Scar Stories | Special Guest Speakers: Heather Avant and Patrise Holden

ONE DAY ONLY | August 1, 2026

Join us for a special one-day program featuring Heather Avant, photographer of Scar Stories and founder of Artfully Avant, and Patrise Holden, PhD, collector of stories and founder of The Language Key.

As part of the Scar Stories: A Visual Testimony of Sickle Cell Warriors exhibition, these sessions offer a behind-the-scenes look at the creative and storytelling processes that bring the exhibit to life.

12:00 PM – Heather Avant
Ms Avant will share insights into her photographic process, exploring how she captures intimate, powerful portraits that reflect the strength, resilience, and humanity of sickle cell warriors.

1:00 PM – Patrise Holden, PhD
Dr Holden will discuss her role in recording the personal narratives behind the images, highlighting the importance of voice, language, and storytelling in honoring lived experience.

Together, these sessions offer a unique opportunity to engage with the artistic and narrative foundations of Scar Stories.

Photographer Artist Talk | Aug 1 | Heather Avant | Limited to first 50 Attendees that sign up

Writer Artist Talk | Aug 1 | Patrise Holden, PhD | Limited to first 50 Attendees that sign up

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MORE ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Heather Avant is an artist, photographer, and sickle cell advocate whose work centers on capturing authentic human stories through powerful portrait photography. She is the founder and owner of Artfully Avant, LLC, a photography studio she launched in 2016 to bring her vision of storytelling through imagery to life.

Originally from southeastern Michigan, Heather earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from Eastern Michigan University, where she developed her passion for visual storytelling and documentary-style portraiture. Her artistic philosophy is rooted in the belief that every person, place, and moment has a story to tell, and that the camera can reveal those stories in ways words cannot.

Heather’s work is deeply informed by her own lived experience as a sickle cell warrior, having lived with the disease for more than four decades. Through her photography and advocacy, she seeks to highlight the resilience, humanity, and strength of individuals living with chronic illness while challenging the stigma often associated with sickle cell disease.

As the photographer behind Scar Stories: A Visual Testimony of Sickle Cell Warriors, Heather captures intimate portraits that reveal both the visible and invisible scars carried by members of the sickle cell community. Her images illuminate not only the physical realities of the disease but also the courage, dignity, and beauty of those who live with it every day.

Through her lens, Heather invites viewers to see sickle cell warriors not through the limitations of illness, but through their strength, humanity, and enduring spirit.

Patrise Holden, PhD, Dr. Patrise Holden, founder and CEO of The Language Key®, is a communications specialist, national journalist, and music therapy educator. Widely recognized for her gift of storytelling, her innovative educational programs, and award winning work in communication and journalism, Dr. Holden has built a career centered on helping others find clarity, confidence, and power in their voice.

Diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease, genotype SS, at just six months old, Dr. Holden brings both lived experience and professional expertise to her work. Her life's journey, both personal and professional, has shaped a deep commitment to advocacy for individuals living with chronic illness and disabilities. Dr. Holden is dedicated to giving those without voice a place to also be heard. As co-founder of A Place to Just Be, Unfiltered Talk and Truth, she facilitates an international weekly support group that fosters honest dialogue, connection, and healing.

Gifted in translating complex, layered life experiences into meaningful narratives, Dr. Holden's life's work as a storyteller, layered with a tumultuous history of sickle cell disease, drew her to Scar Stories. This historic project reveals the internal and external scars of living with sickle cell disease, with many of the stories contained therein never before revealed.

For Dr. Holden, the project is more than visual storytelling; it is a powerful statement that transforms an invisible disease into stories and art. Having lived a life often marked by feeling unseen, unheard, and misunderstood, she understands the power of being seen and understood through storytelling. She also recognizes the humanity and in the compassionate act of sitting down to ask, "Tell me your story," and that for many involved in Scar Stories, they have waited their entire lifetime for someone to ask.

ADMISSION:

$5.00 + $2.18 = $7.18 | General Admission

$2.50 + $2.01 = $4.51| Seniors, Full-Time Students With ID & Children 1-17

FREE | To Members and Children Under 2

Info: Heather Avant of Artfully Avant, will share insights into her photographic process, exploring how she captures intimate, powerful portraits that reflect the strength, resilience, and humanity of sickle cell warriors.

Info: Patrise will discuss her role in recording the personal narratives behind the images, highlighting the importance of voice, language, and storytelling in honoring lived experience.

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Host or Publisher Cayenne Wellness Center and Children's Foundation