TOWSON, Md. — Tricia Lane-Forster knows firsthand how art can change the life of a child with differing abilities. It was an art teacher who helped her as a student in Baltimore County Public Schools.
‘I was nervous to use the paper mâché with my prosthetic,” Lane-Forster says. “And I voiced that to her and I said ‘I’m concerned that this is going to mess up my arm.’ And she was like, ‘Well, we can come up with a different way for you to do the project and you can use wire and fabric.’”
Now, she makes art accessible to others. She’s an art teacher at Ridge Ruxton, a day school for students with more severe disabilities. Like second grader Mein-Jing Jin.
Mein-Jing is nonverbal, yet you can tell she loves art class. She nods and squeals with joy when making color choices.
Adaptive art uses tools like paddle scissors and handles made from PVC piping or foam tubes.
Sometimes the teachers get a little crafty and create their own aides, like this marker holder Lane-Forster made with the base of a battery-operated toothbrush.
“It is about problem-solving and finding ways for students to make choices and to be able to create their artwork as independently as possible,” she says.
Mein-Jing’s artwork and those of her classmates is on display at the ‘Every Student, Every Voice’ adaptive arts show. The art show features forty framed art pieces from students throughout the school system.
“They’re proud of what they do, and so I think they’re excited to be in the show,” Lane-Forster says.
This is the first time BCPS has had an exhibition solely with art created by adaptive means.
“It’s a really great opportunity to go see different ways that art can be created,” Lane-Forster says. “I think you’ll have a chance to see collage, printmaking, paintings, and it’s going to be just really exciting to see all of the work in one place.”
The ‘Every Student, Every Voice’ adaptive arts show is going on now through February 2 at the Towson StarTUp at the Armory.
