Creative Spaces NetworkI first attended Toi Ora in Auckland in 2010, soon after I became blind. My background at that time was in fine art. I loved painting, drawing, photography and printmaking. So becoming blind was devastating. I was very unsure of how I could channel my creativity as I felt that visual art was my main strength.
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At first, I went to some Toi Ora drawing classes and was given encouragement and support. However, it was hard for me to find a way to develop the work at that time, as I was used to assessing the visual outcome, and progressing the work based on my analysis and critique.
So I moved into creative writing, which I found extremely stimulating and fun. I also took up sculpting in clay. Both activities gave me a creative outlet and were very rewarding.
I continue to write poetry and short stories. In time, I returned to drawing and have found new ways to develop my work, based on the feedback I receive from sighted people.
I have also learned to work collaboratively on two-dimensional work. This is a very dynamic way of working and requires building a trusting connection with my supporting person. It adds an interesting layer of complexity to the process.
I have also built confidence in my own ability to visualise and draw meaningful work independently as well. Both ways of working are satisfying, and the different processes are complementary.
I have learned to trust in my intuition by working on my drawing independently, and have found it interesting to build trusting working relationships with a wide variety of support people, often students who have been helping out at Toi Ora at different times.
Creative thinking across artforms
I learned at Toi Ora that the creative thinking I had developed at art school and in my art practice translated well into the other arts. At Toi Ora I took some drama classes, which I enjoyed very much.
Through Toi Ora, I have been able to explore many different mediums for creativity. I get a lot of joy and happiness from these wide-ranging creative opportunities. So blindness has meant that my creative avenues have diversified.
A Toi Ora highlight for me recently was attending a wonderful holiday workshop called Epic Stories, hosted by Nightsong and Toi Ora. It was a great opportunity to participate in theatre, which combines all the arts: storytelling, visual art, acting, music and dance.
We worked towards a shortened and simplified version of Shakespeare's King Lear. I had the chance to first play Regan, one of Lear’s wicked daughters, and then Cordelia, King Lear’s loving daughter.
This was tremendous fun. As Cordelia, I had the excellent chance to “die” as part of my act, and since everyone pretty much dies in the play, so did the other cast members.
We were invited to bring the characteristics of a particular animal to our characters. I brought some attributes of a rabbit to my dramatisation of Cordelia and some characteristics of a raven to Regan.
Stepping outside of my usual ways of moving and speaking
This was very freeing and helped me to step outside of my usual ways of moving and speaking, and helped me to embody a completely different character.
In the workshop, we also played some very fun drama games. As a blind person, I felt well-supported by the Toi Ora staff to participate fully. We also had a chance to do some painting and again, I had excellent support from the staff. In this way, I was able to contribute.
I enjoy coming to Toi Ora and feel very warmly welcomed by the staff and other artists who attend the classes. My disability is no obstacle to participation as the staff are so accommodating: they perceive me firstly as a person and secondly as someone who is blind.
I feel as if I can be myself at Toi Ora, and can explore my creativity freely and safely. It is a non-judgmental environment and I love being part of the community.
Toi Ora is a member of the Creative Spaces Network. You can find out more about Toi Ora and other creative spaces in the Auckland region.
