National Opportunities for Impaired People

I looked up at the gallery entrance to see Alan with his white cane feeling his way down the stairs into the gallery. As I looked up from the entrance desk, he smiled at me and said “Love your artwork...”

This was a shock. Was this guy having me on? I am the one who is playing with perception and how the brain works so this ironic exchange required some cognitive adjustment of my own.

Alan has developed a rare eye condition in which the pigment in his eye is slowly disintegrating. He will go blind ultimately. The condition was diagnosed 5 years ago and he has now lost all peripheral vision. He uses the cane so he doesn’t knock people over or knock into things. He has tunnel vision on a good day.

Alan’s attitude towards his condition is brave. He is opposed to the name “the national disability scheme”. He wants it renamed “the national opportunity scheme for impaired peoples” because of the way he has seen opportunities to view and interact with the world in different ways as he actively learns to live with his condition.

Daily creative and intellectual conversations about how he is experiencing his life and sharing those insights (pun intended) is vital for Alan’s continuing mental health

Thanks, Alan for sharing your journey and I’m looking forward to your next visit to the gallery.