Companies seek a competitive edge by hiring talented people, yet many capable workers are overlooked because they have autism. People with autism are unemployed at disproportionate levels. As a result, companies are missing out on employees able to make valuable contributions. And society at large …

Practice makes perfect. This adage applies to artist Joel Anderson.A highlight of the Mozart & The Mind Symposium June 1 in San Diego was seeing Temple Grandin emerge on canvas before our eyes. It looks effortless but Joel Anderson has been honing his Temple Grandin portrait skills for months …

This weekend I had the honor of being the convocation speaker at the opening of Clarkson University's 2015-16 academic year.  I drove there on Saturday.  If you plan a similar trip I advise bringing a powerful car, extra fuel, survival gear and defensive weaponry.The road to Potsdam runs t…

Some of Grandy’s cool Halloween costumes include dressing as a microwave, a deck, a fire alarm, and this year a tornado. By Ron Sandison When Grandy was three years old, his mother Brittany Miller noticed that he had an unusual interest in fans and light switches. These were the only things …

The Art of Autism mourns the loss of Lois Curtis in November 2022. Lois Curtis was an African American artist with intellectual and developmental disabilities and schizophrenia. Curtis paved the way for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities to get out of institutional settings and…

A look at a classic film’s depiction of autism and that developmental disability’s subsequent treatment three decades later By Nils Skudra I first watched Rain Man, a 1988 cult classic film starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, when I was much younger and in the early stages of finding out more a…

An interview with Joe Biel, founder of Microcosm Publishing, and author of “Good Trouble: Building a Successful Life & Business with Asperger’s” What age were you when you were diagnosed with Aspergers? I was 32 when I was ​first ​diagnosed​ with 99% certainty and I was 37 whe…

Inspired by an autistic sister Sasha Brathwaite has created a unique program using drumming and movement. By Ron Sandison Sasha Brathwaite, founder of Let’s Jam Percussive & Creative Movement Program has contributed to her community for years through her therapeutic, music-based program for ind…

“There’s this one thing a friend of the Dalai Lama said after being tortured and imprisoned: to solve his imprisonment, he had compassion for his torturers, not anger, but compassion. Replace anger with compassion and you get a happier person,” Ben By Nancy Lea Speer It is said that if a Great B…

Touch screen devices are a way of life for many of us. We use them not only to be productive, but also for entertainment (watching videos, playing games), tracking expenses, shopping online, reading news – you name an activity, and it’s highly likely that these devices can help us accomp…

There’s a new robot in town. Although it looks like any other toy robot, it is more of a companion, especially for children with Autism. Leka, the robot, encourages children with autism to develop social and motor skills by keeping them engaged and active. Leka has several apps that engage chi…

The average interview will force an AS person to simultaneously study themselves and the interviewer(s), deal with typical interview stress (and special anxiety from being in a new area and around a new person who is judging them), and think of good answers to hard questions. All this mental and emo…

Interview by Jenny BristolIllustration by Rebecca Burgess Chris Bonnello is an educator, writer, speaker, and advocate involved with children, adults, and society at large educating on autism-related topics. His experiences in education and writing have helped him connect with people and with cre…

Matt Asner speaks to the Art of Autism about his move from Autism Speaks to Autism Society of America, his family and his vision for the future. By Debra Muzikar You are immersed in autism. How many children do you have and what ages are the ones on the autism spectrum? I have six kids. We are a bl…