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June 4, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels May 19, 2004 Aubray Abuchea's blindness doesn't stop her from creating colorful works of art. By Amanda Bolsinger Tidings Correspondent Bright, vibrant colors depict peaceful, fantastical settings in the works of artist Aubray Abuchea, but her creations are dim and vague to her own eyes. Satsuki Doi | Ashland Daily Tidings Abuchea is legally blind with a form of diabetic macular degeneration. She is only 32 years old. "I don't have central vision in my left eye. In my right eye, things are really blurry and hazy," Abuchea said. "It looks like there is a thick film over everything I see." Abuchea has been drawing and doing artwork her whole life. She once excelled in pen and ink work with complex, exacting designs. She also worked with acrylics and redecorated furniture. Now Abuchea has shifted to oil pastels because she can see (kind of) the bright colors. "It has totally changed my art," Abuchea said. "I used to do fine intricate things, now nothing is very detailed, and I use different colors." Some colors are easier then others for Abuchea to see. Reds and Yellows are her best colors, while the opposite end of the spectrum becomes indistinguishable for her. "Blues and greens and blacks are really hard for me to see," Abuchea said. "Before, when I could see and was working pen and ink, I used mainly black, and blue and purple as my favorite colors. Now I use a lot of red and yellow because they are what I can see." Abuchea's drawings come from her heart. She paints from home, usually just sitting on her floor recreating places she has been to before or would like to see again. "Because I can't see a whole lot around me, I try to create my own worlds. I feel these places in my heart and I want to be in these happy joyful places," Abuchea said. Losing her sight was a sudden transition for Abuchea, instantly transforming her entire life. But despite the obstacles now present in every-day life she remains peacefully optimistic. "It was sort of like I woke up one day and everything that I had ever thought about my life or about doing with my life was wiped away - I lost all of my coping mechanisms," Abuchea said. "I used to be really independent and now basic things like finding your way around the house or picking out clothes are hard. And it's the best thing that has ever happened to me. It has forced me to focus on what is really important in my life." Abuchea desires for people to see her art and to experience the same sense of joy and happiness that she finds in life. "I want them to feel joy and that life is good and you don't have to take it so seriously," Abuchea said. "I think it's just play for me and I want people to have that sense of play." Losing her sight has shown Abuchea aspects of life she never noticed before. The small moments, such as kindness from people and the beauty in every-day life are what she has chosen to focus on. "I feel a lot safer in the world now. Before this I would have been so scared that I couldn't have made it through," Abuchea said. "But it did happen and I did make it. I see a lot more beauty in the world and am a lot more grateful. I realize now how much I took for granted. Even the nice things people did for me I took for granted. Now I see how loving and giving people really are." DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams