The 44th event co-hosted by the Department of Veterans Affairs and American Legion Auxiliary celebrates award-winning artwork of veterans.
David Seligman created something tangible to give him understanding of his invisible wound from war. It’s a handblown piece of clear glass brick with black nails protruding from the top that are bent in various angles. The conceptual sculpture represents a brain injury.
“To be able to create a tangible, physical object that represents something that is only inside my body and mind that I really can’t see or touch was just amazing for me,” said Seligman, who medically retired from the Army as a captain in 2015 with deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. “It helped me to be able to understand what I’m dealing with. And move forward.”
Seligman’s “Hitting the Nail on the Head” glass artwork was on exhibit for the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival (NVCAF) held in Indianapolis May 15 at the Newfields: Indianapolis Museum of Art. The NVCAF is co-presented by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the American Legion Auxiliary to showcase the artistic achievements of veterans in art, creative writing, dance, drama and music. Over 6,500 entries were submitted into the competition by 4,000 veterans enrolled in the VA health-care system. Seligman is one of 150 veterans who won gold medals in the VA’s regional art competition to advance to nationals.
For Seligman of Asheville, N.C., being at the national competition gives him a sense of pride for his artwork and his story to be “witnessed. It feels very important to me. A part of the healing process is sharing my story with people; it’s an accountability piece for me about my brain injury and talking about it.”
A nail broke during its travel to Indianapolis, but Seligman said it doesn’t matter because “how many times can you get hit on the head before you bend or break? Transposing that to art was a way for me to help move forward by accepting and understanding that I have a brain injury and not to minimize it. This has been my way of moving forward.”
This is the Auxiliary’s 25th year supporting the NVCAF from the unit to national level through donations, volunteerism and its mission of “Service Not Self.” Since 2000, when then-Auxiliary National President Kristine West made the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival her focus because of the healing that art provides, the Auxiliary’s support for the festival “has grown to encompass many aspects of our mission in action,” said Chrystal Daulton, director of programs at the Auxiliary National Headquarters in Indianapolis. “It is our farthest reaching and most impactful example of our support and healing, not only to the veteran participants, but also to their families and caregivers. Everyone involved sees the positive impact that expression through the arts has in their lives.
“The event allows veterans to find other talented artists that have the unique perspective of military experience. They find camaraderie and appreciation of the many forms of art and a wealth of talent for expression that helps them in their journey of healing.”
Auxiliary volunteers continue to support the mission of the NVCAF year after year, as it’s an opportunity to “meet and bond with veterans and watch them grow and heal,” Daulton said. “Seeing their progress from year to year is amazing and renews our passion for the mission.”
Auxiliary National President Trish Ward was able to experience the American Legion Family support in the exhibit hall at Newfields and the healing of art for veterans.
“This is an amazing opportunity to be here with our veterans. They are so creative, and we know that the arts heal,” Ward said. “I love just seeing all the interesting pieces of art that come from our veterans. What they see in their head and how they make it come to fruition with different types of art is absolutely fascinating.”
As an example, 500 yards of duct tape were used to create a Caterpillar 320D crawler excavator sculpture. The 13-pound sculpture took Jason Reid over six months and 250 hours to create. Reid, a Purple Heart recipient who served in the Marine Corps infantry with two tours in Iraq, found out about the NVCAF last year and entered the competition.
“It’s pretty exciting that it won; I didn’t think I would come this far,” said Reid, who built his own tools to make the excavator and worked in a quiet room at his home in the Denver, Colo., area. “I really enjoy doing art; it’s relaxing and peaceful. It’s therapeutic.”
And at 92 years young, one can find Korean War Army veteran Ervin Kleinsasser in his workshop building cabinets, furniture and an award-winning tractor trailer out of wood. According to his wife, there’s sawdust everywhere in the workshop. The mess is worth it because this is the first time Kleinsasser of St. Cloud, Minn., has entered a competition, and the tractor was on exhibit at the NVCAF that took him two years to make.
“I was amazed!” Kleinsasser said of being a gold regional winner and coming to nationals. “I couldn’t believe it. When it won here, it was even more amazing.”
Alexandra Brown has been making blankets to manage her anxiety. Her blankets have won the NVCAF competition a few times, giving her a creative outlet to work through anxiety and learn something about herself. “Competing in the nationals, it helped me understand that I’m an artist. I never understood that before,” said Brown, an Air Force veteran from Buffalo, N.Y. “And I’ve finally reached a place where I have managed my anxiety, so last year was my last blanket.”
But it wasn’t her last time entering the competition as an artist.
Brown has always wanted to make a sloth, so after a lot of research she crocheted a large two-toed sloth. And she couldn’t believe that the sloth won.
“They called me up and were like, ‘You won!’ I’m like ‘really? The sloth won? Are you kidding me?’ she said. “You know what the sloth has done? It has brought smiles to everybody who has come over here (to see it in the exhibit). We need that in our lives, and it’s brought me that in my life. (The National Veterans Creative Arts Festival) has impacted my life to a degree that I can’t even vocalize on. Part of who I am today is because of nationals.
“This changes lives. It changed my life, and I just really hope that it can be something that continues. It’s so important. Recreational therapy is so important for healing veterans, especially with PTSD, but also veterans with MST and everything else. There’s nothing like the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival.”
- Veterans Healthcare