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Disabled, Homeless Artists Create Artwork For Memorial Day Display At MFA

BOSTON (CBS) -- On Tuesday, local artist Lori-Anne Fay will be homeless, but on Memorial Day her work was on display at the Museum of Fine Arts.

"I'm so grateful. I feel excited," she told WBZ-TV. "It really offsets some negative things in my life."

Fay is one of four artists, either homeless or disabled, whose work is being showcased at the MFA on Monday only.

Homeless Disabled Art MFA
Lori-Anne Fay shows off one of her art pieces at the Museum of Fine Arts. (WBZ-TV)

Their work is being seen thanks to ArtLifting, a social enterprise that empowers artists that are homeless or disabled through the sale and celebration of their artwork, according to Natalie Lemle, the director of corporate partnership.

The Boston-based organization, which also works in 11 other cities, is helping 80 artists.

Allen Chamberland is forced to get around in a wheelchair because of chronic heart disease, but that doesn't stop him from creating art using a single sheet of black paper and a utility knife. Once homeless, he portrays scenes in Boston where the homeless sleep.

Kitty Zen, a painter, is homeless and suffers from PTSD. She paints with bright colors to make her world "more upbeat and beautiful."

Homeless Disables Art MFA
Kitty Zen with her art pieces on display at the Museum of Fine Arts. (WBZ-TV)

The artists will receive 55-percent from the sales of their work.

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