By Zandra Wolfgram
Ten years ago, Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation launched a groundbreaking ArtsReach initiative built around a simple but powerful idea: Art has the power to heal.
Today, Warrior Arts continues to connect active-duty military service members, veterans and their families with the transformative power of creativity. Founded in 2016 by Melanie Moore, MKAF’s director of education and community engagement, the program provides tailored workshops and art experiences for military members, particularly those living with traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress and other visible and invisible injuries.
As MKAF celebrates Warrior Arts’ 10th anniversary, the program has grown to more than 100 programs annually, incorporating visual art, painting, improv and other creative practices.
At the heart of Warrior Arts is connection — to creativity, to community and, often, to a sense of calm.
The Art of “Tangling”
One of Warrior Arts’ most popular offerings is Zentangle, an easy-to-learn method of creating images using structured patterns called “tangles.”
Moore, a Certified Zentangle Teacher, describes the focused drawing process as an active form of meditation.
“When you tangle up, you power down,” Moore says. “The act of focused drawing becomes a form of meditation and mindfulness that supports recovery and relaxation.”
There are no mistakes in Zentangle — only “mis-tangles.” There is no prescribed finished product or pressure to create a masterpiece. Participants simply put pen to paper and begin, one line at a time.
That low-pressure approach can be especially meaningful for people accustomed to high-stakes environments demanding precision and control. Participants leave with an original piece of art, but the experience of creating it can be just as important as the finished work.
From Participant to Teacher
Retired Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Charles Burkett knows firsthand what that creative process can do.
A 2004 helicopter crash left Burkett with a traumatic brain injury, extensive nerve damage and severely limited fine motor skills on his dominant right side. He incorporated Zentangle into his physical rehabilitation, first learning to write with his left hand and eventually retraining his right.
Within months, Burkett had regained 80% of his fine motor skills. By the end of the year, he had regained full control of his right arm, hand and fingers.
In 2022, MKAF sponsored Burkett’s training to become a Certified Zentangle Teacher. Today, he can share a practice that played a role in his own recovery with other members of the military community.
Part of a Bigger Mission
Warrior Arts is part of MKAF’s ArtsReach program, which provides arts education and experiences for K-12 students, children and adults with special needs, and the military community.
ArtsReach presents more than 150 programs annually, reaching more than 25,000 participants each year. Since 1995, the initiative has served more than 420,000 people through more than 100 schools and partner agencies.
The work carries forward the legacy of MKAF namesake Mattie Kelly, a Destin matriarch, philanthropist and lifelong patron of the arts who wrote poetry, played piano and organ, composed music and supported cultural organizations.
Today, her legacy lives on through MKAF’s mission “to champion access to the arts for all in Northwest Florida.”
MKAF CEO Demetrius Fuller credits Moore with helping make that outreach a defining part of the foundation.
“We’re so fortunate to have somebody of Melanie’s education and arts pedigree to lead the charge for us on outreach, which is essentially the product of Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation,” Fuller says.
See Warrior Arts in Action at Festival of the Arts
Want to experience Warrior Arts for yourself?
Visit the Warrior Arts Tent during MKAF’s 31st annual Festival of the Arts, Oct. 24-25 at the Mattie Kelly Cultural Arts Village in Destin.
Throughout the weekend, festivalgoers can meet Warrior Arts participants and instructors, view artwork created by veterans and service members, and try their hand at Zentangle during interactive lessons.
On Saturday, Oct. 24, at 2 p.m., Moore and Burkett take the Dugas Pavilion Stage for Tangle Time with Melanie & Chief, a live demonstration showing how simple lines and patterns can become an engaging mindfulness practice.
The free Festival of the Arts features more than 100 artists, live entertainment, demonstrations, children’s activities, food and more. Admission and parking are free, and proceeds support MKAF’s ArtsReach programs.
Come for the art. Discover what art can do. Then help make it accessible to someone else.
Attend the Festival, become an MKAF member, volunteer or make a gift.
After all, your support keeps the Arts FUNded.
