Let down your hair.
WHO: The Tubman Center for Health and Freedom https://tubmanhealth.org/
WHAT: In the creative medium of my choice, I was asked to to reimagine the mission and vision for a project founded by the Tubman Center for Health and Freedom (TCHF) in the Seattle, WA region. Their mission is the following:
“We are committed to the principles of healing and people’s liberation from systems that make us unwell. We work to advance health justice, culturally appropriate care and integrative medicine.”
In less than 24 hours I painted my version of their mission on canvas.
PROCESS: My interpretation of the TCHF guiding principles is a visual composition but first I want to start with the process, much like how I work in design.
Vision: the takeaways, resonate with my mission in architecture
Experience: Why it’s personal to me, freedom of choice in care; access
Symbolism: I create art or projects in the built environment using symbolism, sometimes it shows up in the color of a building, floor pattern, etc.
ART (Symbolism explained) :
Pouring into: Equity, Resources. When people are poured into with the necessary resources, they are able to blossom.
Butterflies: Express freedom, particularly a freedom of choice in the care they receive, the food they eat, and the access they have to resources.
Magnifying Glass: As a society we need to take a deep look at the systematic approaches to healthcare. One that stands out is the knee-jerk reaction to subscribe pills or write prescriptions. While I do believe in many cases, prescriptions are proven to be helpful in cures, I think there are many other forms of medicine that are not created in a lab. There are warning labels on our medication and the food we eat that are constantly ignored/ Which makes us pose the question… what we are willing to sacrifice in order to satisfy a need? And speaking of need I believe God intended the food we eat to be a source of energy and strength, yet many societies are forced to eat processed foods.
Healthcare should be rooted in healing and not the bottom line.
Hair: (shown in the ribbon) When I think about the culture of healing, I think about how important Black people value their hair as well as Native people. When surveyed many Black people leave the salon or barbershop feeling refreshed and anew. Our hair represents our crown and allows for free expression. A 2022 article in Insider quoted “In some Native tribes, cutting off hair may signify a traumatic event or a major life change. It could also represent parting with past actions and thoughts, as a way to start anew.” I celebrate including barbershops/salons in centers for healing for these reasons.
Rooted in Nature: Nature is source of healing. We receive vitamins from the sun and herbs from plants that can be used to restore our bodies. It is advantageous to bring the outdoors inside and vice versa to allow people to feel connected to nature. When we are planted in good soil we are able to reap the benefits in the way we speak, the things we eat, etc (shown through the florals exiting the mouth).
I encourage you to follow the journey of the TCHF and the impact they will make in their community! https://tubmanhealth.org/
Additional Resources: https://www.insider.com/what-hair-signifies-in-native-american-culture-2022-11