MILWAUKEE — A local artist is using art therapy to fight the stigma against opening up and reaching out for help.
Sheniqua Freeman has spent the last two years creating and selling artwork. We met her inside her new art residency at the Institute for the Preservation of African American Music and Arts (IPAMA)where she created a new collection that’s on display in honor of Black History Month.
But selling art was never her plan when she started making it.
"I have a much greater calling on my life, and I know that now, that I can't keep it all to myself," said Freeman.
For Freeman, the journey began when she started therapy. As she began working on her mental health and path toward healing, her therapist suggested finding a new outlet to relieve stress.
“I happened to be in Target one day in their dollar aisle, picked up a whole bunch of random things, went to Five Below picked up some canvasses, and literally cried my heart out on some of my very first pieces.”
She then realized the power of art as therapy and began to create it as a way to release her emotions. It was the people closest to her who urged her to start selling her work.
“People had to actually point it out to me because I didn’t see it, I was using it as straight-up therapy, you know? I’ve gotta be able to get my emotions out, get a release, and find something for myself. And they were like, ‘Hey, you know people pay for stuff like this, right?’”
That’s when she started SAF Art, where she not only creates work but leads classes to teach others the same healthy outlet.
I asked her if she thinks there’s still a stigma surrounding therapy and getting help.
“That’s exactly why I speak about it, yes,” she answered. “I was someone who was at a point in my life where I did not want to live anymore. I actually took some steps to try and make that happen. However, God brought me back and told me there was a different kind of purpose.”
Since then, Freeman says that purpose in life has been clear: help others find the same strength to seek help.
“It’s an honor to say I've been through some of the worst to be able to tell other people you can get through the worst.”
She said that there is a need for more outlets for people, particularly African American people, to feel comfortable opening up and confronting themselves and what they need.
“Everyone can’t afford therapy, everyone doesn’t know what their resources are, so if something like this exists, they can come to me and paint, get things out artistically, and then go home before they bring any of that stress from the workday, school day,” she shared.
She currently makes all her artwork inside her home. As she grows as an artist, her next step is finding a space she can turn into her own permanent studio, to teach even more classes and help more people.
“When it happens, and people give in, it’s an indescribable feeling within the room. People are crying, people are sharing their stories, people are finally feeling that they have a safe space to open up.”
That's something she says the world can use more of.
You can learn more about SAF Art Studio by visiting her Facebook page, Instagram, or TikTok.
Freeman’s work will also be on display, and for sale, at IPAMA for the next few months.
