Having an autistic child is not the end of the world--far from it. It is my hope that through this blog, at least a handful of people will get to understand that. My child is amazing, she brings us tremendous joy. We have good days & bad days, but we CHOOSE to focus on the good. Our belief is that by loving our daughter, giving her the most comfortable environment we can, and by most of all accepting her differences, she will continue to blossom--in her OWN way.

2/19/08

[UPDATE] What's Wrong With This Picture????

Thanks to cs who left this in my comments, thank you for the information & for your eloquent sentiments. I agree with your perspective on this, you stated it beautifully. Thank you again.


"It was painted by artist Glen Angus to raise support for a bill in his state, if I remember correctly. I think it was to help cover the cost of ABA therapy or something.

I also find it offensive, but knowing the pain he must have felt when he painted it tempered that a bit. When I first saw the image I thought at least it would be interesting to see how his view would change with time.

The tragedy I see in the image isn't what the artist intended, though. Glen passed away shortly after the image was made. The real tragedy is that he didn't live to see his child grow and progress...perhaps he would have come to terms with things better in time.

He seemed like a nice man; he was a good artist, and I know he is missed in the art community.

I think it's tragic that he died with this weighing on his heart so heavily. Ultimately, I just feel very very sorry for him and his family."


Please visit this page to see the picture.

I do not know the origin of this picture. I often search via google, photobucket, & other image search engines for "autism." I'm curious to see the images, often they are very dark & depressing pictures. This one in particular was so startling. It was on Photobucket. If anyone knows its origin, please let me know. I am curious about the person or parent behind it.

The fact that the child is depicted as being buried in the dirt is very disturbing. The image of the child being in prison stripes in a jail cell furthers the stigmas that autistics have been taken hostage or have been kidnapped. The sentence underneath its title (Autism) is "Find my son before time runs out free him from the prison of his mind." What a sad statement for a parent to make about their child.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is the most offensive picture I have ever seen.

S.L. said...

I agree completely. I've had it in my photobucket account for weeks now, not wanting to even post it. But, it's really gnawed at me, and I would like to know what it is from--a magazine, poster, or what. I assume it was for some sort of publication based on its layout & appearance. The fact that it may be out there somewhere is beyond comprehension.

Niksmom said...

The imagery is really awful once you start to really look at it! The grass growing AROUND the child but not touching him, the shapes as mere outlines, the sunshine on the imprisoned child, etc. The subliminal messages are even worse than the more overt one. Do please let us know if you find out its origin? My first thought is that it looks like a book cover. (Shudders!)

Anonymous said...

According to the name of the Jpg file, the child's first name is Teddy.

Anonymous said...

It was painted by artist Glen Angus to raise support for a bill in his state, if I remember correctly. I think it was to help cover the cost of ABA therapy or something.

I also find it offensive, but knowing the pain he must have felt when he painted it tempered that a bit. When I first saw the image I thought at least it would be interesting to see how his view would change with time.

The tragedy I see in the image isn't what the artist intended, though. Glen passed away shortly after the image was made. The real tragedy is that he didn't live to see his child grow and progress...perhaps he would have come to terms with things better in time.

He seemed like a nice man; he was a good artist, and I know he is missed in the art community.

I think it's tragic that he died with this weighing on his heart so heavily. Ultimately, I just feel very very sorry for him and his family.

Anonymous said...

What a terrible legacy to leave. Hopefully Teddy will never see it. Thanks anonymous for finding this info.

Photobucket