Bee-lieve in the Process of a Community Garden with Sydney Melnick, MA
Adults living with HIV/AIDS at a residential center experience medical, social, and psychological issues specifically loss, isolation, trauma, addiction, and socio-economic status that can become a decrease in quality of life. Through a combined approach of horticultural and art therapy, residents participated in the creation of a mobile indoor garden identified as the life cycle and the impact upon the community. A six-month qualitative study identified the outcome of individual and group to be a grounding experience for individuals to enhance their communication through self-reflection regarding personal experiences, process their feelings by forming a therapeutic alliance with the art therapist, and materialize their thoughts by utilizing horticulture and art materials to enhance a sense of community. Community garden provided residents with a sense of purpose, independence, increased quality of life on a day-to-day basis.
This presentation will review community and individual art in the life of those who are challenged with HIV/AIDS and offer participants an experiential of the impact of a community garden and communication through the creative process. A two part experiential will be conducted for participants to individually garden a plant and to create a planting pot using art materials. Through the creative process, participants will be provided with discussion regarding self-reflection and what experiences came up for them. The second experiential, participants will form a group to choose where they would place their plant in the space provided, defining what community means to them.
Queen Track
Saturday, March 28, 2020
9 – 10:30AM
1.5 CEs
Room 203
Presentation #39
UP: Unlimited Possibilities to Bee grEAT! 