An art exhibition at the McLean County Arts Center demonstrates the healing power of painting for a Bloomington group focused on recovery from substance use disorders.
Brush it Off participants have said it gives them a place to express themselves without having to find the right words and without being judged.
Recovery Support Specialist George Woodworth facilitates the weekly artmaking sessions through the Center for Human Services [CHS] in Downtown Bloomington. He said art has been beneficial during his four years being “clean and serene.”
Woodworth said when he first became a recovery support specialist, there weren’t a lot of options for healthy outlets.
“[CHS] had given me the opportunity to shoot a proposal to the state of what I thought would work,” he said. “It didn’t take me long at all to come up with Brush it Off.”
'It's been huge'
The group is for people with lived experiences involving substance abuse, including family members and allies supporting those in recovery.
Woodworth said it’s for people who want to “get their feelings on a canvas."
“It’s been huge. The participation’s been awesome,” he said. “It’s awesome to see the inspiration of people getting excited and finding healthy ways to live—and healthy hobbies to keep them out of trouble.”
Brush it Off is therapeutic, but it’s not therapy.
“Recovery doesn’t have to be a 12-step meeting,” he said. “Recovery is really your own. You can make it as cool as you want.”
Woodworth said participants do not need art training to enjoy the benefits. Beginners can work on adult coloring books or mandalas. Others are hoping to attend art school. When the weather’s nice, they do sidewalk chalk drawings, an activity they call “chalk about it.”
One participant said Brush it Off is a “relaxing and comfortable” place to be around like-minded people and get stuff off their chest. Another wrote, “Doing art helps with not thinking about life. I just get lost in the picture.”
Woodworth organized an art show for Brush it Off before, but this marks an inaugural partnership with the McLean County Arts Center. He first connected with the center through its community faces mural project. One thing led to another, and the exhibition, titled Brush it Off: Where Healing Leaves a Mark, is taking place in the center’s Armstrong Gallery while the 99th annual emerging artist exhibition happens in the other two galleries—the year’s best attended exhibition.
“Being a part of this, or the idea that they can have their stuff in an actual gallery, blessing us with this opportunity has just been so huge,” Woodworth said. “I’m not saying it’s the most amazing thing in the world, but it is to them.”
'Here lies addiction'
Woodworth curated a collection of paintings, drawings and sculptures created by participants, including some of his own paintings and works by his wife, Shayla Woodworth.
The centerpiece of Shayla’s untitled mixed media sculpture at the front of the Armstrong Gallery is a black headstone with white script reading, “Here lies addiction: Liar, thief, killer. The darkness that consumed me, buried 02-08-23.”
A pedestal in front of the headstone is littered with a collection of skeletal bones and drug paraphernalia labeled with words like shame, lies and obsession. Shayla additionally contributed a collage created with pictures, social media posts and other ephemera in memory of her brother Keegan, who died in 2017 after an accidental overdose.
Joshua Parton’s two self portraits depict himself before and after getting clean, hung with an abstract framed painting created by his 2-year-old son.
Parton said Brush it Off is a safe group he can anticipate with regularity.
“As life happened and piles up, it is a blessing to know that twice a week I can put the troubles on paper and ‘Brush it Off,’” he said. “It is a place where I can bring my wife and son to ‘chalk about it’ outside of the home and interact with my community in a positive light.”
Rhiannan Ostrom-Keith contributed a textured canvas of layered orange and bronze paint called Solar Rebirth, which hangs above a botanical in colored pencil on cardboard. Titled Sun Over the Mother’s Heart, Ostrom-Keith wanted to include the artwork by her mother, Melissa Ostrom, who was murdered in 2023. The alleged killer, Joshua Livingston, died by suicide in McLean County jail while awaiting trial.
A quartet of framed pencil drawings are by Danielle Woodley, whose art survived the elements while she was living in a tent for a year. She now stays in a tiny cabin at The Bridge and is in the process of becoming a recovery support specialist.
“The magic is really just them,” Woodworth said. “Finding a healthy, safe space. Sometimes they talk about some traumatic things in their week. Or sometimes they have some positives. We try to keep it all strength based and positive. It’s awesome to see people find recovery.”
That includes his own. After more than 30 years of struggling with addiction, Woodworth said staying connected to other people’s journeys is part of his. In addition to his role as a Recovery Support Specialist, he works with 18- to 26-year-old violent offenders on probation in McLean County. One of his mentees has a quartet of line drawings in the show.
“My work is a huge part of my recovery,” he said. “I have to remember where I came from. It puts me in a unique role with helping them balance that. Whatever they’re going through, they can get through.”
Brush it Off: Where Healing Leaves a Mark is on view through April 26 at the McLean County Arts Center, 601 N. East St., Bloomington. The gallery is free and open to the public.
