October is the time to IMAGINE
“Imagination will take you everywhere.” -Albert Einstein
Fall is upon us, and with it, the final leg of our 2016 Artist’s Journey. We spent the first part of the year REFLECTing in the cozy winter months, then CONNECTing with our peers and communities in the Spring. All summer long, we EXPLOREd, and now we’re using the last three months of the year to IMAGINE. What better way to kickstart our active imaginations than with October’s keywords: Dreams, Fantasy, and Superhero.
On a recent chilly morning, 14-year-old Cassiya, a patient at the Zeis Pediatric Hematology/Oncology clinic at Mission Children’s Hospital, came to the art table primed to imagine with Program Director Annie Rogers. No matter the lesson, Cassiya, a long time Arts For Life Asheville artist, always approaches her art with a quiet smile, an open mind, and a ton of great ideas. So when Annie showed her this Metallic Marbleized Mask lesson, Cassiya immediately had a vision for her masquerade mask. From the bright pink and blue paints she used in the marbleized part of her mask…
to the coordinating pink and blue feathers…
to the patterns she drew with metallic markers, 
Cassiya made each thoughtful creative choice with assured determination and a keen eye for design.
While she doesn’t have plans to attend any masquerade balls anytime soon, Cassiya does plan to use her mask to jazz up her Snapchat selfies… no silly filters required!