Rabs Remedy

Rab’s Remedy
By Paul McCann

Rab had been struggling financially for many years before he got the break in the art world that changed his life . Now that fame and fortune had come along everything was changing for the better Now he was in a position where he could support people who were like he used to be , unappreciated and misunderstood . Now that Rab had both time and money to spare he decided to give something back . To lift up lives and not tear them down .

His idea was to connect with people young and old , in schools , mental institutions , homeless refuges , prisons and any where he could discover isolated individuals who had ended up isolated with a talent they possessed .

Rab had the ability to recognize such people because he had been one of those people himself in his younger years .

He would be looking for someone there sitting back in a corner , kind of , out of the way from others and looking disinterested in what everyone else was doing .

Rab knew the feeling of inspiration on the edge . Clinging on to inner visions and digging into his subconscious thoughts .

Rab knew that different way of thinking about life and people and bringing them out on a canvas for the world to see . Over a period of twelve months Rab had put on a series of art exhibitions to fund a project he called Breaking Out. With the money and donations he had received from people in the art world Rab had just built an art centre called Refocus . In this building Rab was opening up a space where people who fitted the criteria , could spend time creating new art works and finding new understanding in their lives .

The next step for the Breaking Out project was for Rab to physically go and pinpoint those prospective talents out there in the community and to bring them into Refocus Art Centre to begin encouraging their talents to grow .

At refocus there would be a place to work , eat and sleep at no cost .

The purpose behind the Breaking Out project was to give people what the chance to create and find new artworks and build a better understanding in the world of what an artist was .

Rab hoped to leave behind a legacy in the world , long after he was gone.

Like pictures on a wall or the echo of a voice .

But who can hear the call or who would see the pictures ?

Who knows , but for arts sake Rab wanted to try to leave something behind for someone .

So the first place Rab went to visit in his search for an emerging artist was Lock Wood school for itinerant students . In here the idea was not for teachers to teach but instead to find new methods of engaging with young people who could not absorb information or retain knowledge . The process at Lock Wood was not to open minds up but to close them down and shut out academia from getting in allowing those individuals to feel accepted in life .

Rab was hoping that somewhere in Lock Wood he would find someone who was marginalized and alone instead of being itinerant or dangerous .

When Rab was introduced to the class as an artist , most of the students except one were not really that interested in what he had to say . Sitting in the back of the classroom Rab noticed a young lad carving up a wooden desk with a knife .He knew there and then that he had someone and asked the teacher what the students name was . The teacher said his name was Ash .

“Hey Ash , what are you doing with the knife ?”

Rab shouted to the back of the class . The young lad lifted his head slowly and shouted back .

”It’s a tool and I dig with it .“

Rab said to himself quietly and with passion .

“ Yes . ”

He walked up to the back of the class to the desk where Ash sat and stood there quietly . The student seemed uneasy and looked up at Rab and said ,

“What are you looking at ?”

Rab smiled and said ,

“I used to do exactly the same thing as that when I went to school . Does it help you think and do you see things in your mind when you’re digging “

The student was stunned and replied .

“Well yeah , it’s a thing I do before I do something else .“

“ So Ash do you paint pictures ?”

Ash was amazed and replied ,

“ Yeah . All the time .“

“Do you draw first before you paint ?”

Rab asked ,

Yeah sometimes .

Do you use pencils or crayons ?

Ash replied ,

“Crayons “

‘Why ?”

Rab asked and Ash replied

“Because they have colour . “

“That is just what I expected to hear . I want to help you Ash . “

Ash started to dig into the desk with his knife and said .

“What do you mean help me . I’ve never had any help from no one .“

Rab took the knife from Ash and started to dig into the desk , the he said .

“I lived fifteen years on my own with no one to help me but myself . I drew pictures of everything I saw in my mind and painted faces of people who passed me by . I took nothing from nobody and nobody got nothing from me so you see Ash , that’s why I want to help you get what I never had . Encouragement and support as an artist “ .

Immediately when Rab saw the look on Ash’s face he knew he had his first resident artist at the Refocus centre . So after talking it over with the school and Ash’s parents everyone was happy and willing for him to be what he was to become at the Refocus Centre .

The next place Rab went to visit was Bela House, a homeless refuge in the city . Rab walked in with some parcels of food and clothing and asked if her could spend some time talking with the residents .

When Rab went into the common room there were about sixteen people sitting around smoking and hangng out . There was a TV set that was on and the mood around the room was quiet and serious . Then he saw what he had never hoped to find .

A young girl was sitting in front of one of the residents , she was sketching his face while he sat there staring into space .

Rab went over and had a look at the work in progress . It was brilliant .

Rab said ,

“What’s your name .“

“Inga “

She replied .

“How long have you been doing this ?

He asked and she replied .

“I can’t tell you how long its been . I’ve been homeless for three years so its been much longer than that .“

“What would you say if I offered you a place where you can live and sketch for as long as you want . It won’t cost you anything . “

“Are you kidding ?”

Rab replied .
”Why would I lie to you . I am an artist who was homeless once . It’s my way of giving something back because I’ve done ok in life .“

“ I’m all for it so when do I move in ?”

“How about immediately. Come on grab your things and follow me . “

A short time later Inga finished the sketch and handed it to her model and then said to Rab .

“Ok , lets go then . I'll just get a few clothes from my room .“

Months passed and Rab had contacted a dozen more people from various institutions . Some of those were men on their way back into community from prison and out patients from mental hospitals .

Within a year Refocus had its first art exhibition and the project Breaking Out was a huge success .

Some major artworks were created during this time within the walls of Refocus and all of the resident artists had decided that for every one of their paintings that were sold , another one would be given away to a Charity and that was their way of giving back after receiving something from life.

The End