In 2009, Sarah Richter opened her eyes and discovered she had triple vision; literally, she saw three of everything. That—along with fatigue, eye pain, vertigo and other symptoms—eventually led to an MS diagnosis.
As an artist, her diagnosis put the wheels of creativity into motion. In 2012, Sarah’s installation titled Infinite Refraction was featured at Hinterland Art Space in Denver. Designed to give viewers a sense of what Sarah saw and felt when she had triple vision, the installation was both stunning and disorienting.
Today, Sarah is a Master of Fine Arts candidate at the University of Denver in the Emergent Digital Practices program, which strives to bring together art, design, media, culture and technology studies. After years of study and honing her skills as an artist, she’s now on the cusp of launching a new MS-inspired installation, Sensory Paradox.
This time the exhibit will be a multi-disciplined, interactive experience with individual elements representing Sarah’s interpretations of some common MS symptoms. Sensory Paradox will feature elements inspired by fatigue, vertigo, visual changes and auditory distortions, to name a few.
But perhaps the most unique element of Sensory Paradox will be its location and audience: the exhibit will be installed in the Art Gallery at the Fulginiti Pavilion for Bioethics and Humanities on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus—just steps away from Sarah’s MS treatment team at the Rocky Mountain MS Center. The gallery is open to the public, attracting hospital visitors, patients, medical professionals, students and community members.
Sarah’s exhibit will be the fourteenth since the space opened three years ago to almost 22,000 visitors. The Art Gallery is dedicated to bridging the cultural divide between science and art in order to explore the most essential questions about human experience: who we are and how we care for one another. This installation is especially relevant since Sarah receives care at the University of Colorado Hospital. It will provide an amazing opportunity for the medical staff who know her as a patient to meet her as an artist.
“In my experience of living with this condition, I’ve found it to be a fluid and dynamic process,” says Sarah. “Symptoms can change and heal over time, new symptoms can occur, and all of these physical occurrences change the way I perceive and interact in the world.”
Sarah’s interpretations of MS symptoms will be illustrated through video, imagery, audio and sculpture.
“When reviewing the lists of multiple sclerosis symptoms, it’s challenging to imagine what the experience is like for people who live with the disease every day. It’s especially challenging when we consider that MS symptoms and severity greatly vary from one person to the next, come and go, and are often invisible.”
“It’s a fluctuating landscape with effects that are negative, positive and often unexpected,” said Sarah. “These symptoms are painful, and sometimes they’re beautiful and inspiring, too.”
Sensory Paradox opens December 10, and runs through March 3, 2016. The gallery is free and open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Patients and visitors to the Anschutz Medical Campus can make the short walk or take advantage of the free campus shuttle service to get to the Fulginiti Pavilion.
Sensory Paradox is made possible with the help of the Rocky Mountain MS Center and Teva Pharmaceuticals.