Art of War Project

Keith S | June 1, 2014 | 0 Comments

Winner of the 2014 Governor’s Creative Leadership Award

by Curt Bean

I joined the army at the ripe age of 17, having had no clue what I was getting myself into. I felt the call to serve and do my part. I went straight from high school to boot camp to my first tour in Iraq. Iraq was a wake up call. I was given more responsibility at 18 than people are given their entire lives. In my second tour, I led a small sniper team, which was even more of a wake up call. At age 20, I wasn’t allowed to legally drink, but was planning and executing high risk missions in active areas. We had a rough deployment but I made it home safe and prepared separating from the military. I was excited to no longer be tied down to one place and have the freedom to explore my true potential.

I was in denial about my post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and didn’t realize how much it affected me until it came to a breaking point. I wanted to be a firefighter but realized that I couldn’t perform daily routines without incident. I needed to seek help.

I entered a PTSD inpatient program at the Denver VA Hospital in November 2012 and graduated January 2013; I felt compelled to give back. Art was a big part of my life but I didn’t realize how integral it was to dealing with my PTSD until after I finished the program. I went to PTSD groups and offered them to use art as a tool to heal. Giving veterans the opportunity to work through their PTSD is great because using art is like talking about it without the abrasiveness of actually talking about it. I worked with groups for 6 months then approached the 7-week PTSD clinic with my art program, the Art of War Project (AOW).

The Art of War Project is a program dedicated to giving veterans positive creative outlets to deal with their PTSD. It is not just about the art created, but about the process. The process of making the art gives veterans a chance to work through their PTSD, creating works that they can be proud of. But not only that, during the class they are connecting with the other veterans and talking to complete strangers more than they do with their own families. They are creating support systems that they can call on when their PTSD is affecting them.

The 7-week PTSD clinic gave me the opportunity to do Art of War Project with all of the participants of the program. To me this was a huge win, getting the chance to work with vets in a program that I was in only a short time ago. I still was struggling daily with my PTSD symptoms, but now I at least had a positive outlet to give back to the veterans that gave so much.

The Art of War Project was successful but I was only able to reach the veterans in the clinic. I wanted to reach all the veterans in Denver without them having to go through the 7-week program first. While walking in my neighborhood I stumbled into a place called Hope Tank. Hope Tank is a charitable boutique that gives back a portion of every sale to a different charity.

Erika, the owner of Hope Tank, was open to the idea of having the Art of War Project class in the shop. We started classes immediately, but they were very slow at first. It was hard to get veterans into art classes in the heart of downtown Denver when a large part of PTSD is avoidance. But the word got out, I created T-shirts and hats to promote the program and met with every veteran organization I could.

Today the program is going strong at the 7-week PTSD clinic and Hope Tank. Other classes are in the works, not only in Denver, but all over the country, including Kentucky, New York, Georgia, and Florida. I’m starting to receive sponsors to help with art supplies. And, T-shirts and hats have spread all over the country raising awareness about the program and the necessity for art being apart of the healing process for veterans with PTSD.

Art is not a cure for PTSD, it is merely a tool to help with the daily struggles. Veterans still need to seek other treatments, but the goal is to have them do less medicating, both through the VA and self-medication. PTSD affected me for a long time before I came to terms with the realty of it. If I had dealt with it sooner, I would have been able to have moved on and enjoyed my life more. Veterans need support; if it wasn’t for Denver’s community, I never would have been able to start AOW.

I don’t want my story to be about pity. I may have not known what I was getting myself into, but I knew I had to do my part. And my part has always been serving my country, community, and fellow man. I deal with my PTSD gladly because it means that others do not. I have good days and bad, but the bad days are made easier knowing that I am now strong enough to deal with them. Empowering other veterans to do the same is the goal of Art of War.

For more information visit artofwarproject.com. Vet Night at Hope Tank