In January, the Outsider Art Fair brought aficionados of self-taught art from around the world to the Puck Building in SoHo. Many enthusiasts also attended HAI’s Outsider exhibit mounted concurrently at HAI’s loft gallery. Rodney Thornblad’s The Battle of Hastings, at right, drew the attention of the representative of a Miami based nonprofit organization, who later purchased the work.

Created in HAI’s Saturday Art Program over the span of one year, the drawing is over six feet long and two feet high. Two earlier drawings by Thornblad, one depicting a medieval battle scene and the other a representation of The Last Supper, are now held in private collections.

Born in the Bronx in 1959, the artist has lived with mental illness since he was diagnosed as a young adult. During his twenties, he developed a drinking problem that would persist for several years. Now in his forties, Thornblad maintains an alcohol-free life and has participated in mental health treatment programs and HAI art workshops for over ten years.

The Battle of Hastings is the most recent in a series of medieval battle scenes that are emblematic of personal hardship encountered by the artist. "I draw because it gives me fulfillment. And it gives me a little money to get what I need. I feel very good about exhibiting my work. It gives me a sense of purpose.”

HAI exhibits the work of artists in workshops and arranges exhibits or commercial representation by galleries around the country. The work of HAI artists appears in the permanent collections of institutions ranging from the American Folk Art Museum to the Musgrave Kinley Outsider Archive of London. Thornblad is among several artists whose work has garnered the attention of prestigious institutions through success in HAI’s Arts Workshops.