DAVENPORT, IA. — Bebe Geis remembers when she was an English teacher for an inner-city Phoenix, Az., high school. She had experimented with building an arts activity into her English lessons.
One morning, she remembers overhearing some of her students whispering to each other. That usually meant they were talking about some kind of illicit activity, Geis says – but this time, they were talking about art: “Did you get the paints?”
Geis is now leading a weekly Thursday night arts gathering called “Let’s Write and Create” for Metropolitan Community Church of the Quad Cities in Davenport. This time, it’s anxious adults doing the painting. And instead of gang activity, it’s the polarizing issues of the day rather than gang activity that they’re leaving behind when they focus on the art.
Some of their work will be celebrated – and for sale – Sunday morning and afternoon, as part of “The Wall” at MCC from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., and from noon to 1 p.m. It will stay on display for the month, when new pieces will be displayed.
The exhibit, which will be refreshed every month, is a chance to celebrate the “revolutionary act” of believing in community art, says Geis.
“It fits so well with the encouragement of this church to be themselves,” says Geis, below. Also, “It’s needed, and it’s really good timing. When we’re involved in art, you have an escape, and you can’t really be in your problems.”
Folks who have participated in the group include teens to seniors, Geis says, and they come from throughout the Quad Cities.
Cyndi Hunt, for example, lives in Coal Valley and attends MCC as a member, in addition to its Thursday night arts group. She loves “being able to express yourself and not have judgment when you’re doing it.”
“Bebe is really great about encouraging us to take chances with our art and put ourselves out there and not to be afraid to create, whether we think it is good or not,” she says. “I have a bad habit of saying my stuff is not good. She’s really encouraging to say, ‘it is good. Don’t put yourself down.’ “
Shannon Cameron of Davenport, below, took up painting for the first time in decades through MCC’s arts gathering. “I like to draw and I like to paint because It shows how I feel inside when I paint.”
Geis says leading the class is part of her personal philosophy as a teacher, of “reaching those who are hardest to reach.” She also says showing the work on The Wall is an important step for the amateur artists her class is intended to serve.
“Many of us are marginalized in some way or oppressed,” says Geis. “Having people in a safe community take a look at your art is revolutionary.”
Sunday’s art sale is 10 to 11 a.m. before MCC’s weekly service, and from noon to 1 p.m. during a potluck event after the service. The work will be on display for a month, when new creations from members of “Let’s Write and Create” will be displayed.
MCC, at 2930 W. Locust St., provides the art supplies and space for the weekly gathering. To learn more, reach Geis at bbgray23@gmail.com or 480 628-9586.
