Disabled Digital Artist Andrew Reach Shows His Work At Wounded In Action Exhibition

DisabledandProductive is excited that disabled artist Andrew Reach, who we interviewed last year – Interview with Digital Artist Andrew Reach – was selected with his work March of Humanity for a very special Art Exhibition of Orthopaedic Advancements, Wounded in Action. This exhibition features the art by soldiers, military personnel, surgeons and even civilians like Andrew who have been inspired by the brave fight our wounded veterans battle every day.

Andrew created his work March of Humanity as a statement of hope for a better future without war. From the violent vortex of energy at the focal point of the image emerge peaceful beings, he calls “whimsies”. “Like musical notes in a symphony, they are reborn in brilliant colors. With freedom comes the ability of all of us to reach our greatest potential,” he says.

About Andrew Reach’s Motivation

Andrew Reach began creating computer-generated art when it became too physically challenging for him to continue as an architect, due to the chronic pain from Scheuermann’s disease. This condition, which usually starts in adolescence, causes the vertebrae to grow unevenly, increasing the curvature of the upper spine. When Reach had two surgeries for progressive symptoms of this disease, the bravery of those wounded in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars inspired him and helped him overcome his own obstacles from the disease. Working with the Art Therapy Studio at Metrohealth Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, Andrew and his life partner Bruce Baumwoll are developing a program to introduce computer graphics. From this pilot program, they hope to bring computers into the VA to help our wounded veterans to heal. Andrew hopes his artwork will inspire them and others in difficult circumstances to overcome great obstacles, including the emotional pain induced by war. “Having my own orthopaedic condition and disability has tested me more than any experience in my life, especially my worth as a person,” he says.

click here to see the Wounded in Action website

Exhibits

March 9–13, 2010
Morial Convention Center, La Nouvelle Ballroom.
New Orleans, LA

April 26-30, 2010
Russell Senate Office Rotunda
Washington, D.C.

May through November 2010
National Museum of Health and Medicine at Walter Reed

Russian Wheelchair Breakdancer Makes Amazing Moves

Being in a wheelchair doesn’t have to stop you from achieving your dreams. When Maksim Sedakov from St Petersburg, Russia lost his leg in a car accident and ended up using a wheelchair, he was determined to prove that his condition would not prevent him from doing the thing he enjoys most.

Maksim picked up a passion for wheelchair dancing, participated in dance tournaments all over the globe and even competed in world championships. Maksim’s attitude is a real motivator for others. He continued to trust himself and his abilities. I like his attitude: “Don’t let other people discourage you when they say you are unable to do certain things. You can do so much more than you think, like dancing in a wheelchair.”

Disabled Art – Part 2 of Our Interview with Andrew Reach

This is the second half of an interview we did with an inspiring artist named Andrew Reach. For part 1 of the interview please go here. In this second half, Andrew talks more about the creation of his art, and what inspires him. Read more

Disabled Art – Interview with Digital Artist Andrew Reach

Andrew Reach began his career as an architect, culminating with such notable buildings as the Frost Art Museum and the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. United States Courthouse in Miami, Florida. But he found himself disconnected from his work as an architect when a disease of the spine, known as Scheuermann’s Kyphosis, caused him to need spinal fusion surgery. Following two surgeries to stabilize his spine in 2004, Andrew found himself no longer able to continue to work as he had before. Understandably despairing at the change his life had taken and not sure what to do, Andrew began exploring digital art at the suggestion of his partner, Bruce Baumwoll.

Using a computer and Photoshop, Andrew began to explore the digital medium as a means for expression, and now creates large format archival prints at sizes up to 90 inches long. His artwork has been featured in numerous galleries and museums around the United States, and those who see Andrew’s art often describe it as inspirational and uplifting. Andrew is a pioneer in the digital art arena and many people have been amazed by the expressionism he has been able to portray through this new form of art.

Recently, Andrew became involved as a volunteer with an art therapy program in Cleveland called the Art Therapy Studio at Metrohealth hospital. Founded in 1967, it’s the first Art Therapy program to be established in a hospital in the United States. Seeing parallels in the program’s goals and in what his art has done to help him, he realized that many of those in the program could benefit through expressing themselves in the digital medium, as he has. It is his hope that some of the art created in the program can be displayed alongside his in the near future.

We recently had the chance to interview Andrew to find out how he decided on digital art, what inspires him, and what advice he would share with anyone struggling with a disability. Below is part 1 of an interview we were privileged enough to do over the phone with Andrew Reach. For part 2 please follow this link. Read more