A mural worth a thousand words
By Jill Buchner
jbuchne@uwo.ca
Christopher Runciman shakes one of his blond curls and gestures toward the yellow paint, signalling an artist to use that colour for hair in the mural. The painter smiles and gets to work, dabbing her brush in the yellow paint.
“Yep,” Runciman replies, then gives a thumbs up remembering that his painter is deaf.
Runciman is a London artist helping painters like this one create a mural to raise awareness for ATN Access Inc., an organization offering computer-assisted learning to people with disabilities.
“It’s always a fantastic thing when you find ways to interact with people,” he said.
The painters, who gather around the 1.2-by-2.4-metre canvas in the John Labatt Room of the Covent Garden Market, include a mix of ATN clients and other members of the public who all find a way to communicate as they contribute to the picture.
“This is a group of people having fun expressing themselves,” said Runciman. “You don’t see the challenges.”
From March 23 to 25, anyone who wanted to help paint was invited to add a personal touch to the picture, which depicts people using sign language and assistive computer technologies to communicate. The mural is one element of a three-part project Runciman has been working on with ATN since January.
The first piece was painted entirely by ATN clients at the organization’s office on Dundas Street while the clients did the second at their satellite location, the Tanys Quesnel Living Learning Centre in the Cherryhill neighbourhood of London. Once all three paintings are completed, they will be auctioned off at a comedy dinner show to benefit the organization on April 3.
This is the first time Runciman has been a part of this kind of a community project, but he said when he was approached to design the mural, he knew he wanted to get involved.
“How could you not?” he said.
For him, the entire experience is rewarding.
“It’s been a cathartic giving back. But it’s also a lot of fun.”
Runciman said he’s been learning new ways to communicate. One painter was completely blind, he said, but still found a way to contribute to the mural.
“We were having a great conversation,” said Runciman, explaining that he compared the lightness and darkness of the paint colours to physical weight. “We looked at paint in a completely different way.”
Everyone involved benefits from working together on the project, he said.
“All forms of expression are cathartically rewarding for the individual doing it.”
 |
| Photo by Jill Buchner |
Tina Klassen adds her personal touch to the ATN mural. |
ATN client Tina Klassen participated in Monday’s painting session. Klassen, who is deaf, wrote that she wanted to contribute to the project because painting is her favourite thing to do.
At the ATN office, she learns about using computers and how to make resumes, but as she sits down at the mural, she writes that painting is “maybe a future job” for her, then draws a question mark and smiles.
ATN learning disabilities specialist Hope Clark said for some clients the opportunity to participate in the arts project can mean learning a new skill.
“It’s a new experience for persons that we work with that wouldn’t necessarily have that opportunity in the first place,” she said.
The non-profit organization usually offers opportunities for people with disabilities in the areas of employment, literacy, education and personal development, Clark said. But not everyone knows what ATN does.
“(The painting) was something unique that we could do to raise awareness and raise some funds.”
From gathering local contributors to gathering the comedy club audience, Clark said the organization hopes to make a strong community connection. And by painting together, they can bridge another divide.
“We’re blurring the lines of persons with disabilities because no matter who you are or what you may be, you’re still capable of anything you put your mind to.”
