The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

community by Peggy Stortz Home Free A r t Project: Healing the Community of catharsis. Parker Art is a f o r m - Dorothy F o r many o f us an a r t i s t i c e x p e r i e n c e is visiting a gallery o r attending a c o n c e r t . W e are m o v e d and e n r i c h e d by l o o k i n g at a painting o r listening t o t h e m u s i c . W h a t w e d o n ' t see is t h e p r o c e s s t h a t b r o u g h t these w o r k s of art t o t h e public. F o r t h e artist, that p r o c e s s is m u c h m o r e i m p o r t a n t than t h e p r o d u c t . A r t i s t i c e x p r e s s i o n can be a p o w erful healing t o o l . Even t h e s i m p l e s t acts like d o o d l i n g a p i c t u r e o r w h i s t l i n g a t u n e can m a k e a p e r s o n feel better. A r t taken i n t o t h e public f o r u m can be a m a j o r s t e p t o w a r d s u healing, n o t o n l y f o r t h e artists, but f o r t h e m e m b e r s of t h e c o m m u n i t y w h o experience it ^ < 20 Early in N o v e m b e r , t h e N o r t h S h o r e c o m m u n i t y will have the o p p o r tunity t o e x p e r i e n c e a very special w o r k of art, o n e c r e a t e d collectively by seven w o m e n w h o have s u r v i v e d abusive relationships and g o n e o n t o thrive in the c o m m u n i t y . T h e H o m e Free Project A r t S h o w is a m i x e d m e d i a installation c o m b i n i n g collages, sculptural pieces, audio tapes, t r a n s c r i b e d t e x t and m o r e . T h r o u g h this r e m a r k able 4 0 0 square f o o t interactive display, these seven thriv'ers, a t e r m c o i n e d by C l a r i s s a Pinkola Estes in W o m e n W h o Run With the Wolves, tell of t h e i r individual and collective t r i u m p h o v e r t h e Bully. M a n y v i c t i m s of v i o l e n c e feel a l o n e . T h e y may even feel r e s p o n s i b l e f o r w h a t is happening t o t h e m . O n e participant r e f l e c t s , " A s a c h i l d , w h e n I had a l o t o f v i o l e n c e , t h e r e was n o s u p p o r t w h a t s o e v e r . I felt v e r y i s o lated, v e r y a l o n e . M y a s s u m p t i o n w a s that t h e r e was n o help and t h e r e was something w r o n g with me because this was happening. It was v e r y h e a l ing t o w o r k w i t h o t h e r w o m e n and be w o r k i n g t o g e t h e r and s u p p o r t i n g each other." T h e H o m e Free Project is an initiative o f t h e N o r t h S h o r e C r i s i s Services Society which provides e m e r g e n c y s h e l t e r and s u p p o r t f o r w o m e n and c h i l d r e n fleeing f r o m , living w i t h , o r r e c o v e r i n g f r o m relationship a b u s e . A c c o r d i n g t o M a u r e e n G a b r i e l , t h e society's e x e c u tive d i r e c t o r , " R e l a t i o n s h i p v i o l e n c e is n o t disappearing f r o m o u r c o m m u nity. T h e H o m e Free Project r e p r e s e n t s an i m p o r t a n t step into a m u c h m o r e p r o a c t i v e role in v i o l e n c e p r e v e n t i o n , . . . a n o p p o r t u n i t y f o r v i o l e n c e surv i v o r s t o share t h e i r o w n p r e v e n t i o n message." P r o j e c t facilitators Lizanne Fisher and D o r o t h y W o l f stress that relat i o n s h i p v i o l e n c e affects n o t only t h e v i c t i m s but t h e w h o l e c o m m u n i t y and that, just as individual v i c t i m s m u s t heal s o m u s t t h e c o m m u n i t y . A large p a r t o f t h a t healing is p r e v e n t i o n . " V i o l e n c e is a c o m m u n i t y issue," says Fisher. " T h i s p r o j e c t is a b o u t c o m m u n i t y k n o w i n g itself, building itself and healing." T h e N o v e m b e r s h o w will b r i n g t h e issue i n t o the public c o n s c i o u s ness, n o t in an angry o r accusing fashion, but t h r o u g h the d e p t h and beauty of artistic e x p r e s s i o n . T h i s installation w i l l certainly e n r i c h and even d e l i g h t -- a s w e l l as Inform. T h e various parts of this project w e r e created using the classic folk tale of Bluebeard, also called the Robber Bridegroom. In this g r u e s o m e story, Bluebeard, the ultimate bully, m u r d e r s his wives and cuts t h e m Into pieces. T h e bride w h o escapes this terrible fate is helped by h e r sisters and b r o t h e r s , w h o are her community. T w o c o m p o n e n t s o f the installat i o n relate directly t o the folk tale. A giant mural of B l u e b e a r d , in b o t h his seductive and destructive aspects, serves as a b a c k d r o p . A life-sized sculpture of a w o m a n , c o n s t r u c t e d of different plaster of Paris castings of b o d y parts of the seven w o m e n involved, r e p r e s e n t s the r e c o v e r y o f the severed parts. It stands in f r o n t of