Recap: Art and disability

An Overview of the February 2026 Understanding Ableism Webinar: “The Intersection Between Art and Disability

By Sara Marshall, AmeriCorps KCDC Coordinator 

(Watch the webinar here on our YouTube channel.)

Intro 

The February Understanding Ableism webinar, which took place on Feb. 17, explored how art and disability intersect as sites of creativity, resistance and belonging. Panelists reflected on how disability shapes artistic expression, how creative spaces often reproduce ableist norms and how the arts can offer alternative ways of understanding value, productivity and connection. Throughout the discussion, panelists emphasized that art is not only a professional pursuit but also a deeply human practice that can foster empathy, community and collective care. 

Background on Panelists 

Kristin Nygaard is the Program Director of AIM Seattle, a grassroots organization that provides adaptive arts education and artistic experiences in accessible and welcoming environments. Nygaard shared how artistic expression allows internal experiences to become tangible, describing music and dance as powerful tools for storytelling and connection. For her, disability has profoundly shaped how bodies communicate meaning, opening new ways of understanding movement, creativity and whose bodies are allowed to tell stories through art. 

Lucy Bert serves as the Executive Assistant for the Disability Empowerment Center and brings a multidisciplinary artistic background to the panel. With a classical theater BFA from Cornish College of the Arts, Bert spoke about navigating professional theater spaces while maintaining personal creative practices including writing, sewing, drawing and painting. She reflected on how expectations of professionalism in the arts often center neurotypical and able-bodied norms, limiting whose work is taken seriously and how disability is allowed to show up in creative spaces. 

Teresa Thuman is the Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Sound Theatre Company, an organization dedicated to amplifying stories that reflect the dignity and diversity of human experience. Thuman discussed how disability justice and artistic practice are deeply intertwined, emphasizing creativity as a necessary skill for adaptation, resilience and empathy. She described the arts as uniquely suited to challenge dominant narratives and create spaces where disabled people can imagine new ways of being together. 

Key Takeaways 

Panelists shared that disability has a profound influence on how artistic expression is defined and practiced. Rather than limiting creativity, disability can expand the ways artists understand bodies, movement, storytelling and meaning. While continually challenging, experiences such as losing mobility or navigating access needs can open new perspectives on how stories are told and who has the authority to tell them, challenging narrow definitions of artistry rooted in able-bodied norms. 

A recurring theme was the expectation of neurotypical, able-bodied professionalism within artistic and vocational spaces. Panelists described how deviations from these standards are often treated as barriers rather than natural variations. In some cases, artists with disabilities are expected to create work that explicitly centers disability, while other aspects of their lived experience are dismissed or undervalued. Panelists emphasized that art created by disabled people does not need to justify its relevance by foregrounding disability in obvious ways; instead, it reflects deeply personal and specific ways of interacting with the world. 

Panelists also discussed the tension between creativity and productivity, particularly in a culture that prioritizes financial independence and output. The longstanding stereotype of the “starving artist” was examined through a disability lens, with panelists noting how expectations of unpaid labor, flexibility, and financial instability disproportionately exclude disabled artists. Compensation, cultural respect and sustainable pathways into artistic spaces were identified as essential components of access. 

At the same time, panelists emphasized the communal power of art. Artistic spaces can foster organic connection, empathy and belonging by revealing shared emotional experiences that transcend visible differences. Panelists described how art can create new ways of understanding oneself and others, offering opportunities for mutual recognition and collective meaning-making. 

Ultimately, the panel underscored the need to listen to disabled artists, expand entry points into creative spaces and move beyond minimal compliance toward genuine inclusion. By valuing disabled creativity, compensating artists fairly and integrating art into daily life rather than isolating it as a specialized pursuit, panelists argued that society can better reflect the full range of human experience.