Judith Scott spent thirty-five years locked in a room at an institution until she emerged to become a sculpture artist, with work reviewed in the New York Times and exhibited around the world. Misdiagnosed, mistreated, and deaf with Down’s syndrome, Judith lived sixty-two years without the use of words because no one ever taught her how to sign. Once Judith discovered Creative Growth Art Center—the first independent visual arts center for adults with developmental, physical, mental, and emotional disabilities in Oakland, California—it took her two years to adjust to her new life enriched with art, fanfare, and purpose.
Tom di Maria, Executive Director of Creative Growth, explained that Judith’s success as an artist grew out of what she learned experiencing a community for the first time.
“For Judith, she found a way without a voice and without words, literally,” Tom said in a phone interview. “She would essentially appropriate objects from the studio and wrap them in fiber, yarn, and fabric to make abstract sculptures. She didn’t have awareness of her work in the world, but she really enjoyed it when people came to the studio and loved how people wanted to meet her. That was a fundamental important thing—from social outcast to people who would make a pilgrimage to see her work, this is not easily accomplished.”
Judith passed away in 2005, but 140 artists still walk in her footsteps at Creative Growth each week. When they cross into the 12,000 square foot studio space to work on their art, a transformation occurs. A person with a disability, such as autism or Down’s syndrome, becomes an artist excited for the opportunity to create.
From Art in a Garage
Founded by Elias and Florence Katz, a former psychologist and his (now deceased) art teacher wife, Creative Growth Art Center was the first of its kind in the world in the seventies. Since there were no programs when people with disabilities became de-institutionalized, Elias and Florence (who had a strong belief in creativity) took their art materials and opened up their garage, inviting people to come and experiment.
“Early reviews said, ‘Can you believe the mentally retarded can draw?’” Tom shared. “Now we’re not afraid to talk about disabilities, but their work gets beyond that.”
Anyone can cross through the door at Creative Growth to join their free programs (unless individuals have the means) and they only require people to respond well to Creative Growth’s community and demonstrate an interest in art.
Creative Growth also fills a void for those leaving the public school system (guaranteed until age twenty-one in California) without next steps toward adulthood. Their teen summer program provides access to structure to develop a professional vocation and different ages come together to form a social group for the summer.
Tom explained that professional artists—who act as creative partners, not teachers—then work with those artists to foster what is unique to each individual and help discover how they’d like to express themselves.
“We have many academically-trained contemporary artists who want to work with our artists to experience the spontaneity of our artists’ work. We’re finding our place that we are leading the field as opposed to being outside of it, it’s a beautiful thing.”
And while art sales are not the focus, any profit becomes a source of support for the artists. “People are happy to show what they are working on now because that is the expressive part of who they want to share with you as a friend. The process of art making is extremely important to our people. Sewing, touching, handling the clay, it’s process-driven. It adds to the sense of the benefit the person gets.”
To Art in Museums
Some artists are currently receiving national attention. For example, the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York currently exhibits the work of Dan Miller, a Creative Growth artist with autism. His art is a magnificent overlay of work and letter structures on big drawings that grow as his words and numbers get larger.
