Around 10 percent of the total world’s population, or roughly 650 million people, live with a disability according to Disability Statistics’ annual report. Looking at the art pieces on this list you couldn’t tell that they were created by someone with adversity, often with tremendous amounts of effort and time.
From artists painting with their mouths to blind photographers — these people are a truly an inspiration. Living with conditions most can’t even imagine, they often use art as a way to communicate with the world. For some people here, that is the only way of communication they have.
To celebrate these incredibly strong-willed people, Bored Panda compiled a list showing off their artwork. Check out these astounding artists, we hope you find the stories of these beautiful people motivating!
#1 Mariusz Kedzierski Was Born Without Arms But Still Managed To Fulfill His Dream Of Drawing Realistic Paintings
#2 Diagnosed With Autism At Age Three, Stephen Wiltshire Is Now Famous For Producing Highly Detailed Scenes After Just A Brief Glance
#3 Along With Speech Therapy, Iris Grace’s, Who Has Autism, Parents Introduced Her To Painting, Which Is When They Discovered Her Amazing Talent
#4 Born With Cerebral Palsy, Paul Smith Used To Create Amazing Artworks Using Only 1 Finger On A Typewriter
#5 Peter Longstaff Was Born Without Arms As A Result Of His Mother Being Prescribed The Drug Thalidomide During Pregnancy, But Peter Has Never Considered Himself As Being Disabled
#6 If You Wanted To Be A Tattoo Artist But Lost Your Drawing Arm, What Would You Do? JC Sheitan Tenet Has An Answer: Get A Prosthetic Arm That’s Better Than Flesh And Bone. His Custom Made Steampunk-Inspired Limb Integrates An Inking Needle, A Pressure Gauge And Piping
#7 Rakan Abdulaziz Kurdi Proves That Disability Is Not A Limit By Creating These Realistic Paintings
#8 Huang Guofu Lost Both His Arms In A Horrible Electric Shock Accident At The Age Of Four, However This Didn’t Stop Him From Pursuing His Dreams, He Began Painting With His Feet At The Age Of 12
#9 My Sister Alana Was Born Without The Use Of Her Hands. She Paints Using Her Mouth And Feet. I Wanted To Share Some Of Her Artwork
#10 Doug Landis Was Paralyzed From The Neck Down, After An Awful Accident, During A High-School Wrestling Match. He Discovered His Talent When He Saw The Drawing Of A House, On A Christmas Card, And Thought He Could Do It Himself
#11 John Bramblitt Is “Functionally Blind”, Which Means That His Eyes Can Only Differentiate Between Sunlight And Darkness. Despite This, He Paints By Using Textured Paints To Feel His Way Around The Canvas
#12 Uttam Kumar Bhardwaj Could Be Called Specially Abled. He Creates Amazing Paintings With His Feet. Also He Is A Gold Medalist In Arts Field And A 33 Award Winner
#13 Born With Cerebral Palsy, Doug Jackson Paints With A Brush Attached To A Special Headband. Jackson Started Painting At 11 And Has Gained Recognition Across The Country For His Impressionist Style
#14 Victorine Floyd Fludd Is A Blind Photographer Who Lost Her Vision At The Age Of 26
#15 Disabled Iranian Artist Fatemeh Hamami Draws The Portrait Of Cristiano Ronaldo Using Only Her Feet
#16 Incredible Jewellery Designed And Crafted By Annette Gabbedey, Who Was Born Without Fingers On Her Hands
#17 When There’s A Will There’s A Way, And This Is Certainly True For Zuly Sanguino, Her Desire To Paint Is Stronger Than Her Disability
#18 Mariam Paré Painting A Portrait Of Chuck Close With Her Mouth
#19 Steve Chambers Paints A Scene Of Two Boats By Holding A Paintbrush In His Mouth Because A Rare Condition Means He Was Born With His Arms Devoid Of Muscles
#20 Yang Is Attentively Creating Chinese Paper Cutting Art. At The Age Of 10 He Was Diagnosed With Als Disease So His Art Is Mostly Made By His Face. A Piece Of Elastic Is Wrapped Around His Face To Help His Debilitated Hands Moving The Graver
#21 My Mouth Painting. I’m Only Physically Able To Paint By Holding The Brush In My Mouth
#22 Tommy Hollenstein Paints With The Help Of His Wheelchair, Which He Was Bound To After A Mountain Bike Accident Left Him With A Broken Neck
#23 Desmond Blair Is An Inspring Artist With A Difference — He Was Born Without Hands
#24 James Dunn Is A 23-Year-Old, Aspiring Photographer Living With A Condition Called Epidermolysis Bullosa, Which Makes His Skin Incredibly Fragile And Prone To Blistering And Scarring. He’s Been Finding Ways To Capture The World He Sees, Despite The Fact That He Cannot Use His Hands
#25 Disability Never Held This Mumbai University Student Back! Dhiraj Satavilkar, Who Has No Hands, Uses His Feet To Shape, Design And Paint Clay Models
#26 Brian Tagalog Was Born Without Arms, But He Has Never Let This Serious Adversity Keep Him From Leading A Normal Life. He Believes He Is The Only Certified Tattoo Artist Without Arms In The World
#27 Disabled Artist Leanne Beetham Paints Incredible Scenes By Holding The Paintbrush In Her Mouth
#28 Keith Jansz Was Left Paralysed After Breaking His Neck In A Car Crash. After Reaching Rock Bottom He Learnt To Paint Using His Mouth
#29 Pema Tshering Has Cerebral Palsy, But Can Use His Feet Like Hands. An Incredible Artist, And Absolutely Fascinating To Watch
#30 Pete Eckert Didn’t Take Photography Seriously Until He Went Totally Blind. Talking With People In Galleries Builds A Bridge Between His Mind’s Eyes And Their Vision Of His Work
#31 I Present You With This Badass, Painting With His Mouth. Lost His Arms During Military Service
#32 British Artist Sargy Mann Started To Go Blind In His Mid Thirties. Before He Went Completely Blind He Defined Himself As A Landscape Painter, But Since Then, His Artworks Have Become More Complex And Mysterious
#33 Paralyzed Vietnamese Veteran Creates Stunning Artwork With His Mouth
#34 Brendan Patrick Lost His Sight Due To Complications Of Cystic Fibrosis But That Didn’t Stop Him From Painting
#35 Helen Rae Is A 77 Year Old Deaf And Completely Non Verbal Artist. In 1990, When She Was 50 Years Old, Her Mother Enrolled Her At First Street Gallery, A Local Program For Adults With Disabilities, Where She Developed Her Drawing Skills
#36 This Man Is Using His Mouth To Paint
#37 Jeffrey Ladow Uses His Mouth To Hold A Paint Brush While He Works On An Oil Painting In His Home
