A Nashville artist who once lived in her car is now helping kids find their voice through paint.
Helen Stackhouse, who paints under the name A.M. Hassan, spent a year living out of a vehicle in San Jose after losing her job and having an unemployment check stolen. She describes that time as teaching her something real about struggle. “I feel like God let me be homeless, so I could understand what homeless people go through,” she said.
Now living in Nashville, Stackhouse is part of Daybreak Arts, a nonprofit supporting artists who have experienced housing instability. The organization recently launched “Gigi’s Creative Corner,” a hands-on workshop program at Shwab Elementary where Daybreak artists teach kids directly.
One of her students, a nine-year-old named Ander, has already picked up something important: in abstract art, dark colors carry sadness and light colors carry joy. He learned that from Stackhouse, and he hasn’t forgotten it.
“If I can help one child really understand art, the way he or she wants to express themselves, they can paint their own world,” Stackhouse said.
That’s the whole idea behind Gigi’s Creative Corner. And for the kids at Shwab, the sign hanging above their classroom says it best: “Do Your Thing.”
Comments