ART FOR ALL PEOPLE (AFAP) began on a snowy January night in 2010 when Dr. Hellmann, walked into Cincinnati’s largest homeless shelter with bottles of tempera paint and reproductions of works by Van Gogh. Based on the principle to understand social justice, one must take the time to listen to others. She used art making as a way to listen to those who were suffering.
Art touches our lives in profound levels and brings healing to those in physical, mental, or spiritual crisis. AFAP’s transformational art projects bridges social and economic divides to make the arts accessible to all. AFAP believes in a world where the arts are integral to our lives; we celebrate both our differences and our commonality through the power of the arts.
AFAP currently serves UC Health psychiatric patients, adults living with mental illness in the Tender Mercies community, individuals recovering from substance abuse at the Center for Addiction Treatment, veterans experiencing homelessness and active addiction at St. Joseph House, women inmates at the Justice Center, and men and women experiencing homelessness at Shelterhouse (formerly known as the Drop Inn Center).