Depicted is an older railroad car with two accessibility symbols. A man with his head strongly tilted to the side is standing on a lift to go from the train to the ground. A uniformed person is assisting. For information on purchasing a print of this photography go to Bryn Mawr Art Ability. Also on […]
I was hanging out in the bar with a bunch of folks at SDS last June. One of the party innocently asked, “What do you guys think about the new access symbol business?” Even dead sober I couldn’t help but go on a rant. I knew I had been thinking about how I didn’t like […]
Yes, it has drawbacks—many, but this wheelchair mover is the most comfortable off-road conveyance I’ve tried. OK, it wouldn’t fit in my van. It needs somebody energetic to push it. Nonetheless, I love the simplicity of this design. I tried it out at the Petaluma Rivertown Revival event when the maker, David at di Falco […]
For the past few years I’ve been submitting my disability-related photographs—no sunsets, no dappled brooks—to art shows for disabled artists with mixed results. The latest, “Equity for All Artists,” is at Gallery 85 on La Cienega in LA. It’s sponsored by the LA Art Association with a grant from the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. […]
Where the Hits Keep ComingInadvertently, an email of mine asking for disability researchers investigating how popular music sheds light on disability politics, identity, history, multiculturalism, or sociology was posted on a listserv. I got a few potential leads and interesting responses. One was from someone at a Welsh independent living center who is an underground/metal/experimental […]
Buff Bagwell was a US wrestler who used a wheelchair for prop. This was years ago. I found an action figure of him. Pushing a button on the back of the wheelchair caused the wrestler figure to leap out of his wheelchair—strange but kind of cool. Today, not being able to remember his name, I […]
Every Sunday the San Francisco Chronicle has a feature, Wayback Machine, that runs stories from its past. In an article dated February 25, 1934 there is an announcement of a silent movie, “Eskimo,” showing in town. The Chronicle would be hosting 100 deaf persons. During the previous decades movies were silent and had superimposed titles—open […]
According to a blurb in American Photo there is a new photo book out. It’s by Amelia Davis. She’s documenting with portraits people who share her MS identity, e.g. Richard Pryor. The title is My Story (Demos Medical Publishing). I haven’t seen any of the portraits from the book yet, but her web site has […]
I think that disability culture is starting to break out. On the Yahoo Disabilities and Disabled news page, the lead story was an LA Times review of a German art show, The [Im]Perfect Human Being. From the story as well as the web site, it appears to be a heady mix of the avant garde, […]
In one of those small clues in the press about how disability is being viewed, I noticed the inclusion of the movie “My Left Foot” (MLF) in a list of movies about artists in the Sunday, February 16, SF Chronicle. (Sunday’s Pink Section ) The list was created to give video rental ideas to people […]