'When words won't work, art': Rapides students' art to act as therapy for local veterans
PINEVILLE — Art is therapy, and local veterans have selected six paintings done by Rapides Parish students to help them get through some of the rougher times of their lives.
The paintings, now in wallpaper form, were presented to the public on Thursday at the Alexandria Veterans Affairs Medical Center. They will cover walls at the Pineville center’s mental health unit.
The idea was borne out of an activity in the unit last May to mark Mental Health Awareness Month. Bradley Allison, a licensed clinical social worker who is the local recovery coordinator at the center, said staff members wrote words of encouragement on a large piece of paper that was put on the walls for patients to see.
It proved to be so popular that it stayed up for months. Allison said that began a discussion of how to duplicate that for the patients, who really responded positively to it. It led to the project being presented to the school district’s art students, who must choose and participate in at least nine projects during an academic year.
Allison said there are recreational therapists who work at the unit and use art and music to help veterans. The arts are "so important to recovery for our veterans," he said. "Art can be a way to deal with trauma. Art can be a way to deal with emotional hurts, to kind of express yourself. When words won't work, art."
Allison said officials weren’t sure how many pieces they might get and were surprised when 30 pieces were submitted. Because that was much too many for the space, veterans voted on their favorites.
The winning pieces were scanned and made into wallpaper.
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Four of the six pieces were done by Tioga High School students. One was from a Peabody Magnet High School student, while another was from a Brame Junior High School student.
Nagla Abdelaber, 12, is in seventh grade at Brame. Her piece shows ballerinas in a ballroom, and she said she "just got really creative" in constructing the piece. The background mirrors that of a video game that a friend recommended, she said.
Nagla always has been artistic, said her mother, Nisaa Abdeljaber, and Nagla said her aunt also is artistic. Her mother said Nagla was watching YouTube at age 5 and drawing what she would see.
Her father, Riad Abdeljaber, held the piece as the group gathered for photos on the VA grounds and said he's "so proud" of his daughter.
Nagla was "really surprised" when her teacher told her that her piece was selected. She initially didn't know where her piece would end up, but she said she's happy to know veterans will be seeing it and hopes it helps them.
Her principal, Mollie Fontenot, said the selection "speaks volumes about her talent, the effort she puts in to everything she does on our campus."
"It's not just art," Fontenot said. "She's involved in everything we have, so very proud of her and her teacher."
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Artwork from six Rapides students picked for display at veterans' unit
