Art showcase by incarcerated Ramsey County youth in opioid program is Saturday

Indigenous Roots Cultural Arts Center is hosting an art showcase by youth enrolled in an opioid use disorder program at the Ramsey County Juvenile Detention Facility Saturday, Dec. 7, from 1-4 p.m.

The showcase highlights the art youth created during a 16-week creative wellness program conducted by St. Paul-based Restorative Reiki Health and Wellness. The event brings awareness to Black and Native American communities disproportionately affected by opioid use and overdoses, said Molly Evans, Executive Director and Founder of Restorative Reiki Health and Wellness.

The goal of the program — designed for marginalized youth — was to foster recovery and healing from experience with opioid use.

“It gives space to release internally held negative emotions,” Evans said. “We have to create spaces in order to have positivity and form new ideas.”

Every Saturday, the 13- to 18-year-olds worked on self-portraits, landscapes and abstract art using a variety of methods, such as watercolor, paint and colored pencil. Overall, the youth learned self-care skills, self-control and emotional dysregulation, Evans said.

Local artists previously affected by the justice system themselves came in to teach art as well.

“They were able to see that we’re all worth more than the worst mistake we make, and that they do have the ability to have a positive future,” Evans said.

Evans deeply understands the juvenile justice system because she grew up with incarcerated parents. She can relate to turning a disadvantage into opportunity. It was humbling and beautiful for her to witness the learning and growth among the youth participants, she said.

The skills art cultivates go hand-in-hand with the process of completing opioid use disorder treatment, Evans said.

“When we put the two together, it’s kind of like your top piece of bread on a sandwich,” said Evans. “Without one, you don’t have the whole sandwich.”

There will be a group mural at the showcase anyone can contribute to. To Evans, the art shows humanity in an issue that affects our entire community. Free Naloxone kits, an opioid antagonist, will be handed out with training on how to use it.

“We’re going into this with the hopes of engaging with the community so that when they leave, they’ve met someone they didn’t know before and had a super impactful experience,” said Evans.