Art & Mind Series: Reflections of Women, Femmes and Our Mental Health

A Brain Arts Org Fundraiser Presented by Amaranthia Sepia and ATAC160 Gallery

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SEP
26

Art & Mind Series: Reflections of Women, Femmes and Our Mental Health Health During COVID

Sunday from 5:00 PM - 7:30 PM EDT

Live Stream

Add to Calendar 2021-09-26 17:00:00 2021-09-26 19:30:00 America/New_York Art & Mind Series: Reflections of Women, Femmes and Our Mental Health Health During COVID When: Saturday, September 26th at 5:00 pm EST on Zoom. An Open Mic will be included in the show for all attendees to join! 2 - 3 minute limit per person; should match the subject matter of the event. Original songs only if you’re a musician. Please be sure to read our disclaimer/trigger note.

Details to view the event are private and will be sent along with your ticket purchase.

When: Saturday, September 26th at 5:00 pm EST on Zoom. An Open Mic will be included in the show for all attendees to join! 2 - 3 minute limit per person; should match the subject matter of the event. Original songs only if you’re a musician. Please be sure to read our disclaimer/trigger note.

Story

PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED TO ATTEND VIRTUAL EVENT

MUST SIGN UP FOR A FREE TICKET IN ORDER TO RECEIVE ZOOM LINK FOR THE SHOW. DONATIONS NOT REQUIRED FOR A FREE TICKET, HOWEVER ANY AMOUNT HELPS


Donations to Brain-Arts will go to supporting local marginalized artists in Massachusetts and New England so they can achieve their dreams and independence!



Basics

Date: September 26th @ 5 PM EST - 7:30 PM EST

Where: ATAC160 Gallery will host the Zoom event. A zoom link will be provided to all who sign up for a FREE ticket. 

If you would like to donate: click the green 'Donate & Tickets' button above - or -

text BRAINARTS to 202-858-1233 

OPEN MIC! After the main events we will be hosting an open mic for all to attend! 

We would love to witness your art and reflections. 2-3 minutes per performer, content can be about women/femmes mental health, mental health in general, disability, chronic illness, accessibility, etc. Original songs only if you’re a musician. Please be sure to read our disclaimer/trigger note.

-Disclaimer/Triggers- 

Be kind, be mindful, and be respectful of other's perspectives and experiences. No aggressiveness, microaggressions, or passive-aggressiveness. No racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism. This kind of language is not acceptable. This is a safe space for all races, creeds, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, and disabilities. Pay attention to pronouns and how people request to be addressed in general. The chat will be moderated. Trigger warnings will be throughout the experience, as parts of the show highlight sensitive material such as sexual assault/harassment, racial trauma, suicide, etc.

The Reception Summary - 

Introduction: ATAC160 Venue Team, Brain-Arts Org, Volunteers, Assistants and Founder Introduced - 10 minutes

Documentary Format: 8 Artists Showcase their videos about their work and their story - 20+ minutes

Artists Speak, Introduce Themselves, Artists have a Q & A with the audience, moderators will lead - 10 to 15 minutes

Dulce Orozco, Our Guest Therapist Speaks - 10 to 15 minutes

Q&A: Dulce Orozco will accept questions about their work/therapy

Brain-Arts Org Charity Highlighted

Mya Byrne, Trans-Femme Activist Musician speaks and plays a song - 6-10 minutes

Mental health business/activist guests are showcased - TBD

Roxy, (MS Activist - Sick and Sickening Podcast) Our Disability advocate speaks about accessibility in the arts - 6-10 minutes

Open Mic 

Video on The Future of Art & Mind by Amaranthia and Claire

Close with Brain-Arts being highlighted again + a meditation/breathing practice



In Collaboration with 

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Brain Arts Organization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to realize creative independence in systematically undervalued communities, prioritizing BIPOC, ALAANA+, LGBTQIA+, emerging and experimental artists. Through adaptive methods and hyperlocal engagement, we foster a culture where individuals create their own power and opportunities.

Website:

https://www.brain-arts.org/abo...

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CREATING COMMUNITY THROUGH THE ARTS

We are a non-profit arts organization in downtown Framingham, MA. Founded in 2005, we host high quality, professional musicians and performers as well as being home to a variety of programs, open mics and classes. Our vision includes bringing together a diverse community of artists and art appreciators of all ages, cultures, and interests in a supportive and nurturing environment.

Website:

https://www.atac160.org/

Hosted by Amaranthia Sepia, 21 year old Disabled Black ARTivist, Art Coordinator, and Cristina Deptula, Writer and Publicist.


What is "Art & Mind?"

Hi! My name is Amaranthia Sepia (@emobunnycomic)! I’m a Black, invisibly disabled Art Coordinator and have faced discrimination in the art gallery world due to being a minority and creating unconventional activist artworks. Since 2020 I’ve been involved in developing activist art shows. My Mom. Claire Jones, and I, are passionate about developing an accessible virtual art gallery platform for marginalized people, particularly POC, WOC, and disabled creatives through our project, “Art & Mind….” From age 14-16, I did solo anti-bullying art exhibits titled “I’m Proud of Who I Am.” to cope with bullying and racial discrimination with the help of my Mom, Claire Jones, who is a writer creative, and mental health advocate. We deal with invisible disabilities and face discrimination for our work that highlights race, misogyny, mental illness, and domestic violence. Together, we hope to make "Art & Mind" a platform, so other POC/WOC/disabled folks can have a home for artwork highlighting radical anti-stigma artworks usually shunned by society. With the help of our small team of artists with lived experience of disability and/or chronic illness, we hope to create more of these shows.

See my website:

https://amaranthiasepiaartwork...

https://linktr.ee/_cutiehipste...



"Art & Mind" combines advocacy, storytelling, and creativity, making a multi-faceted disability-accessible project. This concept has a focus on using virtual platforms because many disabled people are homebound or experience agoraphobia. We hope to create a physical, but accessible space in the future. 

Our First Show -"Reflections of Women, Femmes and Our Mental Health During COVID"

This first show, which has been in development since October 2020, is focusing on how women and femmes have faced severe hardship and discrimination during the pandemic. Read our initiative for this first show

"Reflections of Women, Femmes" - Our Initiative:

Our goal is to provide a platform for women/femmes struggling with mental health/illness who are triumphant. We want to see art and creative pieces highlighting your experiences, or a woman/femme whose experiences have inspired you, and how you've handled them before or during the pandemic through any medium. We need stories highlighting the disparities women/femmes face from all walks of life experience while uplifting other women/femmes, giving them hope. In turn, we hope these stories will encourage women/femmes to take the next step forward to take charge in their lives, stand up for others who are struggling, and advocate for change. How can your story positively impact others?

Why is "Art & Mind: Reflections of Women, Femmes and Our Mental Health During COVID" Important?

Last year, when our lives came to a halt due to the mysterious and all-consuming virus, COVID-19, many became secluded, isolated, fearful, depressed, and anxious. What would the future hold for us - Is there any future? With the ongoing mental health crisis in the USA, how will the suffering and underserved cope with lack of access, socialization, and routine? Unfortunately, these issues have caused harmful consequences and have exacerbated existing ones for women.

The NYT states the U.S. unemployment rate dropped to 7.9% in September 2020 – it was previously 15% in April. This drop is due to 1.1 million Americans age 20+ leaving the workforce. Out of 1.1 million, 800,000 women quit the workforce. 324,000 Latinas and 58,000 Black women left. Out of 40,000 women in corporate America, 1 in 4 considered resigning/downshifting. The societal pressure of women expected to undertake caregiving for children and family worsens the crisis.

According to swhr.org, women of color are overrepresented in industries that have experienced the most significant job losses, like hospitality and childcare. Most likely, they are essential workers. Among those stuck at home, some are in abusive situations. Unwomen.org highlights domestic violence as the "Shadow Pandemic," as it intensified during covid-19. Before Covid, 1 in 3 women experienced sexual or physical violence, mainly from a partner. Certain countries are focusing only on Covid and stopped looking into this crisis.

Out of 10,000 women surveyed by CARE International, 27% reported increased struggling with mental illness. Unpaid labor and the wage gap were significant reasons. Women are twice as likely to say they cannot access health care. A survey from the Total Brain via axiawh.com states that 83% of women vs. 36% of men report a significant increase in depression.

Covid has postponed gender-affirming treatment for transgender people. Columbia Psychiatry highlights how delays have prolonged mental health issues. Social isolation closes the in-person networks that trans people use to seek support outside of transphobic relatives. Trans women in America experience high rates of depression, stigma, and suicide. BMC's Public Health article reports that in Atlanta, transgender suicidal ideation was said to be 33%. This was associated with sexual, verbal, familial, and stranger abuse. The U.S. Trans Survey found that 40% of transwomen attempt suicide.



The Creators

About the Creator: Amaranthia Sepia (@emobunnycomic) is a mental health advocate, comic artist, illustrator, and character designer of African-American and Caribbean (Bajan) descent. Her mediums are focused on ink and digital art. She is also a budding art coordinator with a focus on minority inclusive, unconventional activist artworks. Sepia was previously a lead organizer/art coordinator and the lead on media outreach for the grassroots collective ARTivism Initiative, and was an artist and collaborator for LA mental health non-profit, The Painted Brain, for their disability art show, “Discovering a Place for Us.” Her advocacy includes using art to raise awareness about mental health/illness and Black health disparities. Representation of Black people/Black women and women's experiences are crucial parts of her artwork and art coordination. As a Black woman with invisible illnesses, Sepia feels it's critical to use her voice and pen to create the representation of her and many others long to see. She's developing a mental health comic,

About the Co-Creator: Claire Jones is Amaranthia’s Mom, assistant, ambivert and a practicing Buddhist of 30 years. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College as a Frances Perkins Scholar in 1999. The program assists non-traditional women whose educations stalled due to various difficulties. Claire's journey to scholarship began during the early days in Barbados when she sought relief from the chaos of living in a domestic violence household. As she went out into the world, she experienced sexual assault and other forms of abuse. A high school dropout traumatized from ongoing crises, she determined to, one day, receive a college degree to aid women whose dreams never actualized due to violence and oppression. Claire accomplished her long-held goal of graduating from Mount Holyoke College Frances Perkins Scholar in May 1999. She published articles at Goalcast, YOPP! A Social Justice Blog, Best Self, and on Thrive Global's community page, to name a few. Claire's long-term goal is to help marginalized women build self-confidence by accessing hidden talents. She’s a recent member of The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV); she is currently working on her self-help/art book ClarityIsJustSoHip! and Memoir Sista Survivor: An Immigrant's Spiritual Journey to Legitimacy. In June 2021, Claire showcased her spoken word in collaboration with artists for LA Non-profit, The Painted Brain's show,




Co-Host

About the Co-Host - Our Publicist/Media Outreach: Cristina Deptula is a literary and creative publicist and the founder of Authors, Large and Small (authorslargeandsmall.com), a green PR agency hiring people with disabilities and other barriers to employment. She's also the founder and editor of Synchronized Chaos Magazine (synchchaos.com) which publishes and curates art and writing from around the world. A writer and former science and technology journalist, she's published in a variety of magazines, including Talking Writing, Wilderness House, the Literary Yard, Scarlet Leaf and the Heavy Feather Review. With her PR agency teammates, she regularly presents at several national and international writing conferences, including LitQuake events and the Association of Writing Programs conference. She is on the autism spectrum and learning how to harness her unique neurology to better understand our fascinating world. She’s a longtime volunteer with Amnesty International and serves on the board of nonprofit group Ethics in Technology. She’s also the speaker program chair for the California Writers’ Club – Berkeley chapter and a contributing writer for Troora Magazine, covering artists and brands making social and ecological impact. She enjoys space science and is an amateur astronomer as well as a short story writer, poet, and member of several book clubs. A proud aunt to two small nephews, she enjoys hiking, biking, coloring, and playing with the children.


The Artists

Featured Artist: Jaylan Salah Salman is an Egyptian writer, translator, and poet, who won literary awards for her collection of short stories,



Featured Artist: Jenn Scinto is a wife to her best friend, dog mom & lover, published author & writer, artist, marketing communications professional, mental illness and Complex Regional Pain Syndrome advocate, and cyclist. She has lived with severe OCD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Major Depression Disorder for the past 36 years. She has been on over a couple dozen medications and in therapy since the age of 9. Jenn was also diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome a few years ago, which was very traumatic and life changing. CRPS is a rare nervous system disorder & the most painful chronic pain condition rated on the McGill Pain Scale. Through her writing and art, she conveys her struggles with mental illness, and hopes to decrease the stigma and help others struggling not feel so alone. Jenn was inspired to start creating art again after being in a 30-day mental health residential facility in early 2021. Jenn has a short story and poem published in a 2010 anthology, “Check Mates: A Collection of Fiction, Poetry and Artwork about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, by People with OCD,” which can be found on Amazon, as well as several other published writings on The Mighty. You can also follow her art on Instagram. @Embodiment_Art



Featured Artist: Justice Edens was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 2001. Still a baby, her family moved back to Jamestown, New York, where they lived prior. Jamestown is a very small, quite boring town. Growing up with little to do she had an early fascination with creativity, stories and characters created from one’s mind. Entire worlds existing inside the minds of otherwise average people was fascinating to her. As a child she loved art but began to take it more seriously around the age of 12, she found her love for creativity went much farther and had a need to express herself. She is a self taught artist, she loves to create stories and characters and often uses art as a form of escapism. Her main goal as an artist is to provide escapism and a place of understanding and comfort for those going through hard times. One of her greatest dreams is to be a master of many trades, sometimes to her own detriment. She loves to explore where she can go with new experimental projects and has learned to accept the failures so that she can better accept the successes. She’ll takes things slow and sometimes will let time tell where things will go, with ideas seemingly coming into her head during daydreams, and it all fits into place. As a creator she takes pride in her creativity and has hopes of one day sharing this with the world. @_Swesters_



Featured Artist: Justine is an Actor, Writer, Painter, and Teaching Artist. She is currently producing written works for the stage and screen, and most recently performed an original piece with the legendary theatre company, Teatro Campesino. Additionally, her artwork was recently featured by The Painted Brain in Los Angeles. In tandem with her career as an artist, Justine is committed to advocating for cultural-equity in mental health and K-12 formal education spaces. She is currently a graduate student at Lesley University within the Expressive Therapies Mental Health Counseling and Drama Therapy program. As a biracial woman with Mexican Indigenous heritage and European heritage, Justine has always felt she exists in the void between the historically violent, colonizer-aggressed relationship between these cultures. Additionally, you can understand Justine as a queer-identifying person with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and chronic major depression. Justine’s art is focused on exploration and expression within these identities, and advocacy for cultural-equity concerning these experiences. Justine is particularly focused on awareness and justice concerning the long-lasting ramifications of the genocide of Mexican Indigenous people in the United States; and justice concerning the stark disparities of wealth and accessibility between White and BIPOC communities due to continued systemic racism. In Fall 2021, Justine will be launching the art production house Spirit and Ground to feature BIPOC visual and written works in order to promote awareness and advocacy for these efforts. @Justine_Rea



Featured Artist: Linlin is a 17-year-old Asian-American student and artivist who strives to move the hearts of the greater society by serving and loving. Her explorations in traditional and digital illustrations, graphic design, animation, and apparel design have earned her a Gold Key in the 2021 Scholastic Art Awards, Future Generation Art Prize for the 2020 COPIC AWARD international art contest, and Category Winner for the 2020 Robbie's HOPE contest. This fall she will attend the Rhode Island School of Design, where she will collaborate with teachers and the class of 2025 in her pursuit of interdisciplinary visual arts and the philosophy of art. Linlin believes that visual representations effectively empower others regardless of their education, ethnicity, or beliefs. She aims to promote empathy and bring out the best in humanity, performing delicate actions to echo bold statements, incorporating individualism into a universal message. She hopes to not only remind her audience to perpetuate the growth of emotional intelligence, but also to unify everyone in human rights awareness, accompanying emerging voices for mental health, anti-racism, and empowering the world. Some of Linlin's favorite things are respectfully sparring her family and friends, cosplaying and modeling at conventions, and watching cumulonimbus clouds with her cats. @Lin.Squared



Featured Artist: Nabila Nugroho / K027 is an artist from Semarang, Indonesia. She was born on 12th February 1997 and uses she/her as her pronouns. She took a Visual Communication Design major in university and worked as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator. While working on her day job, she also made artworks for her own illustration brand Rebel Girl Maquire. Maquire is an anime-style bunny girl made by K027 during her university days. She is a mix between a soft bunny, fierce tigress and a sassy cat. K027 has a dream to see her illustration being worn by people around the world, either as a print or handmade merchandise. Right now, K027 is still in an experimental phase with Maq ; trying things to see what fits for both of them either content or artistry-wise. She also used Maquire’s platform to help support other artists / small business owners and speak up about things that matter ; usually about creativity, mental health and feminism. Maquire’s 1st collection “Ready” was released in June 2021, highlighting products that are made with Covid in mind including compact sling bag, adjustable mask and hand sanitizers along with some stickers and keychains inspired from previous artworks of Maquire. You can shop these goodies at K027’s Storeenvy (international) or Shopee (Indonesia). You can inquire about any work opportunities / collaborations at thisisk027@gmail.com. BEHANCE Design Works: https://www.behance.net/nabilanugroho STOREENVY : https://maquireshop.storenvy.com/ @MaquireMQR



Featured Artist: Nikki Lynette is a performer, writer and visual artist whose individual style is equal parts hip hop, alternative and pop. A Chicago native, she fuses mental health activism into her performances, creating a lane for her music that is uniquely her own. Her self-produced tunes have been featured in popular shows on Netflix, Hulu, Showtime, Fox and MTV, and have garnered national attention through digital and print features such as XXL, Bust and Vibe. After a hiatus from releasing new music, Lynette returned to the public eye with a confession—she had secretly been battling mental health issues. She began writing articles about depression, trauma, therapy and suicide for prominent sites like BlackDoctor, AFROPUNK and AllHipHop, as well as held her own among medical professionals in live chats and panel discussions with hundreds of thousands of viewers. Lynette’s latest musical releases have been featured in She’s Gotta Have It on Netflix and Work in Progress on Showtime. Since 2018 she has been filming a mental health documentary entitled Happy Songs About Unhappy Things that is currently still in production. With her play about depression, GET OUT ALIVE, Nikki has made history as the first Black female playwright to be produced by American Music Theatre Project and the first AMTP work to debut at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. She has opened for Pussy Riot, Lion Babe, Leikeli47, and Mykki Blanco In April 2021, Nikki was honored with an Ambassador of the Year Award by NAMI, the largest grassroots mental health organization in America. @NikkiLynette


Speakers and Performers

Our Therapist Public Speaker: Dulce Orozco is a licensed mental health counselor in Massachusetts. Dulce’s first language is Spanish, and she is also fluent in English and Portuguese. Dulce has extensive experience working with individuals who themselves and their families are not native to our country. Because of her personal and professional experience, she is fascinated by the role that culture has on our mental health and how we perceive ourselves. She works using mindfulness, whole-body integration, self-compassion, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) . She provides an environment offering the connection, trust, and safety that can help individuals achieve greater resiliency and empowerment. She currently has a private practice where she works remotely with women who feel like outsiders and have a tough time taking care of themselves. Dulce also does corporate engagements and urges corporations and organizations always to give mental health the importance it deserves. Lastly, she has been doing Immigration Mental Health Evaluations for the past four years. When she is not working, she is with her young daughters trying to savor their childhood as much as possible. DULCEOROZCO.COM, @DULCE.OROZCO.LMHC



Performers: ab and Kait began their love for dance at two years old at studios in Irmo, SC. Both separately competed and performed with their teams for 15 years and trained in Tap, Baton, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Ballet, and Lyrical. In high school, they danced with their school dance companies (Irmo & Dutch Fork) for all four years, studied Pom, Majorette, Modern, Contemporary, and Safety-Release. Tab&Kait met at Columbia College, where they studied Somatic and Modern technique with the CC Dance Company and served many positions on the board of the dance company. Currently Tab&Kait teach all styles at Mrs. Jenkins Dance Academy, host drop in FLOW Classes, lead their adult company IGNITED, create dance films, and have created research based projects such as Born2Dance-dance classes for ages 0-2 years old! Support us by attending FLOW dance classes as well as purchasing merchandise, donating, and following us on social medias @tabandkait Find out more at tabandkait.com


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Team Volunteers

Creative Volunteer: Jaylan Salman, @jaylansalman



Creative Volunteer: GiveButter Organizer and General volunteer @Justine_rea



Creative Volunteer: Kareena Rivera, Life Coach -Meditation/breathing exercise facilitator, YES to SELF LLC -General Volunteer I am a Self Discovery healer/ Fairy; a certified Life & Health coach, Reiki Master and Self Empowerment Artist. I motivate individuals to heal from childhood trauma and uncover their true, loving and HIGHER SELF. We discover their purpose and transform their limiting beliefs into empowering actions to promote a stable and healthy life & progression. My art comes from my P.O.V of life so far however I host Art/Gardening sessions that highlight the similarities of life itself. I have experience as an Art Instructor for Paint & Sip events as well. I am also a proud Mental Health Advocate, speaking from experience I shine light on the importance of awareness and education for intellectual/mental health conditions & services. One day I will have an input on making Intellectual health services accessible and affordable to all, mark my words!!! @LifeW_Selfcare

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Art & Mind: A Women and Femmes Art Show Series

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