An artist’s journey to self-acceptance
| Date | 25 June 2024 |
| Pages | 1432-1438 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-04-2024-0062 |
| Published date | 25 June 2024 |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health,Social inclusion |
| Author | Victoria Claire |
An artist’s journey to self-acceptance
Victoria Claire
Abstract
Purpose –This paper providesan insight into the left and career of the sculptress VictoriaClaire, told in
her own words.
Design/methodology/approach –This is a lived experiencenarrative.
Findings –Diagnosed with retinitispigmentosa at the age of 19, Victoria’s life was turned upsidedown.
Plunged into the depthsof despair, it was her love for and practice of sculptureand music which saved
her and gave her purpose. Years of therapyhave helped her to understand and love herself as beautiful
imperfection.
Practical implications –The vast majority of us inhabit a ‘‘sighted world’’. Victoria helps us to
understandhow many of the things we take for granted areso much harder for the visually impaired.
Social implications –We all need to be sensitive to helping thosewith sensory difficulties navigate our
social world.
Originality/value –When you look at the amazingsculptures that Victoria creates, you cannothelp but
be impressed that she can create such works of art using her hands, her sculpting tools and her
imagination.We can gaze at the beauty of her creations.She cannot.
Keywords Creativity, Self-development, Discovery, Visual impairment, Retinitis pigmentosa, Sculpture
Paper type Case study
Ihave been a professional artist over the past 30 years in the medium of sculpture. I
have enjoyed creating works out of wood and have had the honour of being
commissioned all over the world. I also have had many solo exhibitions in the UK and
Ireland; this includes central London, The House of Commons and America Square. “Blind:
A Sixth Sense” was an exhibition that I created whichwas the first of its kind in this country.
The concept behind this was to create six sculpted pieces and place them in a completely
pitch-black gallery space. This was to convey to the audience the importance of engaging
in all the senses and not just to rely on the sense of vision.
This is probably a good point to inform you that I am a registered blind woman, I have the
condition retinitis pigmentosa which is a genetic degenerative disease of the ret ina. I was
diagnosed when I was 19. I was already on a course at an art c ollege and soon to be
continuing onto a university degree in figurative sculpture. This course had only 28 places
available in the whole of Europe, and I was lucky enough to have got an uncondi tional place.
I remember the day when the bottom of my world fell out, I had just driven home from
passing my driving test, as you can imagine I was very elated and wanted to share the
good news. I got in my car after sharing the news with my parents and began to drive to my
boyfriend’s house. However by this time night fall had set in as it was December and the
dark nights were early; this is when I soon realised that something was dreadfully wrong.Up
until this point I had never had a driving lesson at nightso therefore this was indeed my first
time. I had wound my window down to demist the windscreen, I must have been too far out
towards the center of the road and an oncoming car hit my side mirror and it smashed the
glass of the mirror onto me. This was quite a shock, and it became abundantly clear that I
could not see enough to be driving a vehicle.
Victoria Claire is Self-
Employed, Kent, UK.
PAGE 1432 jMENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL INCLUSION jVOL. 28 NO. 6 2024, pp. 1432-1438, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308 DOI 10.1108/MHSI-04-2024-0062
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