Breaking Barriers: Panel Discussion

In honor of Autism Awareness Month, the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts is proud to host “Breaking Barriers: Panel Discussion” to discuss not only Autism but other cognitive and physical disabilities, as well as mental illness and the impact it may have had on several artists. The panel will consist of community members and scholars coming together to discuss the impact of disabilities on individuals and their families, as well as their artistic work. From Montgomery, founder of D.A.T.S.M.O.M., a non-profit organization supporting families and children on the Autism Spectrum, Tametria Dantzler will provide insight from a personal and community perspective. Joining her on the panel will be Alexandra Cosper, an Arts Specialist from the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, GA, who will share her experiences working professionally in the realm of art and disability studies. Additionally, lead humanities scholar Dr. Mira Kallio-Tavin, who has published a multitude of works on the confluence of art and disability studies, will visit us from the University of Georgia to share her research. 

Moderated by Alexandra Cosper, this panel will explore questions related to the confluence of art and disability studies, such as how these different challenges may have impacted their life and artistic work, what stigmas and stereotypes were present during their active years, and what stigmas and stereotypes are still rampant today. Accompanying this program will be the exhibition Breaking Barriers: Artfully Able, featuring the work of artists known to have lived with a disability or mental illness such as Chuck Close, Montgomery native Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald, and Francisco Goya.