Events

In this final installment for our three-part project on painting with fall colors, Veteran artist Shaun Smith will instruct the group on adding in some finishing touches and going through an overview of the project. As always, participants are welcome to follow along with Shaun or bring anything you'd like to work on of your own. Suggested Supplies: Your almost completed painting Watercolor paint Paint brushes Dry pastels Charcoal pencils Drawing pencils Paper towels Q tips Water container Optional: gouache paint Shaun Smith is a Retired U.S. Army Veteran and Fine Artist based in Northern Maine. Shaun served 10 years as a Combat Medic with a tour in Afghanistan. During that time he was awarded The Combat Medic Badge for providing care under fire and a Purple Heart for injuries sustained from a VBIED. Shaun found comfort in art therapy as a way to express his experiences, leading him to enroll into an art university. Shaun graduated from The Academy of Art University of San Francisco with a Bachelors in Fine art Painting in 2021. Shaun dedicates his time to painting landscapes, wildlife, and peaceful moments. "War carves a deep scar on us, always reminding us long after we leave […]

Creative writing is a tool for knowing yourself, understanding the world, and connecting with other people. Led by author Seema Reza and accomplished guest writers—including poets, memoirists, novelists, and storytellers—these generative community workshops follow the model developed by Community Building Art Works (CBAW) over the course of a decade of bringing people together in military and hospital settings. Each workshop is designed to help participants put their personal stories on paper in a supportive environment. Whether you’re just starting out or have been writing for years, you are welcome; no experience is required. Bring a pen, a notebook, and an open mind! A Conversation with What Haunts You with author Cathy Linh Che (in partnership with Strathmore) About This Workshop In this generative writing session, we will invite what is haunting us into conversations with us on the page. The prompt is adapted from an exercise offered up by the writer Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo, who adapted it from The Ghostline Collective. Please note that this workshop will not be recorded. Cathy Linh Che is Vietnamese American a writer and multidisciplinary artist. She is the author of Becoming Ghost (Washington Square Press, 2025), Split (Alice James Books) and co-author, with Kyle Lucia […]

No experience required! If you can think, you can write. In this creative writing workshop, we'll consider writing as a tool for communication, expression, and relief from holding it all together. Join us. Seema Reza is the author of the books A Constellation of Half-Lives and When the World Breaks Open. She is the CEO of Community Building Art Works, a non-profit organization that brings workshops led by professional artists to service members, veterans, and clinicians. An alumnus of Goddard College and VONA, Reza has taught poetry in classrooms, jails, hospitals, and universities. She was a 2019 Stand-to Veteran Leadership Fellow at the George W. Bush Institute and the 2023 Pauli Murray Art for Racial Justice Fellow at the Antiracism Research and Policy Center at American University. Reza’s writing has been widely anthologized and has appeared in the Washington Post, McSweeney’s, The LA Review, LitHub, and Electric Literature among others. REGISTER HERE MissionBelonging is funded in part by Creative Forces®: NEA Military Healing Arts Network, an initiative of the National Endowment in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant program is managed by Mid-America Arts Alliance.