How It Works

Participants work with a professional artist facilitator.

A facilitator is an artist with a good understanding of the art discipline he or she will be entrusted with. Our students have severe physical impairments. Most
of them cannot walk, talk, use their hands, and sometimes their entire bodies. The facilitator enables them to create art by becoming all of the physical functions the student lacks. He or she is merely an instrument or a tool, not an interpreter. The facilitator does not allow his or her own professional artistic background to influence the students' work.

There are two major challenges that the facilitator must face. The first is complete neutrality. The second is unlimited patience. These characteristics are imperative to retain the purity of the student's vision. The facilitator occasionally may demonstrate art techniques, discuss art history or other artistic methods, but only in separate sessions from the creative ones, and only if applicable to the cognitive capacity of that particular participant. No pressure is ever imposed on the artists to decide what to do or how fast. We praise the patience and humility of the facilitators, and only individuals with these abilities are worthy of this position. Finally, it is expected that no condescending feelings or pity be part of the attitude guiding this work. Our participant artists are worthy of all the dignity and respect afforded to every human being.

What does a facilitator do?

In simplest terms, a facilitator does whatever the participant artist directs him to do. They develop a communication style with every individual participant. They strive to make each participant feel at ease in order to become familiar with the different tools, mediums and systems available.

For example, in the area of contemporary art painting, a chart system has been designed to present the students with a visual language of options. The system includes charts for shapes, colors (basic and specialty), brush stroke, texture, paint application options, and other art technical aids specially suited to enable the participant artist to express clear choices. If unable to use their hands, a laser pointer is often used by the artists. To assure that what ends up on the canvas is exactly what the artist really wants, the facilitator uses multiple questioning systems.

Some of these systems are very individual. For instance, some participants with total body paralysis can only express yes or no by a previously developed method of eyebrow motions, others use liberators (electronic devices that produce language), or simple charts with which the participant will express his/her desired command. One basic principle on the use of questioning is to find out what the participant artist really desires to be applied to the canvas. This is done by using a single question at a time, never using multiple choice questions. That could lead to confusion on both sides, and of course, leading questions are never used. To master these techniques and other similar ones in the different art disciplines is very challenging.

We have developed training manuals and videos, to assure the purity of the process.

Dedication, integrity, patience, love for the work and the participants, and a complete commitment to be faithful to the participant artists' desires are essential characteristics of a good facilitator.

⇑Change Contrast⇑

The Matheny Medical and Educational Center

65 Highland Avenue

Peapack, NJ 07977

Tel. 908.234.0011