At Purple Kaleidoscope, creative minds of autistic artists on show

Panaji: As a child, Gina (name changed) was sensitive to light, sound and smell. Her parents carried out innumerable consultations with doctors and put her on medications to ensure she is “just like the other children” her age. However, once she was diagnosed with autism, there was a shift in her parents’ perspective, who then stopped trying to get her to fit in and started to let her grow in her own beautiful way.
When she found her identity as an artist, her parents did everything to harness the required skills. The artworks of some such Ginas have found an avenue at Purple Kaleidoscope at the ongoing Purple Fest in Goa. “For many persons with disabilities, art is therapeutic,” said Elizabeth Kurien, one of the parents of the artists.
Curated by Towards Inclusion Everywhere In Society (TIES), 18 artists from 14 to 60 years of age, creating paintings, crochet and craftwork, have displayed their works at the Maquinez Palace at the Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG), Panaji. Of the 18 artists, eight have, over time, converted their works into products and are successful entrepreneurs.
Their works include crochet, door mats, matt-embroidery, mixed media products, tablecloth, stone paintings, besides conventional paintings. The artists are living with various disabilities such as visual impairment, hearing impairment, locomotive disability and autism.
“They are visual learners and that reflects in their art,” said Kurien. Each of the artworks reveal the special artistic touches that they bring to their creation.
The repetitive action of artists with autism requires structure. The set of paintings by one of the autistic artists has a lot of triangles while the matt-embroidery artist has a set of lines in their products. There are some who do abstract paintings that unlock the depths of their minds on canvas.
“A creative mind is a creative mind, regardless of any diagnosis. Persons with disabilities should not only be welcomed into the art world but also given a platform to market their products as a result,” said one of the festival attendees.