Art for the Journey, a 501c3 non-profit organization, and a Richmond, VA-based art-making organization with the mission of helping our community overcome barriers through art. We transform lives by offering quality art instruction, art supplies and support for children and adults to promote healing through creative expression. We have found that spreading the joy and the journey of art making is one of the greatest tools to promote wellbeing in the communities we serve.
For children in low-income communities, veterans, medical students, seniors in residential facilities, and women in correctional facilities, art is empowered communication. Art is the expression of pain and joy, a psychological-emotional release from the pieces of life that stand in the way of comfort and bliss. Art also can help us celebrate beauty, find time to be mindful and focused, and bring joy, especially with the support of others.
Each program is tailored to the population with whom we work. We offer academically created trainings for volunteers working with people living with dementia, veterans living with PTSD, and link to our partner's training in working with incarcerated women. We provide staff and volunteer support with a wide range of qualifications such as professional artist instructors, university faculty and graduate students, Occupational Therapy Doctoral candidates, Medical professionals, and the general support of the community.
Our staff and trained volunteers provide person-centered engagement and positive support for our program participants, creating connections through meaningful conversations about life and art. These connections create friendships, encourage the growth of the participant and the volunteer, and reduce the isolation that many of our program participants experience. Our programs give individuals the opportunity to express themselves, feel listened to, and develop relationships with other program participants and AFJ staff and volunteers.
Art for the Journey is as much about the journey as it is the art. Life is a journey filled with joyful highs and devastating lows, gritty challenges and heart-bursting triumphs; art is a canvas filled with vibrant motion and quiet stillness, sharp corners and gentle curves. Art for the Journey programs allow people to put their own journeys onto the canvas; here they find humanity, hope, and strength in their work, in each other, and in themselves. To volunteer for Art for the Journey, visit our volunteer registration button on www.artforthejourney.org.
