Authentic Abstraction - September 2022 @ Market St
PTSD led us here. Now we are retaking the wheel. Unapologetically, authentically flawed. Broken and glued back together because of some of the things we saw. We are
Authentic Abstraction
Where poetry and paint share a canvas.
We welcome you to our immersive art exhibition:
“Collab’Nation”
An Ode To Education, PTSD And The Arts
Brendan and Edmund are both former Rhode Island firefighters who met while working for the city of Pawtucket. Each of them worked as a firefighter for nearly 10 years, and suffer from severe work-related trauma. During their time working together, the duo bonded over a love of music, writing, and creating. To cope with their illness, they began creating paintings and poetry under the moniker "Just BE". From this, Authentic Abstraction was born.
"Art went from a coping strategy to deal with the horrors of our work as firefighters to now being the gasoline and ignitor to the new fire we will be fighting - The fire of activism and advocation, painting, writing, connecting, listening, creating, and healing."
"We hope you connect with our work."
-Just BE
Our vision
The vision of Authentic Abstraction is to cultivate authentic connections through community and art to help raise awareness and dissolve stigma for those experiencing mental health challenges, especially first responders.
Our Mission
To utilize an original, one-of-a-kind, creative platform to share experiences, vulnerabilities, and compassion, creating a safe and uplifting environment for communication and authentic connection.
Please visit our website to learn more about who we are and what we do: