Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
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58 | APRIL 2015 nshoremag.com News Alert: The Reading–based Center for Emerging Artists (CEA) is dissolving. But it isn't the end. It's a new beginning. "It's great because things are expanding rather than just being focused on the Center for Emerging Artists," says Amy O'Brien, director of development for the East Mid- dlesex Arc (EMARC). EMARC, the parent organization under which CEA operates, was started in 1954 by families with developmentally delayed members lacking social services. Today, such individuals benefit from 12 dif- ferent EMARC programs—one of which focuses on artistic expres- sion. ">CEA@ was set up for specific BY KILEY JACQUES Special needs clients benefit from a cross- disciplinary approach to making art. State of the Art LIVE Clients exhibit their work. Bottom, EMARC's director of development, Amy O'Brien people who wanted to either learn life skills or explore the artistic side of themselves," explains Mary Omari, program director of Bever- ly–based Life Choices North Shore, one of EMARC's three locations. Created in 2000, CEA was part of state and national efforts to foster the artistic talents of individu- als with disabilities. Studies show that people with cognitive delay, attention deficit and hyperactiv- ity disorder, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, autism, anxiety disorder, depression, bipolar disorder, psy- chosis, etc. benefit in innumerable ways from creating art. Located in EMARC's Reading facility, CEA primarily services par- ticipants in that area, but EMARC has expanded so much that to rely solely on the Reading site to pro- vide arts programming no longer makes sense. Now, all EMARC cent- ers will incorporate and improve upon the things CEA offers. "We are trying to let every site have an art component," says Omari. Struc- tural changes are under way—as- pects of the CEA model are being adapted to work within the frame- work of Life Choices. As a whole, the organization wanted to expand both access to arts programming and the choice of activities, which was limited to jewelry making and drawing/painting. Today, EMARC's arts programs include a cross-disciplinary set of options. Clients in an environmen- tal studies group might go on a nature walk and take photos that will end up in an art show. Cul- tural studies might include reading about an artist's life and work, and then creating impressions based on that artist's style. Cooking classes might yield a mouthwatering im- age of kiwi slices. Nature studies could include a week of filmmak- ing. "The reason we use this model is to give people a choice to really explore what they want to ex- plore," notes Omari. Clients from all three EMARC sites come together for art shows. photograph by Lauren Poussard (bottom) courtesy of EMARC (top)