Ronan James February 18, 2008

In my previous life as a Child and Family therapist, I did most of my work with children who had survived abuse, both physical and sexual.  However, as I moved through my practice,  I began providing social skills training for children who had a diagnosis somewhere on the austism spectrum.  These groups were at times difficult, but also quite inspirational.  Most of the children were functioning well enough to be in a school setting with some support but really struggled with peer relationships.  Our group was designed to help teach them some of the skills needed to make friends and have positive interactions with their peers.  In the group, we used art, games and role plays to help them develop these skills.  I was consistently amazed at the art the children produced and the stories behind what inspired each particular piece.

I know this blog is generally focused on Green/Fair Trade issues but when I found Ronan James’s art on etsy, it struck a particular cord with me.  Ronan James is a five year old little boy who has been given a diagnosis on the autism spectrum.  With a little help from his mom “in formatting and delivery”, he creates beautiful paintings and photographs.  Look at this colorful balsa wood pendant featuring a minaturized reproduction of Ronan’s PURPLE STORM painting.

Ronan’s mom also takes Ronan’s pictures and prints them on cardstock or mounts the photos on cardstock to make notecards.  Take a look at the HEART OF ROCK AND ROLL notecard.  The photo features “the heart” of a guitar and was texturized to give it a painted look.  Ronan has some very interesting artwork on his site and I love that 20% of his sales are donated to autism research!  To learn more about this talented artist visit his blog.  You should also checkout, Ronan’s mom, Robyn’s, shop,  SmartLass Glass, where she is currently  selling beautiful blue onyx earrings.  (In her profile, she states she will be adding more earrings and other glass creations soon.  I can’t wait to see what is next!)