The 25th Anniversary of Art Ability Virtual Celebration
Saturday, November 7, 2020
Celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital’s Art Ability® with a gourmet meal from Catering By Design. Our Executive Chef Roth Perelman has created a unique and stunning menu to enhance your event experience. This special meal may be enjoyed room temperature or is easily heated. Full service catering, in your home, is another wonderful way to share the event experience with COVID-19 protocols followed by the Catering By Design team.
Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital’s Art Ability®
Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital’s Art Ability® is an integral part of the hospital’s mission and a year-round showcase and celebration of artists with disabilities. In its 25th year, the program includes the country’s largest international juried exhibition and sale of art and fine crafts created by artists with cognitive, physical, hearing and/or visual disabilities. Art Ability began at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital in 1996 as an eight-week exhibition and sale of artists’ works. It has evolved over the years into a 12-week annual exhibition, and the hospital is an actively collecting institution with a permanent collection of more than 500 pieces on display throughout the year. Rehab clinicians often use the art as a tool to treat and motivate their patients. This year’s exhibition features nearly 375 pieces of art by 154 artists.
Click here for more information about Art Ability.
Featured Artists:
Indian artist Sriharsha Sukla was born deaf and nonverbal. Being hearing impaired has not stopped him from communicating his vision in creative ways. Since early childhood he has been painting, encouraged by his parents, especially his mother, to be a professional artist. He was trained in Patachitra, a general term for traditional, cloth-based scroll painting, based in the eastern Indian states of Odisha and West Bengal. This artform is known for its intricate details as well as mythological narratives and folktale themes. Sukla, a graduate of the Uktal University in India majoring in Fine Arts, has learned to visually express himself in many mediums, including oil painting, watercolor, photography, and computer animation used in several Bollywood movies. As a versatile artist, he specializes in landscape and portrait art using a cut paper collage technique, regularly on view at Bryn Mawr Rehab. His cut paper collage work was previously awarded 1st place in Art Ability’s Works on Paper category. Sriharsha is now teaching collage painting workshops to youth and adults.
Stephen Zarrilli
Life changed in an instant. In July 2019, driving to his shore home, Steve Zarrilli suffered a major stroke. A dissection of the carotid artery on the right side of his neck caused a stroke in the right side of his brain. Steve lost control and crashed into a guardrail. Following his acute care hospital stay and stabilization, Steve was an inpatient at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital for three months, and continues today as an outpatient. Steve is learning to walk again and benefits from occupational and cognitive therapy. “My perspective on life has changed. The biggest reward has been to have more empathy for others with a disability. I now live in a different world, and I appreciate what others go through.” Steve Zarrilli’s story will be shared during this year’s Art Ability Virtual Celebration.