Two members of Petoskey Club recently learned they were winners of the Encouragement Award in the 5th annual Toyohashi BRUT art contest among submissions from all over the world. The contest features artwork of people of all ages with disabilities with a goal of making connections with art through heartfelt communication.
The winning pieces were entitled Questioning Life by Sage W., and The Birds Eye View by Katherine.
Sage said, “I felt humbled by winning this award. I feel that this Encouragement Award has reaffirmed my need to share more of my artwork with the world. I am one little person and I am humbled by how huge this is and how much this means to me, to be so well received. Art has always been my true purpose. The painting I named Questioning Life, it is about the duality of night and day, of water, land, and warmth and cold. It’s about how opposites attract and that we need to find people with all these different aspects to realize we are all one people. No race, just us, under the same sun.”
Katherine hadn’t painted in a while until she learned of this contest. “I came from money and always wanted to see what I could do on my own. I entered and won an award and that’s pretty amazing. The Birds Eye View title of the painting is based off what a seagull might feel or see while in Mackinaw City. A quote from a book I’ve read relates to my passion for Art. ‘What if money weren’t the object and you knew you could not fail…what passion would you pursue?’”
Petoskey Club is one of two clubhouses operated by NCCMH. Much more than a program, a Clubhouse is both a restorative environment and a community that offers hope and opportunities for people with mental illness to achieve their full potential. To be a member of a group means to belong, to fit in somewhere, and to have a place where one is always welcome. For a person living with a mental illness, these simple things cannot be taken for granted. The daily work of the Clubhouse community is organized and completed by staff and members working side by side in a partnership that emphasizes belonging and camaraderie. By participating in the Clubhouse, members gain the chance to rejoin the worlds of purposeful activity, friendship, employment, and education. Petoskey Club was the first Clubhouse in Michigan to receive accreditation through Clubhouse International. For more information about Petoskey Club visit https://www.petoskeyclub.org/.
