Designing Better Futures by Understanding Policy Realities Through a Temporal Lens
- Gemma Cook
- Jun 5
- 2 min read
Adults with CP tend to look back on childhood experiences, especially those of othering, to understand their present and their future. This is illustrated in artwork created by ‘It’sThatGirlWithCP’ and Gemma Cook.
This wall mural is based on Nat’s story of sport. At school she was prohibited from PE or joining any kind of sporting activities at all. Instead, she was positioned in the corner of the gym to receive physiotherapy, while her classmates had PE in the centre of the gym. As an adult she discovered sport by chance. Attending the London Paralympics in 2012, and watching the dressage, she realised ‘I could do this’, and sure enough she went on to become a brilliant sportswoman.
The central panel represents how Nat feels about her empowered self now, accomplished across several different fields of sport. The ‘foxchair’ represents her dynamic sports wheelchair. The pink swirly brushstrokes her belief in her positive happy self.
The righthand panel depicts herself as a child, relegated to the corner of the gym, seen in the semiotic smiley face, but was she really smiling? The paint splats in the middle portray her classmates playing and waving carefree.
The lefthand panel is how Nat feels about her past now, looking back with the knowledge of an adult. This is signified in a bullet hole, which is repeated as a sentinel all seeing-eye in the foxchair. The shard of class crosscutting all three panels represents how experiences like these never leave you.
Have you had similar experiences? What needs to change to design better futures for people with CP?
Follow this link to view Nat’s spoken word which accompanies the piece
Comments