A mask from “I’m Fine”

There are as many reasons why art exists as there are mediums to express it. More than likely, the obvious springs to mind: beauty, creation, emotion and the list goes on.

The one that holds the greatest meaning for me is art that makes a statement and stands for something that cuts to the very core of our being, universally sharing a truth that sometimes gets pushed aside or buried underneath the surface of the everyday. Artists create art for the greater good, hoping to change the world dynamic and cause for the better, to right a wrong, to overcome obstacles, and to inspire hope for a brighter day.

For 20 years, I have known artist Carrie Breschi of Carlisle, and I continue to marvel at the heart she brings to art. Humanitarian and art activist, Breschi is a rebel with a cause. She is a social entrepreneur and community engagement consultant, and her life’s work is evident in the passion she brings. She states, “The foundation of my work is built on the philosophy that the visual arts can ignite positive change in our communities.”

Breschi began her mission one cause and art installation at a time. Starting in the field as the driving force and first executive director of the Carlisle Arts Learning Center, she created inroads in establishing a solid art base through CALC. Her influence as an agent of change has reverberated throughout Carlisle, drawing other artists into her sphere of orbit. Her groundbreaking installations include CALC’s “Homelessness” exhibit, where she hit paydirt by deploying cardboard in all its iterations to spotlight the nation’s plight. Powerfully chilling, the show highlighted the coast-to-coast epidemic where millions are displaced from their homes. Considering the exhibit came a year before COVID made it even more poignant. From Carlisle, the exhibit traveled to Chambersburg at the Foundry. In the years since, Breschi, along with friend and fellow art activist, Maureen Joyce, combined to encapsulate causes ranging from isolation, mental health and suicide prevention under the umbrella of “I’m Fine.”

Formed from the seedling of “a one-off workshop” addressing mental health, the “I’m Fine” project, as it is known today, is a juggernaut sweeping through cities and towns across Pennsylvania. Breschi states, “To date over 1,000 participants have reaped the benefits of de-stigmatizing the topic of mental illness through openly frank discussions and by the power of art as the agent of change.” The mask we humans put on everyday to face the world becomes a protective shield, allowing feelings to be tamped down. “I’m Fine” allows those feelings to flow freely without fear of shame or weakness.

Over the past year, the exhibit went on the road from York to Camp Hill to Johnstown to Halifax. Reaching WellSpan employees, high school students, cancer survivors and West Shore School District eighth-graders, the life-altering experience continues to expand its horizon to the Steel City of Pittsburgh. The workshops have had an immensely overwhelming response from Carnegie Mellon University to Standard Ceramics as well as the Pittsburgh Center for Arts and Media. Residencies in two Pittsburgh high schools will reach an underserved community of students this month. 2023 remains booked solid for “I’m Fine” through August. It is only through dialogues and advocacy that change will occur.

“We are so privileged to work with so many beautiful, open and creative participants,” Breschi shared. “Mental health affects everyone. Hence, we try to spread the conversation as far and wide across Pennsylvania as we can. Every week is different, every conversation is different, but the message is the same. Mental illness is real, and we are not alone in our struggles.”

Life is measured in some small part by the impact we make on others. It is what we were made for—to help those around us live a better life by caring and sharing. Both lie at the very heart of Carrie Breschi’s mission.

3^rd in the Burg “One for the Money…”

Top, Karen Commings; bottom, R. Andrew Hoff

The Art Association of Harrisburg’s curator, Rachel O’Connor, proves again that the perfect way to close out one year and start another is with a powerful photographic exposé. She features three portraitists working in niche avenues of their own desire and taste. For 3^rd in the Burg, AAH offers a reception to meet the artists from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.” The dual shows, “It’s Not All Fun and Games” and “A Journey Through Concrete City to Cresson,” run through Jan. 5. Carrie Wissler-Thomas, CEO, will be on hand for this holiday treat as the exhibits highlight carnival life and abandoned frontiers with starkly contrasting thematic studies.

“One for the money, two for the show, three to get ready…”could be a carnival barker’s chant on the midway to entice rubes to spend their hard-earned cash at wheels of chance or ring toss. In a photographic montage that takes the viewer behind the scenes to the moment of discovery when the curtains are drawn back, “It’s Not All Fun and Games” illustrates both sides of the coin as the exhibit’s title reveals. Having been on the road for five years together shooting fairs, carnivals and county festivals, Karen Commings and R. Andrew Hoff capture the brilliance and beauty, as well as the gritty underside, of the venues.

Michael Hower

Michael Hower, photographer of abandoned atmospheres, adds a different dimension as the third to get ready with his exhibit, “A Journey Through Concrete City to Cresson,” which depicts two abandoned cities that existed in different spaces and time but share a common bond. Hower approached the sculptural and photographic installation as a visual modern-day “Tale of Two Cities.” Photography—albeit surveys of such dramatic images—invite spectators to write the narratives for each shot and to draw their own conclusions. For Commings, Hoff and Hower, they’ve crossed over to surreal surroundings sharing sojourns simpatico.

Into the New Year with Andy Smith’s “Pigment”

Andy Smith

This innovative exhibit for Codorus and Company at the Gallery at 227 (W. Market St., York) runs through Jan. 31. It explores a rarely seen art medium that highlights two-dozen clay monoprints. Following in the footsteps of artistic innovator, the late Mitch Lyons, who created the medium, Andy Smith combines elements of painting and pottery. According to the artist, he used colored clay slips instead of ink for paints in creating the prints with the clay clinging to the finished works. The images are designed on a clay slab uniquely transferred in the following printing. Two prints may be produced with no two ever the same.

Santa’s Reminder                                                                                                                       

With less than two weeks to go before Santa’s big night, remember to support artists at local galleries, gift shops and museums by “Shopping Small.” Most galleries will remain open for 3^rd in the Burg through 8 p.m.

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