I was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) in my 30s and later Usher’s Syndrome (hard of hearing discovered at age 5). I continued to be independent, but also in denial. With my vision slowly narrowing and having balance issues, it was necessary for me to slow down, which I found difficult and frightening, especially in my nursing career. After the birth of my daughter, I returned to college and received my degree in Fine Arts — specifically pottery, photography, and painting. In the last two and a half years I have focused my future on painting full time.
Creating art through painting and photography has become a release of positive energy and newfound freedom to feel good about my life and career. My paintings are about the expression of my feelings of frustration in life changes to the excitement of discovering a new path that has opened up through my art.
Sometimes I feel like I am looking through a keyhole, but I no longer feel restricted when I am painting because I am able to express all that I have seen onto canvas.
