Lorenzo, a 19-year-old young man, will make history by being the first person with autism to have the opportunity to show his work in a national museum.
Through painting, the artist, who faces barriers in verbal communication, found a way to share his vision of the world.
It all started as part of a therapy routine, but later it became a creative process in which Lorenzo began to represent emotions, sensations and what he experiences in his daily life.
After trying various techniques, the young man adopted action painting.
Lorenzo began to offer us a new way of expressing ourselves through art. He began to realize that he too could create without having to think about what art was, even if it was a scratch, and he discovers the combination of colors; He spent hours combining colors and we began to realize that this calmed him down a lot,” said Karla, his mother.
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At two and a half years old, Lorenzo was diagnosed with severe autism. “They practically told me: don’t expect anything from him in life,” Karla recalled.
Against that forecast, Lorenzo’s first 30 canvases will be exhibited at the National Museum of World Cultures, within the framework of World Autism Awareness Day, this Tuesday, April 2.
He is excited, he is very happy, I think he found this way of expressing himself. For me it is a great advance, adolescence came and we have had more difficulties in these years in regulating our emotions, but in art we found precisely the way to regulate ourselves,” the woman celebrated.
I would tell parents not to despair and to let them express themselves and explore because they are going to find talents, don’t be afraid to explore, let’s not throw in the towel,” he urged.
Autism is not a disease, but a life condition that primarily affects the ability to communicate and relate to others.
People with autism are often the target of stigmatization and discrimination. They are often at greater risk of violence, harassment, injuries, abuse, and barriers to care and access to health, education, and culture.
So, the fact that Lorenzo exhibits is to vindicate people with autism in their right to culture. They have the right to go and consume culture and, furthermore, be makers of culture. For the first time this is going to be truly materialized with this exhibition that expresses how a person with autism lives within a different sensory reality,” highlighted activist Nancy Anaya.
The exhibition “The Colors of Lorenzo; a view from autism” is also unique because it will be accessible to all disabilities.
Barriers
It will have elements of cognitive, physical and sensory accessibility that together seek to break down the barriers that people with disabilities commonly encounter when visiting an art exhibition.
Information in Easy Reading, visual aids, video interpretation in Mexican Sign Language, universal step, reproductions of works in tactile models, Braille cards and a tactile route for the white cane, audio descriptions, among other elements, make up the accessibility proposal of the exhibition, which was built by different specialists from the civil association OTEA, generating spaces for inclusion, and from the Spanish channel facilito.eu. Added to all these elements is the sensitivity and inclusive attention on the part of the Museum staff,” explained Anaya.
It is estimated that, worldwide, one in every 100 children has autism and in Mexico it is estimated that annually one in every 115 is born within the spectrum of this condition.
Lorenzo is one of them. He finished high school last year, plays the piano, loves marathons and music, from Beethoven to Bad Bunny.
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