Alejandro de Esesarte remembers the day he mistakenly walked down the girls’ aisle at school — and the brutal teasing that followed. It was the moment he realized that his mind worked differently. He didn’t yet have a name for his condition, and it would take five decades until “autism” became a part of his vernacular.
Hans Asperger famously claimed that "a dash of autism is essential" if one hopes to do well in the fields of science and art. Alejandro is staking his future on that hope. Thus far, it has proven to be true for him.
"There is a certain beauty in isolation,” he says. "The mind quiets down. Sensitivity increases. Understanding expands." Alejandro channels his intense focus and need for perfection into his sculptures. Twisted, dazzling shapes that celebrate the wonder and power of the natural world.
Mermaids, peacocks, the sun and the moon. Forms that elicit a sense of mystery and intrigue. Alejandro remembers his early love of Tarzan, a figure who exists on the fringes of the human world, more at home among animals than people. "Animals do not judge or compare. They just are. The story of Tarzan is the story of autistic paradise."
For someone who was born with non-verbal autism, Alejandro has traveled an incredible path. Today he works out of his own workshop and has four employees. Through Novica, he has found a way to avoid the social pressure of selling artwork face-to-face.
Alejandro does not wish that his mind worked differently. He does not long to re-wire his brain to be more “neurotypical.” On the contrary. He has no intention of contorting himself to please society’s expectations. He has found his value and his identity through his work.
"My art gave me dignity," he says with pride. |
