Plainsboro Public Library presents an exhibit by artists from ArtSpace, part of HomeFront’s Family Preservation Center emergency shelter. The show includes works from two former exhibits that illustrate the path from poverty to hope and a better life, as well as the stereotypes that are placed on homeless people. The exhibiting artists are clients of HomeFront, a New Jersey non-profit agency serving homeless and very low-income families. Several of the artists will be on hand to discuss their work at the reception on Sunday, November 11, from 2 to 4 p.m. The show is on view through November 28.
“HomeFront: Putting the Pieces Together” is a poignant show that illustrates a spirit from poverty stricken women and men who find refuge and guidance at HomeFront as they maneuver through hardships putting the pieces of their life together. The exhibit depicts a path to poverty filled with facts and figures lifted from today’s headlines. Viewers follow the path from poverty and helplessness through to opportunities for a better life.
“They share their poetry, painting and three-dimensional pieces allowing viewers a glimpse of their world — a world that few of us recognize,” says Ruthann Traylor, director of HomeFront’s ArtSpace therapeutic art program. “As a community, it is important to understand that people may be born into poverty, but they can overcome the most dire circumstances — but it is hard, if not impossible, to do alone.”
“We hope this exhibit will bridge a gap,” says Connie Mercer, HomeFront executive director. “The gap is in the connection within our community between neighbors — those who have a home and those who do not. I firmly believe that working together, we can help break the cycle of poverty. But just as with families we work with day in and day out, we can’t do it alone.”
“How You See Me” is an innovative exhibit of HomeFront client artwork and poetry about how others see them and how they see themselves. “The art and poetry explores the societal implications of stereotyping homeless people,” says Traylor, who has been working with clients for several years to create these works.
According to research conducted by Amy Cuddy, Harvard University; Susan Fiske, Princeton University; and Peter Glick, Lawrence University, people tend to stereotype groups along two main dimensions — warmth and competence. Most groups are judged as warm and incompetent or competent and cold, eliciting ambivalent prejudices. Only economically disadvantaged groups including homeless people, welfare recipients, and poor people, consistently fall in the incompetent-cold category, according to the researchers. This stereotype leads to the worst kind of prejudice — disgust, contempt, and even dehumanization — because these groups are viewed as responsible for their misfortune.
When Traylor summarized the research to HomeFront clients participating in ArtSpace, they created art describing how they think others see them, how they feel about it, how they see themselves, and how they can change these images. The works in the exhibit reflecting a mixture of pain, anger, guilt, beauty, hope, and resolution, are the result of a two-year process.
As HomeFront says in a press release: “ArtSpace is a therapeutic art program that falls under the umbrella of HomeFront, an organization that provides a holistic array of preventative, emergency, and long-term support services for families who are homeless or in danger of becoming homeless. By creating art, participants are able to build self confidence and self esteem, learn socialization skills, problem solve, follow through on projects, and get to know themselves and their abilities better. These skills are necessary to break the cycle of poverty and become self-reliant.”
Art Exhibit, Plainsboro Public Library, 9 Van Doren Street. Sunday, November 11, 2 to 4 p.m. Reception for “HomeFront: Putting the Pieces Together” and “How You See Me,” two exhibits of works created in the ArtSpace, part of HomeFront’s Family Preservation Center emergency shelter. On view to November 28. 609-275-2897 or www.lmxac.org/plainsboro.
