Thursday, February 16, 2012

LIFE IN BRUNOLAND





Hello all,


I’d like to introduce you to someone.  This is Bruno, my inspiration behind Bruno’s Multitasking Mama.  Besides being an artist and teaching for the “real” gig, I’m also mom to John Oliver Perry, III (a.k.a “Bruno”).  He’s a smart, lively and high-spirited 6 year-old kid with PDD-NOS, an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).  Life as a wife, mom and working woman (artist/educator) can be a wild ride, and I’ve decided to challenge myself to do a painting/drawing/collage/mixed media exploration a day for a year starting on March 15, 2012.  Some will be collaborative works with Bruno, as he loves to draw and paint.   I’m doing this as a challenge to myself to hold fast to my art while doing all of those essential things that a Mama with a treasure kid’s gotta do.  It’s my desire to encourage and nurture his appreciation for creativity by working directly with him.  My hubby,  John Oliver Perry, Jr. turned me on to Kickstarter, an online venue on which to do this project. I  ultimately plan to  present an exhibition of Bruno’s art alongside my own in venues to be arranged in the upcoming year.   These will be small works, visual thinking and ideas to springboard into other media (such as quilts, t-shirts, posters, coloring books, calendars, greeting cards, postcards, etc.).  In the process I also plan to develop a collection/book of selected works created over the course of the year by Bruno and I which will include art projects  that could be used by home schoolers and school districts alike for munchkins who on or off of the spectrum.  Your support with this project would not only help me to keep my creative juices primed and flowing, but to also get more insight into how to help my son to grow in terms of confident visual self-expression.  Despite Bruno’s current limitations with speech, his interest in art and creativity and could possibly serve as a means for him to earn a living when he becomes an adult- and I believe that my boy is gonna go FAR .  More to come about the project, so stay tuned!