we draw it, we create collages based on it, we discuss it, we write about it. The artists are learning a great deal, too, and we share it and will continue to share it, as we receive the blessings of community and connection. This experience has changed the lives of many--not just the veterans but the artists as well.

We look forward to sharing the results with the wider community at the performance on 2.23 @ 7:30 p.m. followed by a talkback.

Amazing Moments in the Vet Art Project

As the first week of the Vet Art Project draws near, we have shared many moments of great insight and witnessed many precious jewels revealed. I invite you to add your favorites here. Here's my list so far:

--The reverent silence of the artists the first night when Bob and John from Dryhootch.org opened up and shared their life journeys and their challenges with PTSD.

--Hearing two male combat veterans thank another female veteran for her service, off the field of combat, and letting her know that her service was equally as valuable.

--Witnessing the stories of two combat veterans, whose experiences are separated by 40 years, yet their journeys back are similar.

--A female veteran opening up to share her story with a reporter while she made a collage in words and pictures

[The pictured image was created by Christina Reddington, RN, the facilitator of the Picture Stories of War program.]

First Night Reflections--on last Tuesday

The artists' orientation began the Vet Art Project with nearly 40 artists sharing different stories and reasons for getting involved in the project. The room felt electric yet vast, widened by our various journeys to this place and time. Yet when Bob and John, two Vietnam Veterans began to share their stories of time lost and challenges they've faced due to PTSD, and how they were saved because of the kindness and support of family members and friends, we came together as one community. We gather to bare witness to these truths, to help strengthen these voices, to create art to express these feelings and realities. We realized we gathered for one purpose: to support our veterans in their truth by bringing these stories to the community and connect us all by how we are affected by war.

Vet Art Project & Chicago Dramatists Receives the Towner Award by the Illinois Humanities Council

The Towner Award is presented annually to an IHC project, to encourage risk-taking in the development and execution of a public humanities project. In the past venture and risk-taking have been demonstrated through new formats, unusual venue, use or imaginative interpretation of the humanities disciplines not usually integrated into public humanities programs, or through an attempt to reach an audience not usually associated with the humanities. The Towner Award was created by the IHC Board of Directors in 1985 in memory of a past chairman, Lawrence W. Towner.

Vet Art Project Time Is Almost Here! Schedule of Programs Announced

Hello Friends,

February is almost here and that means its time to create art, community, and more in the Studio Theater of the Chicago Cultural Center. Please see the full calendar of events listed at www.vetartproject.com. The link to see or print out the schedule is in the upper right hand corner of the first page of that Web site. Note some programs require an advance registration and some programs are open to the public.

Thanks for all your support, care, and kind words. We are making a difference!

Contribute in Thought or Deed to the Vet Art Project

I know that while the needs of the world grow, our personal resources diminish. I am, however, asking you to consider making a contribution to the Vet Art Project by participating or making a donation in-kind or monetary contribution (tax deductible through the Vet Art Project's fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas).

You may already be familiar with the Vet Art Project's mission statement:

The Vet Art Project creates opportunities for veterans to work in collaboration with artists to create new art about war for public performance and viewing. The goals of the Vet Art Project are to:

Support our veterans

Create stronger voices among our veterans

Provide new opportunities for artists and

Offer a venue to hear the voices of our veterans and artists and

Foster discussions about how war affects us all

The seed for this idea was planted in late 2007 when I heard Ed Tick, author of War and the Soul, on the radio. He gave an impassioned plea to support our veterans, and for community members to witness their truth, and I realized that art and artists could help build a bridge to reconnect us all. I never dreamed that this seed would blossom into the beautiful reality that is the Vet Art Project--in residence in the Studio Theater of the Chicago Cultural Center in February 2009--culminating in a free public performance of new art about war on Monday, February 23, 7:30 p.m. While the month of the Vet Art Project lies before us, the accomplishments are already clear:

• More than a dozen outreach programs have educated the community about the needs of veterans and their families, and provided contributions individuals can make to change lives.
• More than two dozen veterans and family members of veterans and more than 100 artists, creative arts therapists, psychologists, and others have participated in the Vet Art Project to date.
• A Veterans Day performance honoring the journey of a soldier created from veterans' writing submitted to the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum, was created with the assistance of American Theater Company affiliated artists and ensemble members.
• Many organizations have made in-kind donations and grants to support our veterans voices including Chicago Dramatists, Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, Stage Left Theatre, American Theater Company, the Chicago Book Festival (Chicago Public Libraries), the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the Puffin Foundation, and most recently the Illinois Humanities Council.

Collaborative partnerships between veterans and artists are already underway for the February 23rd event, yet much work still lies ahead. As you may already know this is the first step in what I hope will become a national movement to activate our artists to help veterans tell stories of war so we will all bear witness to the truth. 

Complete details on how to make a tax-deductible contribution to the Vet Art Project through its fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas are available at www.vetartproject.com/sponsor.html. Please visit www.vetartproject.com to learn more and get involved.

War affects us all. We need to know the truth about war. Veterans carry this truth. We need to support them, honor their service, and listen to their truth. The Vet Art Project is a single step in this direction. Honor this path by walking with us.

Veterans lead the way at latest Vet Art Project Outreach Program

The DuPage Writers Group hosted the most recent outreach program for the Vet Art Project at the Carol Stream Public Library. A dozen of us gathered to share stories about war and learn about the plans for the Vet Art Project at the Chicago Cultural Center in February 2009. And while I came with a lot of prepared material, we were treated to a great learning experience with the help of J.D. Kammes (Iraq War and Kosovo War veteran), a member of the NIU Veterans Group, and Gerald L. Lundby (WWII veteran). J.D. talked about how sharing his war experiences with his family helped his uncle share some of his experiences during the Vietnam War for the first time. Ilona Meagher, author of Moving a Nation to Care: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and America's Returning Troops (www.igpub.com) and creator of the PTSDCombat.com Web site also attended and provided these photos.

Thanks to Beth Orchard of the DuPage Writers Group who organized this event. Thanks, too, to the other writers of the group who are helping to record the stories of veterans that will be published early in 2009. More details to come soon.