Painting: Something About Us

Artist: Victoria Ingemann van Rooij

Artist’s Commentary: We are in a quiet and sleepy town late at night, where not much noise is heard—only the sounds of a few cars driving slowly over the rainy roads. We see two very different and unique creatures. The male wolf is giving a flower to the female robot, expressing his emotions for her, even though their differences are so great. The female robot is having a hard time looking him in the eyes and accepting the flower, even though she wants it. The wolf has covered his eyes to make things easier for the female robot. I chose to bind them together because even though they are different there’s some sort of undefined magic between them.

Painting: Flowers for One

Artist: Michael Tolleson

Artist’s Commentary: Trying to be understood emotionally is never easy. And given the single-minded hardheadedness that is part of my Asperger’s traits, I feel it is even harder for someone on the spectrum to share their feelings with others. There is an old song that came to mind when I painted this. The lines are about lovely flowers displayed in a home. Although the singer supplied the flowers for themselves, it was still important they saw them in their home. My painting is about how we, with Asperger’s, would rather supply our own emotional needs than depend on others. Many times in my many relationships, I have picked and supplied my own flowers.