Oklahoma Christian University students and faculty can experience the art, brilliance and power of people with dyslexia on display in Science Museum Oklahoma’s smART Space galleries this month. The exhibit, “Beautiful Minds – Dyslexia and the Creative Advantage,” opened Nov. 9 to the public.
According to the museum, the exhibition explores the minds, art and successes of people past and present who have or had dyslexia—from well-known entrepreneurs, artists, authors and scientists like Steve Jobs, Leonardo Da Vinci, Albert Einstein and Agatha Christie to contemporary artists John Gill of Alfred, NY, Mark Wittig of North Little Rock, AR and Holly Wilson of Mustang, OK.
“Many people have the wrong idea about what dyslexia actually is,” director of SMO’s smART Space galleries Scott Henderson said. “In ‘Beautiful Minds,’ we are using art, among other things, to show that dyslexia is not necessarily a learning disorder, but a learning difference. The exhibit will illuminate many of the misconceptions of dyslexia, educate those who aren’t familiar with it and empower those who have this common learning difference. It also shines a light on the heightened creative skills that are so commonly found in people who have dyslexia.”
The exhibition also features the artwork of dozens of students with dyslexia from Oklahoma City’s Trinity School and, through a partnership with Decoding Dyslexia Oklahoma, highlights several students who have overcome the challenges of dyslexia and gone on to notable personal and academic successes.
“In school, we gauge intelligence by one’s ability to read,” founding member of Decoding Dyslexia and parent of a student with dyslexia Michelle Keiper said. “Children who struggle to learn to read feel alone as they struggle to master what comes easily for so many. ‘Beautiful Minds’ will give children a place of acceptance while opening the minds of parents and educators to the hidden potential that goes unrecognized in the 10 to 20 percent who struggle with dyslexia.”
In addition to art and inspirational stories, guests can expect to learn about the “signifiers” of dyslexia for early intervention and resources available for children with dyslexia in Oklahoma thanks to research from the ReadWrite Center in Oklahoma City. Guests can also explore the offerings of “SuperD!ville,” a multimedia resource focusing on social and emotional learning for children with dyslexia and try their heads at brain games.
“Many world-changing discoveries, inventions and creations are attributed to people who had dyslexia,” Alyson Atchison, associate curator for SMO’s smART Space galleries, said. “‘Beautiful Minds’ will highlight a handful of those individuals in hopes we inspire confidence in young minds—we want to show that a dyslexia diagnosis doesn’t have to be seen as a problem. It can just mean that there is a different way of thinking to be embraced.”
“Beautiful Minds – Dyslexia and the Creative Advantage” will be open through July 14, 2019 and is included with general admission.
The information above comes from a Science Museum of Oklahoma press release. Science Museum Oklahoma is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. The museum is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Daily general admission is $15.95 for adults (ages 13 to 64) and $12.95 for children and seniors (ages 3 to 12 and 65 and older). Annual memberships begin at $105.
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