Read Time: 5 minutes
Takeaways:
- Huntsman Cancer Institute’s Artist-in-Residence leads healing art workshops inspired by her own experience with cancer.
- Healing through creativity is part of the holistic approach at the Wellness and Integrative Ƶ Center.
Impact: Huntsman Cancer Institute's comprehensive approach to care supports healing and quality of life.
A Diagnosis That Changed Everything
In 2017, Traci O’Very Covey’s world shifted on its axis. A diagnosis of bladder cancer had spread to her kidneys and forced her into a new and terrifying reality. She underwent chemotherapy and surgery to remove a kidney, only to learn six months later that the cancer had metastasized to her lungs.
She was treated at Huntsman Cancer Institute under the care of oncologist Sumati Gupta, MD, and urologist Brock O’Neil, MD, both of whom played key roles in guiding her through her care.
The news came with painful déjà vu. Just nine months earlier, Traci’s brother had been diagnosed with the same disease. He did not survive.
“I was in a state of shock,” Traci remembers. “I’m someone who looks for causes, wondering how did this happen? But I had to surrender to randomness. I didn’t want anxiety and stress to take over every day. So, I chose to relax into the unknown.”
Healing Beyond the Medicine
At Huntsman Cancer Institute, Traci found more than treatment. She found holistic care for both her body and spirit. She participated in clinical trials and became a regular at the Linda B. and Robert B. Wiggins Wellness and Integrative Ƶ Center, enjoying music therapy sessions, acupuncture, massage, Qigong, and the POWER program.
“Everyone helped me feel like I still had some control,” she says. “They weren’t just treating the illness; they were treating the person.”
Creating art, which had always been at the center of her life, faded into the background during this time. “I had to be in a joyful or serene place to make art, and I just wasn’t there yet,” she says. Instead, she turned to journaling and visiting Huntsman Cancer Institute’s Writer-in-Residence. “It helped me stay connected to creativity in some way.”
Grief Upon Grief
As Traci slowly began to recover, life delivered another devastating blow. Her husband, Mikel, developed a rare blood disease that progressed to myelofibrosis. He passed away in the summer of 2019.
“The grief was layered,” she says. “Facing my own mortality, losing Mikel and then my brother was a lot. But I was intentional about how I lived. I got support from social workers, therapy, family, and friends who showed up even when I didn’t know I needed them.”
A Return to Color and Purpose
Art eventually reemerged, not just as an outlet, but as a way back to herself. One of the first large art projects was for the South Salt Lake Mural Fest which tested her stamina but also reaffirmed her strength. “I was nervous about whether I could do it. I wasn’t as strong as before treatment. But friends came to help. It brought me joy again.”
A major project after Mikel’s passing was a huge public mural commissioned for the Salt Lake City International Airport. “I was thrilled. It gave me something wonderful to focus on,” Traci says. “I painted through COVID. It reminded me how resilient I could be.”
She has continued to enjoy doing many private and public commissions since then.
Coming Full Circle: Artist-in-Residence
When a friend told her about the Artist-in-Residence role at Huntsman Cancer Institute’s Wellness and Integrative Ƶ Center, it felt like something clicked.
“As an artist, you’re usually working alone in your studio, but this was a chance to be around people and connect through creativity. And I already loved everything about Huntsman Cancer Institute. It felt perfect.”
She smiles when she remembers what it felt like to be a patient there. “We would joke that it was the healing hotel. You’d see people playing piano, there was valet parking, and the people were so kind,” she says. “You felt nurtured and that people were honestly trying to help you. I didn’t have any negative feelings, just gratitude.”
Now, Traci leads art workshops for patients, caregivers, and anyone in need of a creative break. In a bright, peaceful studio space, she offers materials like watercolor, acrylics, and collage supplies. One of her recent favorites was a session on whimsical pet portraits. “People could reflect on a happy memory with their pet, and it just made them feel good.”
She emphasizes that it’s not about making a masterpiece. “The process is more important than the product,” she says. “It’s about being present, about finding some peace and joyfulness in the moment.”
Why Art Matters in Healing
Traci believes deeply in the power of art to help people heal.
“Art feeds the soul,” she says. “It shouldn’t be taken for granted. Art, in our everyday life—music, writing—has a purpose. Everything was designed. Someone designed your chair or table. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a painting or sculpture.”
She hopes her workshops create a sense of calm, camaraderie, and community. “It’s comforting to be around someone who understands what you’re dealing with. And it’s meaningful to make something, to say, ‘I created this.’ Even in the hardest moments, that matters.”
“Art can help you heal,” she adds. “Getting lost in your imagination and into the flow of creating can really help the process.”
The Language of Color
Traci’s deep connection to color is more than aesthetic. It’s emotional, spiritual, and rooted in the natural world.
“Green is my favorite color because of how prevalent it is in nature,” she says. “Being in nature, hiking through the canyons, and having flowers around—it’s so inspiring.”
“Art can help you heal. Getting lost in your imagination and into the flow of creating can really help the process.”
Traci O’Very Covey, Artist-in-Residence
As a painter, she finds joy in the subtleties. “I love how colors play against one another. Deciding which colors go next to each other. Mixing colors to make the right hue. A lot of decisions go into painting.”
A Life Reimagined
Traci didn’t expect to be here. Not as a patient. Not as a caregiver. And certainly not back at Huntsman Cancer Institute, helping others through the very place that helped her survive.
“But it showed up at the right time,” she says. “And I was in the right state of mind to say this is the place I’d love to be.”
In every collage, every brushstroke, every burst of color, Traci offers more than art. She offers hope. And in doing so, she continues to paint light into places touched by pain.