Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Shaw.
Laura, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up wanting to be a ballet dancer. My whole life revolved around dance. When I was in high school, I danced with New Ballet Ensemble – a wonderful school and company in Memphis, TN that performs and teaches workshops and classes in Title 1 (low-income) schools all around Memphis and welcomes students in their programs regardless of the ability to pay. I danced in gymnasiums and cafeterias all across town, alongside flamenco, modern, Memphis jookin’, and hiphop dancers. It was so exciting and so much fun to see children who thought ballet was stuffy or that dance training was beyond their reach engage with so much enthusiasm and have an opportunity to dance. It also opened my eyes to the inequities of education, and arts education in particular.
I have worked with creative, education-based nonprofits across the country from Boston to San Francisco and knew I wanted to work with children and the arts, so when I moved to Atlanta in 2015 and met Julie McKevitt, the founder of Paint Love, I knew I wanted to be involved in what they were doing. Paint Love’s mission tends to draw people in like that, but it’s the people and the impact on kids in the community that gets folks to stick around. We’re a small organization and so when you volunteer or work with us as an artist or donate money, it makes a big impact, and everyone knows who you are and is so happy to have you on the team. It’s a special place. So, I was honored to accept the role of Executive Director in 2019 and am so proud of how we’ve grown since then.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Leading a very small nonprofit through a global pandemic was certainly a challenge I don’t want to face again. I don’t think it’s been a smooth road for anyone these last few years, though. Artists, business owners, teachers, parents, kids, and pretty much every human has experienced some previously unfathomably hard things in the last three years and it wasn’t/isn’t always easy getting through and trusting that it won’t be quite that hard forever. That is part of what makes Paint Love’s mission to bring extraordinary arts programming that empowers youth and strengthens communities so relatable and so moving to so many people.
Think about how hard it was to figure out what you were going to cook for dinner in the height of the pandemic lockdowns. When you didn’t know if anything would ever be back to normal, something as simple as making dinner felt like a totally impossible hurdle. The part of your brain that is responsible for future planning, critical thinking, and regulating emotions isn’t able to function properly when you’re experiencing more stress than you can process. (This is the definition of trauma.) Getting out of the fight/flight/freeze/fawn brain space and being creative and playful activates the higher-thinking part of your brain, so experiencing art, music, moving your body, and having fun are really impactful for mental health. This is what Paint Love brings to kids and communities through art- the incredibly healing power of imagination!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am so proud of all Paint Love is and does. We work with schools, districts, youth-serving nonprofits and host our own programming at our studio at Legacy Park in Decatur to bring arts workshops, classes, and residencies taught by professional artists and our staff teaching artists. We specialize in making the inaccessible accessible and empowering kids and strengthening communities through the arts. But what sets us apart is that Paint Love is a welcoming space where kids who struggle to connect with others can find community and thrive. It is a consistent space where kids who have experienced neglect in the foster care system can get to know adults they trust. It is an intentional space where teens whose lives have been turned upside down by domestic violence can practice making choices and regain a sense of autonomy. It is a space where families can get outside the usual and be awed by each other, and have fun. It is a space where dreams and hopes and fears and feelings are taken seriously and given merit and space to breathe. It’s an empowering space where people can think outside the box and think about how they can be the best human they can be and use their skills and passion and energy to make the world around them the best it can be, too.
Paint Love’s mission is to bring extraordinary arts programming to youth facing trauma or poverty. We believe the arts empower youth and strengthen communities. Art is our vehicle, but the soul of our work is showing children that their voice matters, their ideas are important, and their actions can make a difference in shaping the future. We choose art because creativity is about humanity and expression, imagination and voice – and these things are essential for both dreaming up big ideas and thinking outside pre-existing structures to bring them to life. Paint Love envisions a world where all young people have access to creative opportunities and resources that empower them to imagine and create a future not limited by adverse experiences.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I wouldn’t normally consider myself much of a risk-taker, but life is short and I try to always stay open to new opportunities. I’ve moved back and forth across the country a few times and that phase of starting over in a new place is always a risk. Most recently, I moved back to Atlanta from San Francisco in late 2020 – peak pandemic, pre-vaccine – to give Paint Love my all. I became Executive Director in 2019 and knew that if I was going to get the organization through the pandemic and to where it could be, I had to take several risks, including to be here on the ground in the community Paint Love serves. So, my husband (who is a freelance designer and illustrator) and I packed up our apartment, shipped all our stuff, put our pup and all our plants in our car, and drove back to Atlanta after four years in California. It definitely has not been easy, but Paint Love has grown so much and is stable and thriving, and I’m really proud of where we are and where we are going as a team and an organization.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.paintlove.org
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/paintlove
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/gopaintlove
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/gopaintloveorg/videos
Image Credits
1- Sidarth Kantamneni 2- Elle Wood 3- Laura Shaw 4—5 Q Oliver 6- Elle Wood 7- Marquita Williams 8- Laura Shaw
