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David Lenz (Shortlisted)
Biography
Name: David Lenz
Age: 43
Hometown: Milwaukee and Shorewood, WI
Mediums: Oil on linen, watercolor, pencil
Interests: Family, current events, astronomy, books on tape, cabins, nature
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April 17, 2006 - 10:35 pm
A respected place in the world
About a month ago my wife Rosemarie and I rented the documentary film “Grizzly man.” It’s a fascinating and gripping film about a man, Timothy Treadwell, who spent thirteen summers camping and filming bears in the wilds of Alaska. Mr. Treadwell had unconventional and remarkably successful ways of surviving while surrounded 24/7 by man-eating grizzly bears. Yet, in the end both he and his girlfriend were killed and eaten by a bear. During the film, a helicopter pilot is interviewed about what happened, and he says, “I think the only reason Treadwell lasted as long in the game as he did was that the bears probably thought there was something wrong with him, like he was mentally retarded or something.”
Rosemarie and I looked at each other.
It was as if the highly-acclaimed filmmaker, Werner Herzog, had just reached out and slapped us. Our child, our sweet beautiful little boy now sleeping in his bedroom upstairs, is so disgusting, so distasteful (literally) that he wouldn’t even make acceptable food for a hungry grizzly bear? How did this end up in the film? The quote reflects society’s norm – most people think it is perfectly acceptable to make degrading and insensitive comments about people with developmental disabilities. It happens all the time. And they have no idea how hurtful it is.
This is just one example of many – some from popular culture, others very personally experienced – that speaks to the way people with disabilities are not fully accepted into the community as the valuable members they most surely are.
Our son is named Sam. He is a warm, kind, affectionate and very funny kid who, quite simply, makes the world a better place. He has Down syndrome.
Sam is the subject for my painting.
My website: www.davidmlenz.com
Image 1: Sam and the Perfect World ©David Lenz
Image 2: Detail
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