Colorful artwork created by young adult members of the Autism Society Lehigh Valley now hangs in the main hallway inside the entrance to Lehigh Valley Hospital–17th Street in Allentown.

The artwork was unveiled recently.

The Autism Society Lehigh Valley established the Creative Abilities Group program in 2018 to provide opportunities for youth and adults with autism to participate in a variety of fine arts in the community.

“I had this dream; I thought it would be great to have our young adults do a mural, but the hurdles are they’re afraid of heights, being in public, bugs, whatever,” said Cindy Lo, art director for the Creative Abilities Group. “One of the things we want is for our young adults to feel good about themselves. How they feel good about themselves is by being productive. So, when we make our workshops project-oriented, after they complete the workshop they feel they’ve accomplished something.

“We were fortunate to be partially funded by the Lehigh Valley Arts Council’s Accessible Engagement grant.”

The Autism Society Lehigh Valley enlisted the services of muralist Matt Halm of Allentown, who worked with adults with autism for the first time on this project.

Halm said he used the technique of painting on parachute cloth horizontally to allow the mural project to be accessible to the artists.

“A mural starts with a small drawing and you put a grid on it and do the same on the big wall and you copy it from a little drawing to a huge drawing,” Halm said. “The mural was done in a process where the colors were blocked in, so we were able to fill the canvas with colors that would then become more detailed as the process went along. It’s a paint-by-numbers process.”

Three separate murals each 5 feet by 5 feet, were inspired by themes including: creativity, inclusivity, acceptance, compassion, community, healing and family.

Halm began working with the artists in June 2019 and the art work was completed in March 2020, right around the time the coronavirus pandemic hit.

As a result, the mural was just recently hung inside the hospital and this is the first opportunity the organizations had to safely come together to unveil it.

Bill Kent, president, Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest, whose son Ian was one of the artists, said the mural project is a great way to celebrate each of the artists wonderful contributions.

“When we kicked of the project, many of the young people were talking about how excited they were and the difference it would make in patients’ lives.”

“This inspires them,” Halm, the muralist, said. “It enriches their lives and helps them to realize their full creative potential. It felt like we were doing something bigger than the sum of the parts and that’s something I’ll always take away. Their excitement was so infectious.”