Tragedy, whether personal, regional or national, stirs up emotions that can be difficult to articulate. Visual art can be a tremendous resource for processing the overwhelming difficulty of grieving. At Maud Morgan Arts, three new workshops addressing personal loss—one for children, one for teens, and one for adults—explore the healing power of creativity.

Led by therapist and artist Emily Newmann and art educator Deborah Putnoi, each workshop encourages students to express themselves through painting, printmaking and collage. Newmann will also participate in a panel discussion with other therapists who have used art-making to handle grief both personally and professionally.

“Art can reach a primal level and allow deep emotions to surface in ways that can be unexpected and healing,” says Putnoi. According to Newmann, expressing emotions through visual art—as opposed to using language to categorize and discuss the emotions—can access different parts of the brain, and this can often speed the recovery process. The act of making a physical object also “gives people perspective,” says Newmann. “They can step away from it and look at it…it can shift their relationship with grief.” Putnoi adds, “The class is a judgment-free zone. Just being together and creating can be a healing process. We can act as witnesses to each person’s creation.”

Workshops for younger participants are designed to meet the needs of each age group. Teens will collaborate to create a multi-media piece, giving them a vehicle through which to interact with other teens who are coping with loss. Children ages 6-11 will create memory boxes to honor a loved one who has died. These activities will “allow kids to show what they want,” says Newmann. “There is no pressure to talk about what they made.” After taking a workshop, says Newmann, students “can rely on art-making as another avenue for healing” in the future.

Events in the series on grief and creativity at Maud Morgan Arts:

• “Lecture: Images of Grief and Healing,” March 10, 6pm. Panelists include Emily Newmann, LICSW, Michaela Kirby, Psy.D, ATR-BC, Sandra Bertman, LCSW, PhD, FT, and Patricia Geller, Ed.D.
• “Creating New Road Maps Through Art Play,” a workshop for adults, will be held on March 29, 10am-3pm.
• “Treasure Memory Boxes,” a workshop for children ages 6-11, will be held on April 12, 10am 12:30pm.
• “When Life Gets Messy,” a workshop for teens ages 12-16, will be held on April 12 from 2-4:30pm.
• An exhibit juried by Newmann and Putnoi at the Chandler Gallery begins August 10.

Maud Morgan Arts is a program under the umbrella of the Agassiz Baldwin Community, a private non-profit organization with a forty-year history of quality programs and services in the Cambridge community.