Artist Owen McCafferty listens as teacher JoAnn DePolo offers him advice on skin tone and brush strokes.

He takes in her words, nodding, before placing his face close to the canvas and getting down to business.
McCafferty, 51, is like many artists — creative and determined to express himself through his work. But he differs from most for one noticeable reason — he is visually impaired.

Born with a congenital eye disorder, McCafferty has spent his life unable to see the world clearly. He can’t drive a vehicle, and his vision is so poor it can’t be corrected with eyeglasses.

But McCafferty has always longed to create art. In the 1990s he earned a degree in graphic arts at Cuyahoga Community College, hoping to express himself through that medium.

“Unfortunately life kind of took me away from art and I wound up doing customer service work,” he said.

“There’s nothing wrong with that but I think some felt being an artist was so competitive it would be hard for me to make a living. But I want to go after my desire, my passion for art.”

Today, after longing to paint for a lifetime, McCafferty is chasing his dream. McCafferty decided it was time to paint after learning of blind artists like John Bramblitt, an American painter who took up his craft in 2001 after seizures left him without sight.

“I hooked up with JoAnn through my church in August and she’s been teaching me techniques,” he said. “In the past year I have really delved into my painting.”

DePolo said she’s seen numerous people like McCafferty, who put art off to the side 20 or 30 years ago, only to walk into a gallery and rekindle it years later.

“It’s wonderful to see someone be at a place where arts are appreciated,” she said. “Owen’s uniqueness and his talent are very much encouraged. He’s had this talent all these years and for him to find it is perfect. This is a place to grow.”

Greg McGrath has known McCafferty for nearly four decades. McGrath, 58, worked as McCafferty’s camp counselor in the 1980s and the two developed a lifelong friendship.

“For Owen, his discovery of his talent and pursuit of it, has been a great addition to his quality of life and his outlook,” McGrath said. “Through his art he is able to express and capture some of the emotions of his life experience.”

McGrath, a director of socialization and recreation at the Cleveland Sight Center, said he was floored when he saw McCafferty’s work.

“He recently donated a picture to the sight center which is just stunning,” McGrath said. “It’s a blind man with his guide dog and the man is playing a guitar. It’s just beautiful.”

McGarth, who finds everyday inspiration through interactions with people like Owen, said art is a therapeutic tool.

“For someone facing challenges, to have an outlet like art is significant,” he said. “I would encourage anyone with a disability to be involved with, or pursue, those creative outlets.”

McCafferty’s work is displayed at JoAnn DePolo Studios & Gallery, the North Olmsted City Hall and the Cleveland Sight Center. He is currently working on a painting depicting two of his friends, one pushing the other in a wheelchair.

“This is a portrait of a couple friends I know,” McCafferty said of the piece. “This one friend of mine in a wheelchair died of muscular dystrophy and he had a close friend that’s still around but struggles with health issues. I’m painting this as a gift for him.”

McCafferty said every painting is an expression of emotion, and every one tells a story. He enjoys painting topics that might inspire others.

“I feel grateful that I can succeed and show that people with disabilities can do more,” he said. “I just want to show that visually impaired people can go out and paint.”

SOURCE: Morning Journal