The Center for Victims of Torture, which began offering services to torture survivors in 1985, moved into this Victorian house along the Mississippi River in 1991. CVT leases the house from the University of Minnesota for $1 a year.
Each room in the Minneapolis Healing Center is designed with the well-being of torture survivors in mind, from the artwork in the entryway to the natural light that infuses the therapy rooms. Scroll down this page to view more photos of the Minneapolis Healing Center.
Entry & Stairs
The entrance to the Minneapolis Healing Center leads to an open reception area decorated with art - much of it donated by former clients, such as the storycloth pictured above. The stairs lead to therapy rooms located on the second floor. However, new client intake occurs in a room at the bottom of the stairs rather than in the upper level therapy rooms to ensure that clients feel safe and comfortable, secure in the knowledge that they can leave at any time.
Living Room
Clients wait for appointments in this room, which is filled with natural light, comfortable furnishings and art. Corners in this and many other rooms in the house were modified to reduce the number of severe angles and, by extension, any associations with the institutional settings in which many clients were tortured. Windows were also enlarged in many rooms to infuse the house with light.
Therapy & Family Rooms
Rooms used for therapy at the Minneapolis Healing Center have triangular seating arrangements to accommodate clients, therapists, and interpreters. Like other rooms in the house, therapy rooms are designed to take the needs of torture survivors into account by eschewing the institutional in favor of more organic forms.
Sharp lines and unnatural lighting were avoided, and sky lights were installed in many therapy rooms. The family room contains toys and a well-lit play area for children to use both while waiting for family members and in child therapy sessions.
Healing Garden
The Garden of Healing at the Center for Victims of Torture offers a place for clients and community members to reflect and find solace. The garden, dedicated to torture victims everywhere, is tended by devoted volunteer gardeners.
