Clay Art Center Offers Free Clay-Therapy for Women Living with Cancer
Clay is touching the lives of Gilda’s Club Westchester members this fall as part of Clay Art Center’s Clay Expressions program at their satellite studio in White Plains. Each week, 12 women who are all either living with or recovering from cancer, gather for a 3-hour class on Fridays to relax, escape from daily stresses and experience the transformative powers of clay in a new way. During the class, students learn the basic techniques of sculpting with clay and Clay Art Center teaching artist and mediation instructor Denis Licul incorporates meditation into each class.
The goal of the classes is to offer women a new way to express themselves and engage in self-discovery in an environment that is free from failure. Participants also benefit from being in an environment with other women who share the same experiences.
This program began as a therapeutic pilot in 2011, and since that time, has offered more than 56 women the opportunity to relax, create and heal. Thanks to an anonymous donor, the Clay Expressions program has been able to grow so that twice a year, two 10-week sessions are offered free of charge to members of Gilda’s Club Westchester who are living with or recovering from cancer.
