Hastings Couple to Host Charity Art Show

Artist Christina Thomas grew up in a family whose lifestyle included addiction and abuse. In her adulthood, she was rendered homeless and penniless after she left a situation where she was being sexually abused.  

She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis; then renal disease, which currently has her on a waiting list for a new kidney; and was most recently told she has a tumor on her ovary.

Thomas—who has shown at the Peter Louis Gallery in NYC and with JohnMcMullen's Art of Fashion—says art is what helps to heal her soul during troubled times by offering peace, calm and way to express herself and her emotions.

“Art saved my life,” said Thomas, 34, who moved to Hastings-on-Hudson in September with her partner Nieta Greene. “I’ve painted since I was 11-years-old. I think it was a place to go in my head, and that was a very safe thing to do. I still use art as a way to speak when I don’t have words or when I don’t choose to use them.”

Thomas, originally from Scarsdale, and Greene, originally from New Rochelle, wanted to give a voice to other artists who have also overcome tribulations and started Speak Your Truth in Seattle in 2011. Thomas came up with the logo for Speak Your Truth after the death of a patient in the hospice where she was working. The couple serves as agents who find artists and put on exhibitions in lounges and unconventional venues.

“When Christina told me she was sexually assaulted while we were in separate houses, it made me realize I had to do something other than want revenge,” said Greene, 36, who also serves as Thomas’ agent. “I had to realize, yes I could want revenge, but my actions have consequences. I had to change my journey, so we changed our business model so we would only represent artists that have been through some sort of adversity.”

Speak Your Truth is holding it’s first charity art show, “Journey Beyond Your Limits” on May 4, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at The Kilmat Lounge, 77 East 7th Street in Manhattan. The $20 donation at the door will benefit the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault and Westchester’s Victims Assistance Services (VAS).

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The event includes spoken word performances by Shye Sales and Amber Atiyaand Mewz, as well as artwork for under $1,000 by Thomas, Jae Quinlan and Sagine Cave (click on the PDF for more information on the artists and their work).

The NYC Alliance Against Sexual Assault and VAS promote educational awareness of sexual assault, as well as programming for sexual assault victims and their families. Thomas said these types of services were vital to her own recovery process. Thomas learned how to take her life back at a Peekskill homeless shelter where she had to re-learn how to be around people and men, and what to do in her spare time.

“The organizations we’re donating money to allow people to break free of being a victim of sexual assault and allow you to have the process to heal in your own way,” said Greene, who previously worked in mental health services and works part time in the field of sexual assault services.

Greene and Thomas both attended New Rochelle High School, had similar acquaintances and worked at the same job—however they didn’t meet until 2008 and married about nine months later in Connecticut. The couple is looking to the future and is hoping Speak Your Truth can partner artists with children who are chronically ill and use the proceeds from the sales of that art to benefit local children’s hospitals. Thomas and Greene, who were both victims of bullying, are also planning an art exhibit centered around the issue of bullying and is hoping to bring their shows to the Rivertowns.

“Speak Your Truth to me is telling your truth and being willing to deal with the consequences of saying ‘this is how it is,’” said Greene. “That’s what it means to me.”

Check out Speak Your Truth’s website here: http://speakyourtruthinfo.wordpress.com, follow them on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/speakyourtruth, and check out the blog here: http://speakyourtruthart.wordpress.com