"The Hurt"

By Desmond Blair

32 x 48 inches

Oil on Canvas

2013

      Desmond is a 20 year old artist who graduated from the University of Texas. He was born with no hands because at birth his palms formed on both arms but he never developed fingers. It is interesting to see how he manages to create such beautiful work with no hands! He places the brush or tool between both palms and works that way. On the AAOS website he was asked about his work and said, "My art is an avenue of release. It has always been fun and it gives me joy." 

      I love that Desmond says he wants to become a great artist in this world with a difference--NOT a disability. His personality and artwork works well with the rest of the pieces because he has more confidence than some people who are perfectly healthy.

(http://www.aaos75th.org/gallery/artwork_upclose.htm?id=790, http://www.rawartists.org/dblair) 

"Hummingbird"

By Bernadette Resha

16 x 20 inches

Acrylic on Canvas

2013

      Bernadette Resha is a Tennessee native who was born with Down-syndrome. She began an interest in art when she attended art galleries and museums. With the support of her family, she has been able to pursue a career in art and is now participating in exhibits, selling merchandise with her art on it and even has her own website. Her response to her art was, "My goals are to increase my skills.  I want to improve on painting three dimensional, lighting and form, shape and shadows, and to learn how to blend colors.” 

       The reason this Hummingbird fits into the exhibit is because there are no definite lines and there is no symmetry in this painting. Unlike art we normally see which has to be perfect, I believe that people with disabilities such as Bernadette's have allowed them to look beyond the imperfections. She had a vision and she painted with the sole purpose of putting that vision on paper.

(http://www.bernadetteresha.com/, http://www.bernadetteresha.com/hummingbird2013.html) 

"Extraordinary"

By Tommy Hollenstein

18 x 24 inches

2013

Acrylic paint on paper

     Tommy Hollenstein grew up in the Los Angeles area participating in all sorts of outdoor activities from bike riding, surfing, skating and more until a mountain bike ride accident which injured his spinal cord and left him paralyzed from the neck down. He always wanted to be an artist and after his injury tried using a method where the artist holds the paint brush with his mouth but he was not interested in that and quickly gave up. It was not until his service dog ran through paint that he followed after and saw the marks from his wheels. He no longer has the ability to surf and do all of the other activities he once loved but with the help of his companion and helper "Weaver" he is able to persue his dream of becoming an artist and is now participating in solo and group exhibits all around the Los Angeles area. 

     I not only felt that he more than fit this group of artists, but I love that his art is so captivating even without knowing his condition. I don't have the sympathetic bias towards his art, I just love it!

(http://www.tommyhollenstein.com/about-tommy/, http://www.recapo.com/the-doctors/the-doctors-advice/the-doctors-wheelchair-artist-tommy-hollenstein/)

 "Ameslan Prohibited"

By Betty Miller

1972

20" x 18"

Ink on Paper

       Betty G. Miller is a deaf artist who began painting in 1971. This piece was included in the National Touring Exhibit of Deaf Culture Art that visited seven American cities between 1999 and 2001. Her reason for creating this picture was because she said that in older schools for deaf children they were prohibited from using sign language. Her thoughts on this piece were, " I present both the suppression, and the beauty of Deaf Culture and American Sign Language as I see it; in the past, and in the present." 

       The reason I chose this drawing was not only because of her hearing disability but because she was showing us a struggle she faced by not being able to hear and being restricted to communicate that we would not understand if we have not been through it ourselves. 

(http://www.deafart.org/Artworks/Selected_Touring_Works/selected_touring_works.html, http://www.rit.edu/news/story.php?id=46369)

"View of the Shard and Tower Bridge"

By: Stephen Wiltshire

Pen & Ink

 297 x 210 mm

 11 November 2013

Stephen Wiltshire is an autistic artist who was born in London and specializes in drawing and painting cityscapes. He pays close attention to detail and can create a piece after viewing the city for only a matter of minutes. What is interesting is that the majority of his commissions are of architectural drawings but he has drawn more portraits than cityscapes, he just keeps them in his personal collection. This particular piece is on his Facebook page with comments like, "Nice, you are a genius" and "I have never seen this in real life, so thank you my friend!" I chose this drawing because it speaks for the artist. He visits places and recreates his memories of the place rather than speaking about them. His "disability" has not changed his life in a negative way, but it has allowed him to use his art to express his creative mind and interpretations. Where he may lack a quality in one area he makes up for it with this photographic memory and artistic ability.

(http://www.stephenwiltshire.co.uk/art.aspx?Id=6054, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-Wiltshire/32139030247)

        What I have learned about organizing an exhibit is that people do not realize how much work goes into preparing it. What they see is the finished product and that alone is only a small portion of the bigger picture. The easiest part was deciding what theme I wanted to do, and all of these ideas went running through my mind. The harder part was finding works that fit perfectly with the rest so that it all came together and worked well as a whole.
        I found myself digging and digging trying to find every detail we needed to provide to the viewers such as date of creation and dimensions. I have actually had my work included in exhibitions, and after curating this virtual exhibit I am actually thinking of putting one together in the future. I see what work has to go into it, how to go about finding the perfect pieces and also the satisfaction it brings to see all of the work that was put into creating an exhibit was all worth it. What I found interesting about connecting artists to a common theme was that the connection could be anything! You can connect a piece to another by mood, colors, style, and even by the personalities of the artists who created them.