Gallery of Inspiration helps counteract stigma of mental illness

Beverly Northcutt does in her art what she does in her work. As director of the Gallery of Inspiration in downtown Cape Girardeau, she helps people find beauty where they might not expect it, whether it be in art or in themselves.

Staufenbiel works on one of her "Alice in Wonderland" inspired pieces inside the Gallery of Inspiration on Friday.Laura Simon

The gallery, at 5 N. Main St. in Bilderbach’s Art Plaza, showcases paintings, drawings, photography and everything in between. Northcutt mostly does abstract painting and photography.

“I enjoy urban photography, old buildings, alleys,” she said. “Walk down an alley, and sometimes you’ll find something that you won’t find anywhere else.”

The Gallery of Inspiration showcases artwork produced by clients at the Community Counseling Center. Creating art can be therapeutic, Northcutt explained. It’s one of the more effective coping strategies she’s found to manage her own bipolar disorder.

Kelly Nigro works on one of her paintings inside the Gallery of Inspiration, Friday, Feb. 26, 2016, at Bilderbach's Art Plaza in downtown Cape GIrardeau.Laura Simon

The Community Counseling Center’s public-relations director, Sharon Braun, also works closely with the gallery, even sitting as a live model for a recent drawing class. She pointed out one of the fascinating things about the talents the clients bring is the diversity of artistic interpretation. Of the half-dozen artists present, some produced fanciful portraits, while others’ sketches adopted a strict sense of realism.

And the gallery’s exhibition of art by artists dealing with mental illnesses helps counteract the stigma that surrounds individuals with mental disorders.

“Once people hear the words ‘mentally ill,’ they think, ‘Oh, well, they’re crazy,’” Braun said. “Crazy is a term that’s used a lot that’s not really appropriate.”

Beverly Northcutt, director of the Gallery of Inspiration in downtown Cape Girardeau, poses for a photo, Friday, Feb. 26, 2016.Laura Simon

For many of the artists, the act of creation brings a sense of self-worth, something Northcutt said is essential to living with mental illness.

“You’ve got to accept and embrace it to get well,” she said. “To move on.”

While Northcutt said the gallery doesn’t see a super-high volume of sales, the pieces that do sell go a long way to empowering the artists.

“Part of the gallery is to help fight the stigma of mental illness. A lot of our ... artists have a limited income, so if they sell something, that goes right back to them, and that goes to their day-to-day expenses,” she said. “Or they get to buy new artwork with it, and that’s a great thing for them. If I can help them in any way, I will.”

Kelly Nigro works on one of her paintings inside the Gallery of Inspiration, Friday, Feb. 26, 2016, at Bilderbach's Art Plaza in downtown Cape GIrardeau.Laura Simon

And each of the artists brings something different to the exhibit, from Myron Todd’s fantasy-inspired painting series to Sue Floyd’s photography to Megan Staufenbiel’s textured multimedia projects.

“I am not half the artist these people are; I mean, they are really, really talented,” Northcutt said. “If I can hook someone up with the counseling center, hook them up with a canvas and some paints or some drawing pencils and some paper, and say, ‘Here, you take this home, show me what you got and come back in with it,’ that brings me a lot of joy, when they show me their talent.”

The Gallery of Inspiration takes part in First Friday festivities each month, highlighting a different individual’s art on a rotating schedule. The gallery also is open in Bilderbach’s Art Plaza from 1 to 6 p.m. daily.

tgraef@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3627

Pertinent address:

5 N. Main St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.