art

Quinns, the artist

qtandcp, , , , , , 2 Comments

Quinns has been obsessed with an art program on his eye gaze computer for the last six months. Whenever we set the device up for him he immediately goes to the app. Usually with a cheeky smile and an ‘Au revoir’ because he’s discovered the way to get to it is through a board with his school work where he is learning French.

He has been using his eye gaze device since he was three. The small camera under the computer picks up the movements of his eyes allowing him to operate it. As well as using it for art, he uses it to communicate, play games and read stories.

The artworks he produces are bold, abstract explosions of colour. He chooses the canvas colour and which paint colour and brush to use. He can work on multiple canvases at the same time but always makes sure he downloads them when he’s finished.

When we were in Rachel House for respite at the beginning of February he delighted in showing anyone and everyone the art he was producing. One of the activity team noticed and loved what he was doing so much. She just knew it needed to be seen!

As a result, we were so delighted when the fundraising team from CHAS (who run Rachel House) asked us if it could be used for the upcoming CHAS Ladies Lunch in Glasgow. The artwork Quinns had created that weekend in Rachel House was perfect for the event that included entertainment by N-Trance!

I didn’t hesitate to say yes for his work to be used and to Big Sister and I going along to see it all. Quinns and Dad obviously were not invited! It was amazing to see Quinns’ art reproduced everywhere including on the tote gift bags given to every guest, the booklet, table numbers as well as animated on the big screen with his name shared.

CHAS Glasgow Ladies Lunch booklet on the table at the event using Quinns art as the background
Table number 3 using Quinns' artwork as the background
CHAS Ladies Lunch tote bag with Quinns' artwork alongside two copies of the programme.
Photo of the famous Glasgwegian statue with the traffic cone with Quinns' artwork as the background
Huge thanks to Quinns for providing the artwork printed in the Ladies Lunch programme.

In an amazing stroke of luck I was brought onto stage, with potential to win a prize, and got to introduce myself and share about Quinns’ art. I was so delighted to be able to share his amazing artwork with all the women in that room but even more to be able to help fundraise for the amazing charity. As well as providing help and respite to families like ours CHAS provide support to families, including children, parents, siblings and grandparents, who are experiencing some of their toughest times. We are so grateful for the time we get to spend in Rachel House where we rest and recuperate so we can support Quinns in these endeavours and make his life the best possible.

Big Sister and I had an amazing time eating a delicious lunch, listening to the lovely Rachel Rhienne sing and then dancing the afternoon away with N-Trance. When we got home we showed Quinns his artwork, shared stories from our afternoon and had a mini rave even although he was already in bed!

Selfie of me with a MC from N-Trance with Big Sister photo bombing and Rachel Rhienne in the background
Screen reading total raised £43,528 in the background. Giant patterned wooden letters spelling CHAS in the foreground.
Quinns in his bed smiling holding a yellow glow stick.
N-Trance take to the stage at the CHAS Glasgow Ladies Lunch.

The art of travel

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Quinns has absolutely loved taking part in Your Art World, an art project, at the National Gallery in Edinburgh over the last few months. As well as exploring the gallery he has used various techniques to explore artistic techniques and as a result produced some interesting artworks.

He has taken part in so many ways; cutting strips of gold foil, pressing down on paper for prints, holding onto stretchy material, choosing colours for ink and paint, rolling over paint in his wheelchair, decorating the walls etc. It is a challenge to find activities that Quinns can be fully involved in, and this has been a wonderful opportunity where he has been truly valued. Thanks to PAMIS for the opportunity and the lovely artists who have helped him explore the materials and techniques.

Quinns hand holds a blue brush. An adult's hand help guide him to press the brush into clay to make a stamp for printing.
Quinns smiles as his Big Sister pushes his wheelchair over a closed bag of red and yellow paint. There are strips of paper on the wall behind them.
Quinns has his back to the camera. His arm stretches out to stick down strips of gold foil.
Quinns smiles up at the camera. In front of him there is a painting made from dipping wool in paint and pressing it onto paper.

Edinburgh is an hour away. There are  always complex logistics involved with travelling far from home with Quinns. The main things to sort out are how to get there and how we care for him while we are away. I feel reasonably happy visiting the centre of Edinburgh because there are several Changing Places we can use; Waverley Station, Wetherspoons, St James Centre. There is also a facility in the Gallery itself which although it doesn’t quite make the specification for a full Changing Place is fine for us.

Quinns smiles in the centre of a narrow Changing Places facility with ceiling track hoist, adjustable height changing bed, toilet and screen.

We all know Quinns loves the train so travelling that way is a good option for a fun day out in central Edinburgh. For three out of the four sessions our train travel went smoothly. However, the day there was a bus replacement for a tiny fraction of the journey it went spectacularly wrong.

A normally 4-minute train journey took one hour! Even although we arrived in ample time for our train, as a result of inaccessible replacement buses and having to wait for a replacement taxi, we missed two trains and ended up in Edinburgh an hour later than planned. Sadly, it was the same on the return journey. What should have been a total of two hours travel there and back took us four hours!

I trusted the Scotrail app when it said the replacement buses and coaches were all accessible. Generally we have experienced good service on the trains and have also travelled by bus and coach with Quinns, so I had little reason to doubt it. We didn’t set out that day entirely naively so we made it to the art gallery on time but only because we had left a large enough margin of error.

It may have all worked out but we arrived home that day thoroughly exhausted and in shock at how badly the service had failed us. I have, of course, written to Scotrail detailing what happened in order to highlight the issues we faced. The response was an apology and assurances that the issues we flagged have been noted. The third party bus service have also been notified of their failures. All we can do now is hope that changes are made and next time we try we don’t receive such a disappointing service.

It is easy to highlight the good things that happen to Quinns without really sharing the difficulties. He has had some amazing opportunities recently which are good to share but none of them come without challenges. For every photo of Quinns smiling there is usually also a story to share about how he got to that point.

Quinns smiles from the wheelchair space on a train.
Quinns looks out from the gallery window at the trains coming out from Waverley Station in Edinburgh.