MY CLASSIC LIFE AS AN ARTIST:
A PORTRAIT OF LARRY BISSONNETTE

A Documentary Film (21 Minutes) produced by Douglas Biklen* and Zach Rossetti and written by Larry Bissonnette.

This documentary shows a day in the life of outsider, Vermont artist Larry Bissonnette. Bissonnette reveals his wit from the very beginning of the film as he describes how he experiences autism:

Sonic sensitivity, placidity in personal relationships, loose personal hygiene, language processing problems, primitive, plastic social skills, kooky behaviors, activities limited by obsessive routines, gastronomical choices stuck on McDonalds, rote learning habits: this is a summary of autism’s daily impact on my life.

Looking back on his years of living in a closed institution for people labeled mentally retarded, he assesses this form of “apartheid” as “better for growing vegetables rather than people.” He describes his entry into art as a way of “keeping busy as powerless to communicate young child.” This is a documentary filled with Bissonnette’s humorous but also poignant assessments of his life, including this one about labeling: “Fastening labels on people is like leasing cars with destinations determined beforehand.”

 The documentary also reveals many examples of the complexities of expression, as Bissonnette moves back and forth from speech to typing to painting, and should therefore be of extreme interest to parents, teachers, and others who are concerned about how to support the communication of people with speech differences.

 

*As the dean of Syracuse University's School of Education, Douglas Biklen is working to bring the lessons of inclusiveness to the next generation of educators. To learn more about the programs, policies and visions of the School of Education, visit http://soeweb.syr.edu.