Page 15 - Post Stroke Hobbies Exhibition 2016

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Painting - Netherlands (Marline Fritzius Foundation)

I would like to tell about painting with aphasia. The ‘Marline
Fritzius Foundation’ funds studios where people can paint under
supervision of professional artists. This is thanks to the legacy of
Marline Fritzius who was a drawer, painter and actress. She got
aphasia after an operation when she was 40 years old.

Marline discovered how stimulating and even healing it was to
think in pictures while her language was affected. She stimulated
other people with aphasia to express themselves through paint-
ing as well and wanted to use her studio in Amsterdam for this
purpose.

However, she would never see the official opening happen. Mar-
line died on December 23rd, 2006 when she was 70 years old.
Her name lives on through the Foundation.

Although I used to be a sportsman who wasn’t interested in arts
at all, I went to the studio after my stroke. I had to find a new
hobby because of my paralysis.

It turned out to be painting. People make such beautiful, mov-
ing pictures, despite their affected language. I paint with a group
every Tuesday. We paint, have fun and sometimes wipe away a
few tears.