Disability advocate Ann Kennedy defies illness to stage first art exhibit in 17 years
That creative slump was brought on by her illness, which she so candidly described in her memoir, Unprotected, which details the difficulties she has faced in life due to being born with Rubella.
Congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) is an illness in infants that results from maternal infection with rubella virus during pregnancy. A child can be born with severe hearing loss and/or visual impairment, congenital cataracts, heart defects, and gradually develop a myriad of other significant challenges. Ann shares this same birth experience with her twin sister, Margaret.
In 2017, she told the Irish Independent: 'I woke at seven this morning, and I was crying. I'm depressed and feel utterly hopeless. That often happens. Sometimes we think of ending it all; we are so terribly weary of fighting.'
Those heartbreaking words were written when she and her sister, both then 64, admitted they were struggling to get the professional help and support they needed.
As children growing up in Killiney, they had to battle with a hearing impairment, and by their early 20s, had followed their own paths. Ann was doing animation in London, collaborating on projects such as the Watership Down movie and promotions for Pink Floyd, while Margaret trained as a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Ann returned to Ireland and became an accomplished artist and award-winning writer and illustrator of children's books but when the sisters were in their 40s, they encountered health issues that had a serious impact on their ability to function.
Over the next few years, they were both tested and it was discovered that some of their health problems included Parkinson's disease and muscle myopathy (muscle wasting disease), which requires them to use wheelchairs most of the time.
They moved to Greystones but left in 2015, after what Ann described as 'dreadful years' in an open letter, which ended with the parting words: 'I never wish to see the place again and hope I can erase the memory from my mind swiftly once I do leave.'
Thankfully, her memories of Bray are more florid as she makes a welcome return with her new exhibition, 'All in the Brain'. The exhibition of works slowly began to take form years after that visit in 2008 and the ensuing slump, when 'one day,' she said, 'being brave, I visited an art shop'.
ADVERTISEMENT
Learn more
"I began again,' she said of the new exhibition. 'It was now all in the brain and the brain would have to perform in some fashion. I knew this was going to be different and punctuated with hesitancy, despondency and confusion. Grave self-doubt enveloped me. I worked from a perspective of loss. What I produced were experimentations, learning to capture my inadequacy and hopefully some adequacy. I gave myself permission to fail in the hope I could achieve.'
While she admits she 'caved many times and withered', her strength and perseverance has brought the new body of work which will be on display at the gallery until Sunday, August 3.
'I propose to show a body of creative painting that defy my personal reason. I propose to offer hope to the community of sick, older people and those with disability that if you want to paint, then paint. The work will be eclectic as personal strength is returning and styles keep changing. I begin making decisions again, abandon some and accept others. It's all in the learning,' she said.
'A decade of inaction through ill health and mystery requires opening my personal Pandora's Box. Gold may not be in fact gold, but nothing can change a person who creates through love and abandon. That is my gold, silver and bronze. Even if not in equal proportions.'
The opening reception for All in the Brain is on Sunday, July 27, from 3-5pm.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Princess Margaret ‘left with foetal alcohol syndrome after Queen Mother's drinking', new book claims
The syndrome is caused by a developing baby's exposure to alcohol in the womb and can give the child distinctive facial features and cause difficulties with learning, impulse control and managing emotions. Meryle Secrest, a Pulitzer Prize-nominated biographer, has re-examined the princess's personality and personal struggles in light of greater knowledge about the condition. Princess Margaret and the Curse, Ms Secrest's forthcoming unofficial biography, speculates that the princess, who died in 2002 aged 72, suffered from an 'invisible disability' brought on by foetal alcohol syndrome. While the book states that Margaret lacked the alcohol syndrome's tell-tale smooth lip philtrum and small eyes, she did display characteristic mood swings, stunted growth, difficulties learning how to write and painful migraines. It will be a tragedy if I never recover my drinking powers It cites accounts of the Queen Mother's drinking in later life, when it was claimed by a former equerry that she would enjoy gin and Dubonnet: two parts pink vermouth to one part gin, wine and port until the 6pm 'magic hour' when martinis would be prepared. Foetal alcohol syndrome was not well understood until the 1970s, the book states, and it is likely that the young mother would have not been advised to avoid alcohol during her pregnancy with Margaret. But the book says that in the Queen Mother's letters from the time of her pregnancy with Elizabeth II, she writes that she could not bear the thought of wine, suggesting that she may have drunk less when expecting the future queen. A 1925 letter to the future King George VI said: 'The sight of wine simply turns me up! Isn't it extraordinary! It will be a tragedy if I never recover my drinking powers.' The book puts forward no claim that the late queen suffered from any condition. Ms Secrest, who was awarded a medal for her work in 2006 by George W Bush, the former US president, has looked at Margaret's life and compared it to typical cases of foetal alcohol syndrome. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more Now 95, the biographer notes that children with the syndrome may typically misbehave and have difficulty regulating their behaviour and emotions. The biography states that Margaret's family and her nurses found her to be 'naughty' and 'mischievous and provocative', at one point sinking a boat during a rowing lesson by removing the plug in the hull. She was also impulsive and would 'blurt out the truth', it is claimed, as can be common among those with foetal alcohol syndrome. The princess suffered a nervous breakdown in 1974. Margaret's later private life would also raise eyebrows. Her marriage to Lord Snowdon ended in divorce after both partners had extra-marital affairs. The book states that sufferers often have stunted growth and notes that Margaret appeared to stop growing when she reached 5ft. Additionally, it is claimed she had a poor awareness of physical danger, another effect, citing her apparent indifference to setting her hair on fire during a family get-together. Ms Secrest has cited the work of Dr Kenneth Jones, a leading expert in foetal alcohol syndrome, who first properly identified the issue in 1973. There is no firm evidence that Margaret suffered from an alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder, and the new book has been written by comparing Margaret's life – as attested in pre-existing written sources – with those who have suffered from the condition.
Irish Independent
4 days ago
- Irish Independent
Mental health service in Limerick looking for volunteers
According to the HSE, one in four Irish people will experience a mental health problem during their lifetime with depression being considered a very common condition affecting 450,000 people or one in ten people at any one time in Ireland alone. Dr Susan Brannick, Clinical Director at Aware told the Irish Independent: 'We're looking for volunteers across our support services, we have three main volunteer-led services that are seeking to recruit people for, the first is our support group, they run across the country, we offer them both virtually and in person and they are facilitated by two volunteers where people can come together for peer support and connection around difficulties like depression and anxiety. "We're also looking to recruit volunteers to our support line so that's online and runs from 10 in the morning til 10 at night offering a space where people can share their difficulties with their mental health and also maybe their concerns about a loved one.' She continued: "Our third service is our life skills online which is our self-help programme which is based on cognitive behavioural therapy principles and the volunteer supports people who do that on a weekly basis for the eight weeks. "There's a variety of different platforms that someone might be able to volunteer with us if they choose to so whether that's in person or on the phone or doing something more online, there will definitely be something to suit you if you're interested.' Aware are looking for people who are over the age of 21 and have about three hours to spare each week. Volunteers are not required to have a background in mental health training or experience as Aware offers over 20 hours of initial training to support people into the role that they choose. Susan said: "Then we offer ongoing support and training, all of our support services have a support manager that supports volunteers as they go through so there's a lot of training that we offer to enable people to do those roles. She continued: "The main thing in being a volunteer is that you have an interest in people, an interest in mental health and a willingness to listen and to allow people that space to talk about their own difficulties.' "We know from the research that being a volunteer and volunteering in and of itself can help your own mental health so there's also benefits to your own mental health as well as the training and support that are available if you do volunteer so I guess if people are interested, maybe having a look at our website would definitely be something that would meet your interests if this is an area of volunteering that appeals to you.' When asked about how the current cost of living, inflation and the housing crisis has affected uptake of various services, Lisa explained that there is a high need for services. She explained: "There's generally a high level of need anyway across the services in Ireland, some volunteers we've had with us for many years, others for one or two years so we ask that people maybe can commit at least 18 months or so. "I think there's an ongoing need for mental health support I suppose as mental health literacy increases, we're becoming better and more able to recognise conditions like depression, anxiety, so I guess it's the more people are more aware of these challenges, the more people, on a positive note are actively seeking help for them so certainly we've come a long way. "Since Aware began 40 years ago, we've certainly come a long way in our ability and willingness maybe to talk about mental health, that's a good thing. "Unfortunately, there's still a high need, people are facing very distinct challenges now maybe more so than 10, 15, 20 years ago so I guess there's an ongoing need for that support.' Susan concluded: "In the health budget, typically about 6 per cent of the health budget is allocated to mental health which is an under-investment really, the World Health Organisation, even Sláintecare would suggest that it should be at least 10-12 per cent of the overall health budget so I guess as long as there's an ongoing under-investment in statutory services there's going to be a continuing need across all the NGOs for ongoing mental health support.' Sláintecare is the HSE and Department of Health's overall improvement plan which outlines their strategies to reform Ireland's health and social care system and act as a pathway to universal healthcare.
Irish Independent
24-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Disability advocate Ann Kennedy defies illness to stage first art exhibit in 17 years
Ann Kennedy, who was born in 1952, has fond memories from when she last exhibited in Bray, in 2008, when she recalled eating pizza on Albert Walk, with friends and family, before returning home only to lapse into a terribly difficult period. As she said herself: 'I ceased all creative work for 10 full years'. That creative slump was brought on by her illness, which she so candidly described in her memoir, Unprotected, which details the difficulties she has faced in life due to being born with Rubella. Congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) is an illness in infants that results from maternal infection with rubella virus during pregnancy. A child can be born with severe hearing loss and/or visual impairment, congenital cataracts, heart defects, and gradually develop a myriad of other significant challenges. Ann shares this same birth experience with her twin sister, Margaret. In 2017, she told the Irish Independent: 'I woke at seven this morning, and I was crying. I'm depressed and feel utterly hopeless. That often happens. Sometimes we think of ending it all; we are so terribly weary of fighting.' Those heartbreaking words were written when she and her sister, both then 64, admitted they were struggling to get the professional help and support they needed. As children growing up in Killiney, they had to battle with a hearing impairment, and by their early 20s, had followed their own paths. Ann was doing animation in London, collaborating on projects such as the Watership Down movie and promotions for Pink Floyd, while Margaret trained as a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Ann returned to Ireland and became an accomplished artist and award-winning writer and illustrator of children's books but when the sisters were in their 40s, they encountered health issues that had a serious impact on their ability to function. Over the next few years, they were both tested and it was discovered that some of their health problems included Parkinson's disease and muscle myopathy (muscle wasting disease), which requires them to use wheelchairs most of the time. They moved to Greystones but left in 2015, after what Ann described as 'dreadful years' in an open letter, which ended with the parting words: 'I never wish to see the place again and hope I can erase the memory from my mind swiftly once I do leave.' Thankfully, her memories of Bray are more florid as she makes a welcome return with her new exhibition, 'All in the Brain'. The exhibition of works slowly began to take form years after that visit in 2008 and the ensuing slump, when 'one day,' she said, 'being brave, I visited an art shop'. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more "I began again,' she said of the new exhibition. 'It was now all in the brain and the brain would have to perform in some fashion. I knew this was going to be different and punctuated with hesitancy, despondency and confusion. Grave self-doubt enveloped me. I worked from a perspective of loss. What I produced were experimentations, learning to capture my inadequacy and hopefully some adequacy. I gave myself permission to fail in the hope I could achieve.' While she admits she 'caved many times and withered', her strength and perseverance has brought the new body of work which will be on display at the gallery until Sunday, August 3. 'I propose to show a body of creative painting that defy my personal reason. I propose to offer hope to the community of sick, older people and those with disability that if you want to paint, then paint. The work will be eclectic as personal strength is returning and styles keep changing. I begin making decisions again, abandon some and accept others. It's all in the learning,' she said. 'A decade of inaction through ill health and mystery requires opening my personal Pandora's Box. Gold may not be in fact gold, but nothing can change a person who creates through love and abandon. That is my gold, silver and bronze. Even if not in equal proportions.' The opening reception for All in the Brain is on Sunday, July 27, from 3-5pm.
