Benjamin - the artist

Did you know that Ben is an artist?

Ben is 18 years old, and not only is he an artist, in many ways his life is a work of art. He has his own special style of dressing, his ties and bow ties, his shirts. He loves hats, It is very important to his self-expression and daily functioning that he wears the pieces he puts together, so he looks the way that he best feels expresses who he is.

His life is a mosaic, it consist of fragments--some with sharp corners-- of health, illness, ability, disability, joy, sorrow, comfort and pain. Some events on their own may not make sense, the pain is too intense, the loss too severe, but as a whole, when we step back and look at his life --- well, this piece of his, which I call the wheel of life, may express it best:

I ain't no art critic, but to me the balance of colors, the subtle pastels and the grays, the big fragments, the little pieces fit together in a beautiful whole that inspires hope with its beauty. I love this wheel and it hangs in our livingroom right next to Mirabel's Stair Case in Provence. Perhaps you can see why.

Ben's first major introduction to art in high school has come from a wonderful pottery course he has taken a couple of times at Broomfield High School:

We put tea candles in these and use them on our dining room table.

I think the fruit bowl is my favorite, handy, useful, and beautiful all at the same time.

We keep our Holy Water in this pottery basket.

Ben's own tea mug, It is huge.

Pandora's Box - so named by Nikolas Jaqua, who received this for Christmas last year.

The pinnacle of his pottery work -- Ben's teapot.

Watch the colors in this mosaic:

There is both storm and calm in this paint on canvas:

Colorful and large, water, sky, and tree. This one is in Ben's room.

Ben also took a graphic arts course:

Animals in the Arctic

The MOVIE poster, and ...Yes, he is ONE IN A MINION :)

The artist's self-portrait in quadruple.

Self-expression is extremely important for those who struggle to communicate with the mainstream of society. Ben has a strong need to express himself. Art is, perhaps, his most effective medium. He is meticulous with his art and can spend hours on details. He will not quit until it looks the way he wants it to look. Yes, he also has the frustrated artist's temperament that growls and throws his hands up in the air when the medium will not comply with his intents, but he sticks it out, and you see the result -- Beautifully done, thoughtful, detailed, meticulous, expressive pieces that bring out, not just the almost-non-verbal young man that most of the world smiles at but often ignores. Here is a deeply-feeling, compassionate, and alive human being whose works in clay, color, and on the screen give us a glimpse into an intricately artistic mind and soul.

Thank you, Ben!

The best shot of Ben, ever!!

[Michelle took the top and bottom pictures of Ben at school and sent them to me. I took the others with my iPad (next time, I will use my camera instead for higher quality)]