VSA Texas Unsung Heroine of the Week: Theresa Bond Zelazny

The Mobile Art Program was founded by Theresa Bond Zelazny in 2007 in response to her mother’s struggle fighting cancer.

Theresa Bond Zelanzy, on right, stands with two women in front of an exhibit of paintings, collage and mixed media.

Its mission is to deliver art activities, free of charge, to seniors and older adults with disabilities living in Austin, Texas. By 2012, Mobile Art (MAP) started to coordinate its efforts to work with individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's and/or dementia. All of the activities are designed to improve the lives of individuals by giving them an outlet for self-expression, restoring self-esteem, building friendships, and increasing cognitive skills that can lead to an overall stabilization in health. An exhibit of the work is generally scheduled at the location of the classes, as well as public exhibitions at the Texas State Capital building, the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services building, and local galleries.

The uniqueness of MAP is that it brings art activities to the places where people live or gather for social interaction. The teaching artists visit nursing homes, adult day and community centers, and adult respite programs where they provide classes in specific mediums (ex: mosaic workshops, watercolor, collage, mixed media, etc.).

Instructor looks on as a woman in a beaded sweater paints a picture of a purple flower.

Most program activities are delivered in low-income areas of the city. While MAP is the only program in the Greater Austin area to deliver art activities and lessons to seniors, it often works with other organizations in an effort to reach individuals who can derive the greatest benefit.  MAP collaborates with AGE of Central Texas, St. David's Health Angels, and Alzheimer’s Respite Programs at St Thomas More Catholic Church, Congregation Beth Israel, and Meals on Wheels Mike's Place. It currently has an agreement with Family Eldercare to deliver art classes to 8 residential facilities operated by the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) through the Living Well! Collaboration. In 2017, VSA Texas assumed the management of Mobile Art to provide Theresa fiscal and operational support.

A man works on a sculpture made of twigs and small pieces of paper.

Theresa tells us why Mobile Art is so important:

When a Mobile Art artist enters a new facility, she is often met with skepticism and self-doubt from the clients about their ability to complete the art projects we present. Yet after a session or two and some encouragement from staff and volunteers, the participants welcome us happily and are eager to start the next project. Part of our mission is to restore self-esteem and build friendships: the benefit of this is that the seniors can see that they are able to develop a new skill and share their talents with families and the community. Plus, they learn that they are still able to be social with individuals outside of their social circle.

A woman in a wheelchair beams as she shows her self-portrait to the group.

They value our attention to everyone as an individual and as a whole group. They know that we listen to what they have to say about their current and past life situations because we often create projects from the anecdotes and stories they share with us while we are in sessions. But our participants are not the only ones who benefit from this program. Caregivers often comment to us that after an art session the care recipient’s general mood is better. He or she is more likely to participate in physical therapy and take medications with less cajolement.

We welcome Theresa and the Mobile Art Program to VSA Texas and look forward to the opportunity to expand our reach into the Greater Austin community of older adults and their families and caregivers.

For more information about the Mobile Art Program, contact info@vsatx.org.