The Healing Garden

The Healing Garden is a living testament to how the vision of a few strong community leaders can mobilize the goodwill of many to produce something truly inspirational. A collaboration between West End Arts District and the West Alameda Business Association, the vision started with the exhibition of BLM artwork on the plywood boards donated by local businesses after the protests, expanded to the design and creation of a beautiful garden space, and would soon host an Alfresco Dining Park.

 

Community Voices

“A beautiful community experience. It restored my faith in community and my commitment to Alameda.” — Brian J Kenny (Musician and Alameda resident)

“I loved everything, The music, the vibe, the friends, the comfort level, and the respect around everything.” — Ileath Bridges (Alameda Resident)

“People from all parts of the Island came together, ... a beautiful time for diversity and inclusiveness.”  — Robbie Wilson (Black Achiever’s Alliance)

Summer Series

In 2021, the Healing Garden became the home of our revised live arts program, the “Healing Garden Summer Series” which ran from May thru November 2021. A welcome return to live performance for so many after the COVID lockdowns, the series was made up of smaller, outdoor arts events including over 40 music concerts, contemporary dance, comedy, theater, hip hop, and craft events. Enjoyed by more than 6,000 people from all over the Bay Area, the Summer Series provided paid working opportunities for over 230 artists, including musicians, dancers, visual artists, comedians, actors, makers and photographers.

Artist Series

In June 2021, WEAD commissioned 10 new works from local LGBTQ and BIPOC artists to add to the permanent outdoor collection at the Healing Garden. Each of the selected artists created a 8’ x 4’ art installation for the central wall of the Healing Garden. Learn about each artist below.

Nicole Mendoza

I'm a Chicanx visual artist. I've been drawing for as long as I can remember, but I started taking it more seriously in 2015 when I was admitted into Oakland
School for the Arts. Being born and raised in the Bay Area and growing up around people with different ethnicities and identities has shaped my political point of view, which I sometimes portray in my work. I like to explore obscure themes without it being obvious. I believe that this allows a sort of magic to happen when the audience gets to wonder and bring their own personal meaning to art.

Yolanda Cotton-Turner

I am a local East Bay BIPOC artist who is all about developing those key inclusive spaces that bring people together in the spirit of equality and understanding. I believe in creating work that offers information and tools to strengthen our communities.

Marybeth Soriano

I am a first generation Filipino-American born and raised in Alameda. I utilize my art to document my journey of self discovery through my pre-colonial ancestry as a means to connect with myself. As I share my journey and express myself through art, I hope that others will connect with their own ancestral history to see their lives in a new perspective. I encourage you, the viewer, to learn, un-learn, and re-learn your knowledge to unite better in solidarity. These past months I’ve frequented The Healing Garden often to commemorate the paintings that advocate for justice and it makes me proud to be part of this community.

Margaret Belton

Margaret Belton is a creative powerhouse and the consummate bohemian artist. While visual art has always been her foundation, music has been a continuous heartbeat throughout her creative life. In 2010, she busted out of her shy performance closet and started a Patsy Cline Tribute band which then paved way to theater, film, voice-over, and on camera work. In addition to continuing her music and acting pursuits, Belton is a co-owner of Realm Art + Design, specializing in art installations, commissions and murals, home and commercial interiors, beautifying spaces throughout the Bay Area and beyond. Margaret is so honored to be a part of this beautiful project encompassing music, art and community.

Heather Blaikie

I came out as queer, to myself even, later in life at 41. It was a revelation that I am still working through. I have been very fortunate to find love with a gender non-conforming artist who makes space for me to be myself, and encourages my artwork. This has been the most freeing experience of my life. Art helps me process life, heal, and express myself.

Alex Bargas

The content of my work is strongly connected to my life story, visualized through the lens of my cultural identity. Documenting the mundane as well as the powerful, as a way to praise everyday people who are often overlooked, yet whose existence is the embodiment and legacy of the historical struggle and beauty.

Yolanda Patton

I am a moody artist and I paint with my heart
and soul. My art becomes life once it is
done living within my mind. The release
happens quickly; and once it is done, I don’t
go back. Much like everything in life, it is all
perfectly flawed.

Cheyanne Valera

There's nothing I won't draw. Also, there's not many inanimate objects I don't talk to. I dream of my art, sometimes it consumes me, it grabs ahold, and it's all I think about. I have to put things on paper, or into the digital world. If I don't, I will possibly implode. I create art for art's sake. It's pure and satisfying.

 

Ngoc Nguyen

I was drawn to this project because of the call for queer BIPOC artists. I think it’s important for diverse voices to be heard, especially during this moment where racial injustices and violence are all too presence in our daily life. This is also a great opportunity to build community in the West End and connect with other local artists.

Scott Melcher

I live in a most beautiful garden that I share with my dog. I am an oil painter and a sculptor. Currently the sculpturing I’m drawn to is influenced by nature, and has some humor/questioning bubbling up in it. The exploration and interpretation of representational form, somewhere between the tangible and my perception, my imagination is freed to run. I just want to get lost in those parts of life, to saturate myself in their pleasure, not taking myself too seriously.

 

The Healing Garden Keeps Growing

As of 2022, the Healing Garden space continues to be managed as a community resource by the West Alameda Business Association. For more info about current programming visit the West Alameda Business Association.