‘April Savino’ by Kieva Campbell. (Image courtesy of El Camino College)
‘Rainbow Liz’ by Jules Muck. (Image courtesy of El Camino College)
‘The Essence of Life’ by Gary Tyler. (Image courtesy of El Camino College)
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‘April Savino’ by Kieva Campbell. (Image courtesy of El Camino College)
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El Camino College’s art gallery will hold a reception this week showcasing its current exhibit — which is all about depression.
The current exhibit is, “Kieva Campbell: A Tribute to April Savino, the Sister I Never Met.” It has been a decade in the making, with social activist Bob Zaugh leading the charge on creating an immersive art exhibit, highlighting the realities of depression and how art can help people heal.
The reception will take place at 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, at the El Camino College Art Gallery, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd.
Zaugh is a former teacher of Campbell’s, the featured artist in the show, and after not seeing her for 10 years, he found her in a park crying. Campbell mentioned that she was suffering from depression, that she was pursuing art and that she wanted to do a show in honor of her sister – a sister she never met.
Campbell’s sister, April Savino, died by suicide at only 19 years old after running away and living under the tracks at Grand Central Station in New York for four years, according to Zaugh.
After years of attempting to pull the show together, Zaugh and Campbell finally succeeded in securing the art gallery at El Camino College — where Zaugh went to school 60 years ago. The exhibit will run through the end of May.
“It turned out to be the perfect place,” Zaugh said. “They not only listened to my ideas, they added their own, including student ideas.”
The show slowly turned into an exhibit delving into the realities of depression and other mental health issues. It will also launch a speaker series that will include Academy Award winner Frank Stiefel, screenwriter Daniel Peddle, as well as a poetry workshop — which will look at poetry crafted around mental health issues.
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders in the U.S., with about 21 million Americans having it, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. And, Zaugh said, there is not enough conversation around how to live with depression and work through those struggles — and he wants to correct that with this exhibit.
“There’s nothing like it in the U.S.,” Zaugh said. “Selling pills is the only way people are approaching (treating depression). It’s not being dealt with. Most artists that you talk to, once they start painting, the depression’s gone. So we want to change that conversation and hopefully we’ll do it.”
Thursday’s reception will also include a number of speakers, including Zaugh; Jonathan Flint, a UCLA geneticist who discovered the genetic links causing depression; Gary Tyler, the youngest person to face death row; and Carrie Lockwood, an associate at the El Camino College Art Gallery who has mental health issues.
“This powerful exhibition features works by world-renown artists, all of whom utilize art as a means of addressing their personal experiences with depression, anxiety and other mental health challenges,” El Camino College said in a Monday, Feb. 23, press release. “The workshops, speakers and films presented throughout this exhibition collaboratively address the importance of mental health, as well as offer some solutions through artistic expressions and other creative means.”