‘Coming here gave me back my independence’
Andrea Hope (35) has been blind since birth. Originally from Wales, she moved to Northern Ireland in 2004 and has been part of Open Arts’ visual art group for four years. She is also on the group’s board of directors and is a member of the choir and the d
❝ At Open Art classes the tutors are great at explaining things to us and giving us new ideas
When I moved to Northern Ireland in 2004 I wanted to join a choir and found the Open Arts had one.
Since then the group has become a big part of my life. As well as the choir, I go to art classes, am a member of the Luminous Soul dance group and take part in Gamelan, which is an Indonesian percussive orchestral type of music from Java, and I am also on the charity’s board.
I came to Northern Ireland to do a foundation degree in music and, had it not been for the Open Arts choir and their support and encouragement, I wouldn’t have gone on to do a music degree.
Open Arts really allows people to reach their goals whatever they may be and more. Sometimes you don’t even realise that you have surpassed what you want to achieve.
Because I’m visually impaired I never thought that I could do visual arts. At the classes we work with textiles which allows me to ‘feel it’.
The art classes have such fantastic facilitators who are determined to help people achieve their goals and it’s the same with dance. To be part of a professional dance company for disabled people and go out and perform is something which is fantastic for me as someone who is blind.
There is a real family atmosphere (in the classes) and that is so special.
I’m from Wales and moved to a college in England when I was 16. There I became friends with someone from Northern Ireland, which is how I ended up here. Coming to Belfast gave me back my independence. I also have a guide dog, Debbie, who I couldn’t be without.
People here are so helpful and it is the little things that make such a big difference; just being able to get on the bus and go into town is brilliant, there is a real sense of freedom in that.
And taking part in classes with Open Arts takes that a little bit further too.
I was at an awards ceremony for guide dogs in London when I met my partner, Diane.
She was there with her dog. My dog saw her dog and it was puppy love.
The dogs are both retired now and living together and we’re also together. Diane came over to live here from Brighton in October 2015 and we got engaged in December that year.
We are both completely blind and Diane also goes to Open Arts. People say it must be hard (to be blind) and sometimes it is. I wouldn’t have any understanding of colour but there are other ways to see things — through touch, for example. At Open Arts classes the tutors are great at explaining things to us and giving us new ideas.
For the exhibition we worked with textiles, putting fabric on canvas.
It is about creating something which shows how we perceive things and how we would like it to look. It is nice that the exhibition will show people what our abilities are.”