Blind student finds his flow with painting

Albert Jordan Arguilla, a blind Southwestern College Arts Major, uses watercolor to translate his vision to others.

“Let it all flow,” he said. “Let it explode like fireworks. Let the pigment and the paint do what it needs to do and then we will see what happens.”

Arguilla was born with septo-optic dysplasia, a disease that left his right eye nonfunctional and reduced vision in his left eye. Arguilla said he challenged his limits and took on painting to soothe his troubled mind. He said he wants to use art therapy to help others cope with their struggles.

Arguilla said he could not participate in simple everyday activities growing up. Teachers constantly underestimated him and his potential was never recognized. Arguilla said art became his calling as he weighed his options for his future. At first Arguilla experimented with tribal-style tattoo designs, but he found a medium suited for him when he learned about watercolors in high school.

“When I first started, it was kind of fun, overwhelming and frustrating at the same time,” he said. “I was going the same path as a normal beginner would but twice as hard.”

Arguilla made the same mistakes as many first-time artists. He occasionally bought the wrong materials and had to learn how to use them correctly.

“I ended up fighting the materials and a lot of my works turned out really good,” he said.

Arguilla said he loves how watercolors seem to have a mind of their own but his disability makes it difficult to overcome this and other simple tasks. He often fills a trashcan with paintings he deems subpar, keeping one or two that make him proud.

Other times, there are obstacles that are just too big for him. In his ceramics class, his assignment was to make six pieces using the pottery wheel. It required precise movements to get a successful piece. Arguilla’s disability prevents him from having that kind of precision.

“This is the time where I need to step up and advocate for myself,” he said. “I am really slow so my motor functions are not that great.”

Arguilla said his family is his lifeline and supported him mentally and physically through the struggles and triumphs of his self-exploration. He would not have made it this far, he said, without his family’s help.

His grandmother and aunts spread the word and the commissions for new paintings came pouring in.

His father Albert Arguilla said it is an honor to see the progression of his son’s passion, but also said he admitted to being skeptical when Jordan first started painting.

“He wants to get into something that even sighted people have a difficult time doing,” he said. “We were comparing his art to someone else’s art instead of appreciating his individuality.”

Albert said he did not realize the potential his son had until other people noticed it too. He said himself and Arguilla’s mother had a hard time thinking with an artist’s perspective, so it meant a lot when his aunts, who were also artists, praised him.

“What we should have saw was what Jordan sees,” Albert said.

His father said there were many obstacles his son had to overcome, but Jordan’s journey continues to be nothing short of amazing.

“Not a lot of people get to see the amount of hours it takes to produce one of those (paintings) for him,” he said. “Jordan will have one painting completed and a hundred that were thrown away out of frustration.”

Albert said Jordan is persistent in all things he commits to and when he fails, his dad is there to motivate him once more.

“No matter what, he wants to perfect,” he said. “If he cannot perfect it he will feel like he did not do his best.”

Arguilla said he looks to Helen Keller to remind him of his passions.

“The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision,” he said.

Arguilla’s disability also has physical tolls that he would neglect if it were not for his parents.

Arguilla takes six pills and two shots each day to stay alive. Double that amount is taken when he is sick. He said it is overwhelming for him to remember his medication with so much on his mind, but it is yet another challenge he conquers constantly.

Aside from the many battles Arguilla fights, he said he dedicates his passion for painting to show the community what he sees.

Arguilla’s former art teacher, Nicholas Mueller, said Arguilla had everything he hoped for in a student. Arguilla expressed his disability and dedication to Mueller who said he saw all the motivation he hoped for in a student.

“We do a lot of observational drawing where you sort of assume that to some degree, everyone sees things similarly,” Mueller said. “Although I’m always interested in how that’s not the case for anybody disability or not. Because we see a lot with our minds and not just with our eyes.”

Arguilla said art got him through a lot of pain and depression. Art welcomed him with open arms where regular activities failed to involve him.

“Art gives me the opportunity to express myself, share my life experiences and struggles as well as my interpretation of the world I see through my paintings,” Arguilla said. “I am a stronger, more confident, and positive person because of that.”

Arguilla said he has been able to find the healing power of art with his painting.

In his journey to become an art therapist, Arguilla is on a path to share this gift with others.

“The only thing I’ve wanted more than becoming an artist is helping people,” he said. “Whether it’s to help people through their hardships and struggles, helping them find their way in life, or helping them reach their dreams and goals through art or not. I feel like I can do all that and more by pursuing art therapy.”