When the Olympic Trials were held in Eugene four years ago, former Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art curator Lawrence Fong came up with an idea to engage members of the public: Display works of art created by Oregon athletes.
Four years later, the Art of the Athlete has developed into something much more meaningful for the student-athletes involved.
“Forty athletes participated at the time (of the first program) from all walks of life,” said Lisa Abia-Smith director of education at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art . “It really just unfolded after that.”
With the help of Katie Gillard, an art educator from Beaverton, Abia-Smith turned the program into an expressive and therapeutic summer course for student-athletes looking for a respite from the daily grind of college athletics. Abia-Smith and Gillard noticed the presence of a personal narrative in the art these students produced.
“A lot of it was about misconceptions about what it means to be a student-athlete,” Abia-Smith said at the Art of the Athlete exhibit, held in the Moshofsky center before the Ducks’ football game Saturday. “It became a great way for them to tell a story that isn’t always heard.”
Each athlete must complete four art projects during the four-week summer program. More often than not, the athletes have no prior formal art training, so many are hesitant at first. They often discover, however, that creating these personal projects provides an escape from the brutal hours of practice and workouts, and allows them express to themselves off the field.
“Especially after last summer, every single one of them talked about how it was release for them and how it was a break from the stresses that come with being a student-athlete,” Gillard said.
Self-portraits by the athletes who had taken the program over the summer were on display at the exhibit. A number football players, including DeForest Buckner, Tyrell Crosby and Tui Tala, represented. Dwayne Benjamin and Casey Benson of the basketball team also displayed their pieces, alongside Megan Condor of the women’s golf team and Jordyn Fox of acrobatics and tumbling.
Former football player Ayele Forde, who has participated in the program the past two years, has nothing but praise for what its organizers have accomplished.
“(Abia-Smith and Gillard) have done a really good job with their enthusiasm about the art and with the athletes,” Forde said.  “It’s a really good outlet for the athletes.”
The program now holds monthly workshops at the Schnitzer Museum, in which athletes help children with disabilities use art as therapy.
“They become the arm for a child who has mobility issues,” Abia-Smith said. “It’s amazing: parents will say ‘I see this 300 lb lineman on the field, and then I see them working alongside my child and my heart just melts.’ They’re not talking about their sport; they’re trying to help find a connection.”
This program will celebrate its fifth year next year; Gillard hopes to see increased participation from athletes in the future and encourages the University of Oregon to offer additional similar programs.
“I think they should encourage this to be more often than just the workshop, because they need it,” Gillard said.
The exhibit and workshop on Saturday were merely a preview of the full exhibit, Art of the Athlete IV, which opens on Oct. 21. The opening reception will feature 40 works of art from athletes who participated in the summer program. The exhibit will stay open until Jan. 24.
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @xgasbus