Resiliency of the Human Spirit

This July to mark Disability Pride Month Gallery 1832 presents

Resiliency of the Human Spirit

Our perceptions are shaped through our experiences within our bodies, but how are these
perceptions shifted when faced with experiences of chronic illness and disability? This
exhibition explores the work of two artists with disabilities, providing a glimpse into the mind
and spirit of human resiliency and our tendency to search for light amidst darkness.
Jessica Vohs, born with cerebral palsy, is physically unable to speak and works with very limited
mobility. With assistance in the studio, she utilizes art as a primary means of expression. Despite
countless physical challenges Vohs overcomes daily to create her work, you would never see
that in her paintings. Instead, you see her affinity for beauty and love of life. She highlights the
magic of small moments, painted in a way that feels fleeting and dreamlike. She chooses not to
focus on disability as subject matter, instead she digs deeper, focused on capturing the soul and
the interconnectedness between each other and the universe.
In contrast, Moriah Faith’s artwork confronts the ugliest realities of living with chronic pain in a
way that is visually striking. After being diagnosed with a rare chronic illness at the age of
thirteen, Faith became obsessed with painting for its ability to express feelings impossible to put
into words. Using her own “damaged” body as reference, her approach to the canvas is
aggressive, brutalizing carefully rendered flesh with thick globs of paint. Defining features of
portraits are often distorted, destroyed, or obstructed, suggesting a fractured experience of self.
Figures emerge that appear raw and vulnerable; present – yet drifting. Her work dives into the
depth of illness, not to paint a silver lining around it, but in a desperate attempt to find strength in sickness, and purpose for the pain.
This collection of works highlights the duality of both suffering and beauty contained simultaneously within the human condition. The paintings you see in this exhibition are a manifestation of hundreds of hours in the studio, accomplished by pushing through pain and physical barriers, to step into a realm where we are limitless: Art.