Art of hope and healing

By Brent VonCannon
The Collegian

Joan Sharma knows how to brighten up a room, or even an entire village — with creativity and a lot of paint.

Sharma, assistant professor of art and design at Fresno State, has demonstrated her artistic talent in some venues around town the past two summers, winning her newfound recognition.

It all started in 2004, when the dean of the College of Arts and Humanities, Vida Samiian, asked Sharma to go to the Village of Hope, a self-governing homeless community in downtown Fresno just across from Poverello House. Sharma was to instruct a workshop for teaching writing skills such as poetry, essays and resume-making to the residents.

As Sharma attended the weekly village meetings and worked with the residents, she heard about a growing interest to create a mural on the property.

“The residents wanted to see a well-made, nicely designed mural, but few thought they had the skills,” Sharma said. “I told them, ‘express what you’d like to see.’”

The residents did just that, primarily through crayon drawings on long white sheets of paper, and pitched in their poetry skills in the form of quotes that were later added to the mural.

Paul Stack, groundskeeper at Poverello House, said a collective effort was made to beautify the grounds and establish some identity for the relatively new shelter. “They [residents] wanted to paint some signs,” Stack said. “They were just bouncing around with ideas. But we had a brick wall.”

Stack himself prepped up the wall and varnished it. But he gave most of the credit to Sharma. “She took everyone aside, put everyone’s ideas together, and made it happen,” Stack said of Sharma. “She did a wonderful job.”

Working on the mural for most of the summer of 2005, Sharma said, “It was so hot. It really gave me appreciation for the people working in the fields.”

A crew of dedicated volunteers pitched in to help Sharma paint the mural. Along with the residents’ drawings, Sharma also took inspiration from photographs from Fresno Poverello House founder Mike McGarvin.

Known as Papa Mike to his friends, the formerly homeless McGarvin takes center stage on the mural, where he is pictured reaching out to a homeless person.

“Mike would hand out peanut butter and jelly sandwiches during his lunch hour,” Sharma said. “While giving out food, he talked with them, acknowledged their humanity.”

The mural reads like a timeline. Initial images of hopelessness and despair give way to acts of charity and compassion. Drab colors give way to bright and uplifting colors and images of “today.” The Village of Hope’s history is also chronicled, from the initial patchwork of tents to the wooden sheds the residents are housed in now.

Sharma’s reputation soon spread to the Fresno County Children’s Mental Health Outpatient Clinic, where she was recruited to paint a blank wall in the waiting room in summer 2006.

“I wanted to make it more cheerful,” Sharma said. “I tried to remember the things I enjoyed as a kid.”

As a result, lively colors portray kids enjoying themselves on a deep green field, blowing bubbles and flying kites.

“You can’t put it in words,” Sharma said of the new look. “It’s a feeling. People like the colors, and the colors change the environment.” Sharma finished the children’s clinic’s mural in September.

A native of Philadelphia, Sharma grew up loving to draw. “I’ve always been fascinated by light and color,” Sharma said. “It really is a vast concept. The more I learn, the more it opens up.”

Sharma specializes in abstract water color art and certain forms of Indian ritual art. Some of her paintings have won awards and have been featured at the Fresno Art Museum. She is also an accomplished photographer, a hobby that she’s built on more recently.

Sharma’s interest in art led her to obtain a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Temple University’s Tyler Art School in Philadelphia, followed by a Master of Fine Arts degree from Indiana University.

After teaching stints at arts colleges in Philadelphia and Wooster, Ohio, Sharma arrived at Fresno State in 2003. She currently instructs courses on such subjects as 3-D design, painting, color theory and photography.

“I enjoy teaching,” Sharma said. “And I’m always learning — that’s what keeps it fresh and alive and interesting.”

Although she continues to paint and do photography on the side, Sharma has no immediate plans to start a new project on the scale of the two murals. She also doesn’t rule it out. “I would always consider new opportunities,” Sharma said.

Now, Sharma, along with her husband, are looking forward to leading an art tour through India over New Year’s. The tour, offered through the College of Arts and Humanities and the Fresno Art Museum, will take participants on a journey through art-intensive museums and historic landmarks, where Joan Sharma should feel right at home.

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