Photo Descriptions:
*Untitled (Landscape)
Tempera on paper; unframed; for sale--original or giclee print on canvas or archival paper
"Landscape" garnered first place in the exceptional student category of the annual Hillsboro High School Festival of the Arts. More in "The Journey with Grace."
Grace Walker Goad
Grace offers her standard posed "smile" for the camera, which also captured her arts fair award-winning piece behind her.
**Untitled (Yellow & Pink Pastel)
Chalk pastels on paper, unframed; for sale--original or giclee print on archival paper
GraceArt Cover, AJP, 2010
Three Vanderbilt Medical University distinguished faculty members published a paper about autism in the November issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry. GraceArt was asked to submit work for consideration. "Guardian Angel" was chosen. More on this piece in Gallery 2007 and in "The Journey with Grace."
*Sadly, despite Grace's talent, only one public school art teacher--Jennifer Hudgins Christian--also Grace's first art therapist, gave Grace's talent just due. We were left, instead, with the challenge of finding arts therapists and open-minded, sensitive private art teachers to nurture her ability. That is, until we transferred out of zone to attend Hillsboro High School, known for it's excellent art program and the disAbility friendliness of teacher Marti Proffitt-Streuli. Coupled with Profitt-Streuli's caring and inclusive attitude and the encouragement of a superior exceptional education paraprofessional, Amanda Pace, Grace was able to flex her art muscles several times weekly during her freshman year of high school. While art teachers cannot be expected to be art therapists, by law, students with disAbilities are educated in general education classrooms, etc. Many students present a variety of special needs. Ideally, the aim of art classrooms is to bring the joy of creating and making art to all students, making it accessible as possible. In doing this, school systems also have a responsibility to support art and all other teachers with adequate classroom assistance. This is not a pipe dream. It is the law and it does happen in progressive states. Tennessee is 49th in terms of disAbility services as well as about 50th in terms of education funding. We are a no income tax state....Persistent parental advocacy is an important factor in achieving equity within educational systems.
If
visitors "take home a message" from this site, I hope it is the
POTENTIAL of people with disAbilities and the
right and need for ALL people to express themselves creatively. Our
differently abled students are often excluded from opportunities to truly express themselves artistically, when in
reality--with the cognitive wiring present in autism, Down syndrome, traumatic brain injury, intellectual disabilities, mental illness and more--they may even excel in the arts!
**We were thrilled that, following her extended maternity leave, Grace's talented, sensitive and intuitive teacher, Hannah Maxwell Rowell, invited us back for private lessons at the The Tennessee Renaissance Center. Maxwell Rowell was Grace's teacher when "Yellow and Pink" was created.
