by Brandon Wiggins

Founded in 2000, today Arts Unbound is an organization whose mission is to provide arts education and skill-building opportunities to youth and adults with mental, developmental and physical disabilities. Arts Unbound works to provide the promise of a creative lifestyle to all people with disabilities.

“We use art as a way of expression and advocating for those with disabilities,” Louis Copeland, the current executive director at Arts Unbound, said.

According to Copeland, the artists served by the organization generally fall into two categories: artists who are well trained and just need a way to get their work publicized, and those who have raw talent but need to be taught the skills to master their craft.

For advanced artists, the main benefit of Arts Unbound is that it hosts art shows and galleries. These arts shows provide the organization’s artists a chance to showcase their work to an audience of potential customers.

One of the organization’s most famous artists is Amy Charmatz. Charmatz, a painter, is well known nationally in the arts community, and her artwork been featured in exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution and the Kennedy Center. Charmatz, who struggled with clinical depression and underwent brain surgery, is forthright about how she uses her art as an outlet for capturing some of her experiences in dealing with disabilities. Recently, Arts Unbound held an art show for Charmatz, which she titled “Pursuit of Happiness.” Most of her paintings at this show were sold, for an average of $425.

Arts Unbound is in the Valley Arts District of Orange, N.J., an area that is known for being a hub of artistic activity. The District even has a local theater where artists from Arts Unbound have done set design work. Although many of the artists affiliated with the organization are from the New Jersey area, the organization makes an effort to reach out to artists from across the country. In fact, once a year the organization hosts a National Juried Show. For this show, they fly in artists from around the country to give these artists an opportunity to present their work.

Arts Unbound also offers classes for aspiring artists with disabilities. Prospective artists can take group classes or private lessons at whatever location is convenient for them. These classes are geared toward whatever artistic medium the young artist wishes to study. The organization teaches a wide array of artistic media to its students, ranging from crafts and painting to mosaics and sculpting. For the younger artists who might not be sure what kind of art they want to do just yet, the organization will let them get a taste for all of the media and let them decide for themselves what they like best.

Another benefit of these courses is they provide an opportunity for Arts Unbound to hire artists with disabilities to work as teachers’ assistants. Such jobs can be the first step toward a desired career and can offer a much more fulfilling career path than many jobs generally available to those with disabilities. These teacher’s assistants can pursue their passion for the arts in a way that allows them to interact and ultimately benefit others.

As things turned out, Lazen’s daughter does not have a disability. But the organization Lazen started has made a difference in the lives of many people who do.

All told, Arts Unbound has helped a number of individuals, such as Jon Gabry, who was born deaf and legally blind, but has just enough sight to work on portraits because he finds the bright colors he uses relaxing. Or Dashir Johnson, a young man on the autism spectrum who has begun working as a muralist on a new program in which Arts Unbound artists can paint murals for schools.

Ultimately, no matter who you are or what your disability is, if you have a passion for the arts, then Arts Unbound will be able to help you. “I don’t believe you can be an organization that talks about inclusion if you don’t serve everyone,” says Copeland.