This art piece was originally inspired by another piece created in 2014 with the assistance of a local artist by the name of Erin. I wanted to be able to share my feelings through art.
This is a copy of the original art piece.
Later in 2021 I wrote the poem ‘Finding Home’ during my independent study for an assignment for my thesis supervisor Dr. Judy MacDonald. I was exploring my experience as a (dis)Abled woman who is also a wheelchair user and the connection these experiences have to my own feelings of hyper-visibility, invisibility, and ableism. I felt that the original art piece did not fully represent me, as it did not incorporate my wheelchair, which is a big part of my life. So, I commissioned a new art piece with the help of Indigenous artist Gina Mcintee. Through collaboration she was able to create this beautiful piece that fully incorporates all aspects of my life world, she was my ‘creative enabler’. Meaning that Gina was able to build and focus on my artistic vision while playing an active artistic role within the create work, contributing to the esthetics of the piece and drawing attention to and celebrating my authenticity.
The artist described the art piece as follows:
The black background supports the feeling of the depth of darkness 6000 feet below ocean level. The turquoise circle is a mirror reflection at the same level however this image mirrors the beauty and light that shines at the bottom of Guaymas Basin (G. Mcintee, personal communication, December 20, 2022). The stairs are the obstacles you shared with me, and shades of grey were used to paint the people as this shows neither light nor dark. I painted their backs out to show the need for proper education within all ages. Your family, friends and supports are all around you…still in grey. Cassie is in grey however her scarf is a symbol of connecting with her voice to share the light of what is home…Your iPad & cell (painted green) is by your arm as these tools help to express your thoughts & feelings. The colorful section although a night scene shows Grandmother Moon as “light with the darkness.” The calm water reflects emotional peace, the footprints are you walking in that space with an open mind. The Libra stars are to the right and up, the Aries is top left & Libra is lower left. Your right knee down shows is in color as a reminder you can walk to that place (G. Mcintee, personal communication, December 20, 2022).
I was not exclusively looking for an indigenous artist or art piece. The artist and I connected on a personal level, and she gave me full artistic license on how I wanted the piece to look and worked with me till I was completely happy with the finished piece. Although I agree and love the artists interpretation, I see the art piece slightly different. The stairs are depicted with people’s backs facing out, which represents ableism and needing education. However, I feel that these individuals symbolize, people, institutions, policies (written action), practices (doing action), and the built environment. At times in my life, these things represent a sense of community, however, they can simultaneously represent a sense of alienation. Placelessness is a phenomenological term that refers to creating desirable environments for people to live and work. This encompasses all aspects of daily life including such things as grocery shopping, going out to a restaurant, going to work, going to school, going to the doctor and any other social or essential activities (Cilliers, Timmermans, Van den Goorbergh & Slijkhuis, 2015). It is imperative to create spaces that celebrate and recognize differences and allow for the ‘me-we’ relationship, being in the world can be experienced both individually and together (Loidolt, 2015).
When looking at the stairs in my art piece, they could represent the institutions that are supposed to operate under the premise of helping PWD also create challenges for those with more complex needs. For example, in my personal experience a set of stairs can create many more challenges than just access to a building. Once I am inside, do I have access to a PSW to assist with eating, and bathroom breaks, as someone who is able to self-transferred, may not require the same aids. My iPad and cell phone represented in the art piece only show a portion of what I require to express my thoughts through written work. These tools act as an affordance which aids in my ability to interact with my environment though tasks of everydayness (Suetzl, 2022). This refers to how I operate within my world, how I navigate through the world, these tools are used due to the technological nature of todays society. These tools help to reduce invisibility and dismantle ableism as I can communicate in ways in addition to verbal communication and I recognize that written language can sometimes resonate louder than spoken word.
Artistic practices may be used to represent (dis)Abled body and minds (Bridger, Erlikh & Yi, 2021). Even though I represent these things as distinct entities, I recognize that the (dis)Abled body and mind are all interconnected, just as the able body is (Bridger et al, 2021). (dis)Ability is often represented through a non (dis)Abled lens that positions (dis)Abled artists as inspirational. However, these artists want to use art as a way of educating and drawing attention to the ways that they want their (dis)Ability to be represented and seen (Bridger et al, 2021). It is important to create ally led art, as this focuses on creating forms of access that recognize and support the skills of (dis)Abled artists without undermining their capabilities (Hadley, 2020). In order to suspend natural attitudes and assumptions about (dis)Ability and the art that results from those lived experiences, we must adopt practices that support artist ally relationships of empowerment (Hadley, 2020). To date, the (dis)Ability art sector has not accepted any theory or terminology to describe this dynamic, and until this is done, it may be difficult for the artist to be taken seriously (Hadley, 2020). To begin to form an ally-based perspective, around (dis)Ability art, a phenomenological approach would suggest that we respect the uniqueness of all human beings regardless of ability, while also understanding that we must not diminish the commonalities between us (Yar, 2000). When this is done, we create a sense of mutual understanding and help to dismantle ableist practices that may create feelings of hyper-visibility and invisibility. In an effort to respect uniqueness, individuals are invited to nurture their ability to become compassionate witnesses, by becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable, when barring witness to the injustices of others (Gupta, 2018). The ability to bare witness is challenged by cultures of silence which evade the ability to see individuals and communities as equally deserving members of society (Gupta, 2018). It is my hope that individuals bare compassionate witness to parts of my lived experiences, while understanding possible shared experiences (Gupta, 2018). When we engage with visual platforms such as art, we may learn varying perspectives of lived experiences that represent diverse communities and individuals, this may help to cultivate positive interactions between the (dis)Abled artist and the viewing audience. Through art the artist has the ability to express, explore and communicate various emotions and experiences that may evoke different reactions. They can tell a story or simply create an opportunity for individual interpretation based on a person’s lived experience. Even though I did not physically create my art piece, my personal vision was to help reduce hyper-visibility, invisibility, and ableism within (dis)Abled communities. By elevating my voice and creating new imaginings of what may be possible, (dis)Abled individuals and their allies can help to foster awareness of the hopes, dreams, abilities, challenges and potential of current and future (dis)Abled communities.
