Bio |
I am a Visual Art for Well-Being Instructor who has lead workshops for educators, medical and mental health professionals, cancer survivors, and victims of trauma for the Missouri Institute of Mental Health, the Kemper Art Museum, the Cancer Support Community, Webster University, Siteman Cancer Center and other cultural, mental health, medical, and educational institutions both regionally and nationally. I have taught art to individuals with developmental delays, hearing impairments, significant medical conditions, dementia and learning disabilities, as well as typically developing and gifted students.
I am a co-founder of Arts, Writing, and Expression Collaborative (AWE). AWE aims to help men transitioning out of the criminal justice system tell their story through visual art, creative writing and public performance. I have been a faculty member at the Center of Creative Arts (COCA) since 2007. I teach visual arts primarily to adults enrolled in the Stress Management Program at PALM Health, an integrative medicine wellness center. I received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Washington University in St. Louis, studied in Santa Reparata International School of Art in Florence, Italy, and completed 270 class room hours of Anthropedia Well-Being Coach training. I hope you join me in exercising your creativity. |
Maria Ojascastro encourages you to exercise your creativity!
Artist Statement |
My artwork layers prints, paint, text, and found objects as a meditation on resilience, salvaged from the relics of interrupted journeys. The objects represented symbolizes the choice to move forward. The colors and textures are inspired by my journey of life – a combination of struggle, joy, and hope.
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AWE Collaborative |
Your participation in Virtual Ojascastro Art programs and the purchase of art on my shop page, make it possible for me to provide free Art for Well-Being classes to men transitioning out of the prison system through Arts, Writing, and Expression Collaborative (AWE.)
If you’d like to contribute funds please send a check to our Non-for-profit partner: Criminal Justice Ministry (CJM) and mail to 1104 S. Jefferson Ave. St. Louis MO 63104 and write TCSTL Art Room on the memo. Please visit our website https://awecollaborative.org or follow our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/awecollaborative/ . |
