Autismus and Art @ AvatarFest
Byron D. started painting at the age of 13. His parents initiated the painting as a way to explain to him what it means to do something and be rewarded for it. The idea was to let him experience and to practice the use of money. They asked friends to purchase one of his paintings or gave neighbors the money to order a painting from Byron. He painted on silk squares around 40 x 40 inches (1 meter).
Two years later he received an invitation for an art exhibit in Spain of the Autism Parents Organization, who were hosting the first ever made Art Exposition of persons with Autism. To this amazing experience for him, followed Exhibits at the Documenta in Germany and also an exhibit together with a non-autistic russian artist in a Gallery in the north of Germany.
Today he paints not only on silk but uses a variety of materials: pastels, pencil and oil. Living now in a protected home, he does not have many opportunities to have exhibits, but he still paints in his spare free time. Lately he has started to design and paint backgrounds for computer games.
Autism & Virtuality - 3D Worlds
Some examples how the virtuality can be used to practice social interactions and the use of mobile apps are in the videos below.
German:
Augmented reality - Google Glass
English:
Teens with autism overcome real life fears
Inner Voice App: The next step in Technology for Autism
Interview about Autism in a virtual world
