From
USA Today. In the picture, Jalyn Weston , one of the child artists featured, describes his picture, "The Doctor," to his mother, Pam.
Taylor Bernard, 8, has enviously watched her twin sister excel in sports. But Taylor, who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, found her own way to shine: through painting.
"It's just something that I can do that makes me have inspiration and confidence," Taylor says.
Taylor is one of 51 kids ages 5 to 15 who have their artwork displayed in State of the Art, an exhibit that's part of the 2010 VSA International Festival and features artwork from artists with disabilities. The All Kids Can ... CREATE! program, sponsored by VSA — formerly known as Very Special Arts — and CVS Caremark received more than 5,500 entries from children nationwide with disabilities including autism, dyslexia and cerebral palsy.
This is the first year that artwork from one student in each state and the District of Columbia was selected to be in the third annual exhibit.
The artwork will be on display in Union Station in Washington, D.C., until Saturday. It then will travel throughout the USA in a two-year exhibition (dates and locations not yet final).
Students used various media to create their pieces. Maurice Richardson, 13, of the Bronx, N.Y., shaped aluminum into the New York City skyline, and Taylor, of Richmond, Va., used watercolors to paint a Chesapeake Bay sunset she saw outside her grandmother's beach house.
Amanda LaMunyon, 14, who has Asperger syndrome, a form of autism that affects communication and social skills, painted Oklahoma's state bird — the scissortail — with acrylic paint.
Amanda, of Enid, Okla., started painting at age 7 because she found it helped her concentrate.
"Amanda was just a rowdy little girl, and couldn't stay focused very well, and so the children didn't really want to be around her," says her mother, Sherry LaMunyon. "But when they learned she could paint they saw her through different eyes, and they were more accepting of her."
The children and their families gathered Tuesday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and to admire one another's work.
"A lot of these kids are really inspirational — how they just go beyond their disabilities and they make it into abilities by showing how they can do their different types of artwork," Amanda says.
V.A. Patterson, executive director of VSA, says art plays an important role in the students' lives because it gives them a "wonderful opportunity to express themselves" in ways they may not be able to physically or verbally.
VSA Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith, daughter of Joseph Kennedy Sr., participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony and chatted with the artists afterward. Smith founded VSA 35 years ago to give children and adults with disabilities the chance to participate in art programs.
"I think they need opportunities to do music and art just like everybody else," Smith says. "And any difficulties that came up — as far as ability and so forth — can be conquered."
From USA Today. In the picture, Jalyn Weston , one of the child artists featured, describes his picture, "The Doctor," to his mother, Pam.
