About
Higher Ground is a group of people, a retreat center, an extension of THP (Triad Health Project), AND a family. It is an amalgamation of all of these entities.
Essentially, Higher Ground is a communal day center for persons impacted by HIV/AIDS. Located in a house in Greensboro, NC, Higher Ground offers a space where people can escape the social stigmas surrounding HIV/AIDS and share personal stories during diverse therapy groups and daily moments of communal fellowship.
Nearly every day, the director of Higher Ground, Mark Cassity, says to the clients, THP staff, volunteers, and visitors, “Welcome Home.” The community aims to offer hope, family, and home to those seeking refuge from the intense marginalization and stigma accompanying HIV/AIDS and all of the intersecting social issues (such as mental health) that commonly impact one’s HIV status.
This website serves as a digital archive preserving a collection of nearly 400 unique pieces of artwork.
The artwork varies in subject matter, medium, and emotion, with each piece offering narratives and glimpses into the journey that HIV/AIDS has required us to take, especially for those who are HIV+. These pieces of art, often created during art therapy sessions at the Higher Ground house, are indicative of a process: a healing process that we have endeavored to partake in together. Thus, a range of emotion often saturates every piece displayed in this archive.
The artwork featured on this site reveals the private and personal endeavors of individual artists. The pieces are self excavations of one's own journey, emotional state, daily musings, or random whims. However, the artwork is not organized by creator. The sorting of the pieces in this archive does not privilege the creative production of a singular artist. No specific person is highlighted or set apart for their artistic endeavors.
Instead, each artwork joins an aggregate of community art. Every family member of Higher Ground has their own artistic style and their own unique approach to art making--that is something we celebrate and cherish during our group therapies--but this archive places emphasis on how the art pieces gather together to construct a narrative of our community and an aesthetic representation of our bond.
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We aim to ensure the confidentiality of individual family members, so focusing on the cultural production of the community, rather than just individuals, helps with this endeavor. Mostly, the art, collectively, relays Higher Ground's communal journey of offering refuge from the HIV/AIDS crisis.
