Art meets autism to raise funds for “miracle”

Art meets autism to raise funds for “miracle” programme centre

What do you get when a renowned Kiwi artist collaborates with an autistic child? An art exhibition like no other – one that will showcase 12 pieces of truly unique art for auction and raise money to build The Cocoon, New Zealand’s first centre for autism, which will employ ground-breaking techniques to help autistic children, who make up a significant proportion of the 40,000 New Zealanders with the disorder.

The artworks for the exhibition, entitled Without Boundaries – Art for Autism, have been created by award-winning NZ artist Sofia Minson, and a group of autistic children who have each put their own individual interpretations onto Sofia’s backgrounds. The art will be auctioned at the exhibition, which will also feature a selection of Minson’s large artworks, being held in the Stamford Plaza Hotel (the event’s major sponsor), on Thursday, June 3. There will also be a raffle at the event with a major prize gifted by the Stamford of a Romance and Seduction Accommodation Package.

Minson, who worked one on one with the children over a two-month period to produce the acrylic artworks, was inspired to assist the TAO Charitable Trust in fundraising for The Cocoon project when she learned about the success of the Holistic Perception Development (HPD) programme, which has helped autistic children in New Zealand and overseas, and will form the basis of The Cocoon’s work.

“I have experienced firsthand just how special these children are, and how they deserve to get the best assistance possible to realise their potential and fully participate in the world with their families,” Ms Minson says. “Creating a centre to house the HPD programme will give autistic children the opportunity to learn and grow beyond wildest expectations,” she says.

TAO Trust founder Jocelyn Oades, who has had direct experience of autism through family members with the disorder, says that after a four year HPD pilot in New Zealand, called Transcending Autism HPD, which was carried out on 25 childen, families are now on the waiting list for the proposed Cocoon to receive the treatment.

“There is a feeling amongst many NZ parents with autistic children that Transcending Autism HPD is the most effective method for achieving results that far exceed what they ever dreamed of for their children,” Ms Oades says. “The Cocoon will incorporate environmental design specifically with the spectrum of autism in mind, which is crucial to the success of delivering Transcending Autism HPD because those with autism are very sensitive to their surroundings,” she says. “The design of the centre will also accommodate vulnerable youth who have neurological disorders, which is another group The Cocoon will focus on helping.”

The Transcending Autism HPD pilot was spearheaded in New Zealand by child development specialist and TAO Trustee Livia Bagoly, who has over 30 years’ experience working with children who have developmental disorders. Bagoly and fellow Trustees will create The Cocoon to house the Transcending Autism HPD and Vulnerable Youth programmes using a design from architect Michael Sin of BJA Architects.
“The pilot programme has shown that no matter how severe the autism is, each child has developed levels of communication skills and knowledge within six months that no other therapy has managed to do – for the families of these children, this is nothing short of a miracle,” Ms Bagoly says. “The Cocoon will be a centralised unit, a ‘home’ in which experts can gather and work together to provide an informed consolidated diagnosis and a unified plan of intervention to meet the unique needs of autistic children, as well as to assist vulnerable youth suffering from disorders such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).”

Currently, TAO Trust is looking for a building that is suitable to temporarily house the Transcending HPD and Vulnerable Youth programmes while The Cocoon is being built.

- For more information on TAO Trust and the Art for Autism event visit: www.taotrust.org.nz
- For more information on Sofia Minson visit www.sofiaminson.com

ENDS

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