Two of United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) of Central Ohio’s participant artists, Ellen Williams and Shelly Wilburn, were named 2 of the 12 national finalists in the fifth annual National Exploring Spasticity calendar contest. The theme for the 2008 calendar is “Exploring Spasticity.” Individuals were encouraged to submit artwork and/or stories that demonstrate their experiences, challenges, and triumphs in their journey with spasticity.
Spasticity makes doing everyday activities, such as walking and eating, more challenging.
It's often described as tight, stiff muscles that make movement, especially of the arms or legs, difficult or uncontrollable. Spasticity is a physical condition that occurs when certain nerve signals do not reach muscles because of injury or disease that affects certain parts of the brain or spinal cord.
Ellen and Shelly’s artwork and stories will be featured in the 2008 Exploring Spasticity calendar and each of them will receive a $250.00 gift check. Also, UCP of Central Ohio will receive a $1000.00 donation to continue to support programs that help people who have spasticity. This award is very exciting for both of the participants and is a great opportunity for them as artists to showcase their talents, not only to the community, but to the nation as well.
As part of the Adult Day Program at UCP of Central Ohio, participants have the opportunity to participate in the Art Bridge Studio. The philosophy of the program is to allow the person’s disability to work for them. This perspective is taught through trial and error, historical context and the example of others. A group of participants within the program take their pursuit of a career as an artist very seriously, with one goal being to market their work to a larger audience. The artwork that was selected for the Exploring Spasticity calendar contest are pieces from Ellen and Shelly’s collections and represent how they are making their disability work for them.
To learn more about spasticity or purchase a calendar please visit
www.exploringspasticity.com
Submitted by kperine on Tue, 10/16/2007 - 8:46pm.
