Whether we realize it or not, we often silence individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities because of our own inability to communicate with those unlike ourselves. The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center works to give those with disabilities a voice and, through its Arts and Disabilities program, in place since 1994, routinely invites those without disabilities into the conversation.
Sarah E. Vaughn, an artist on the autism spectrum who specializes in trompe l’oeil-style pencil drawings and abstract paintings (such as Day Boy Night Girl, above), is showing work in the VKC exhibit Breaking Ground, on view through June. One of her pencil drawings, All Quiet, is featured on the cover of the annual arts issue of the Tennessee Council on Developmental Disabilities’ magazine, also called Breaking Ground.
To continue the conversation with Sarah and see more of her work, visit her on Facebook at Sarah E. Vaughn Fine Art.