Kim Miller

EXPRESS+YOURSELF.+Miller+makes+sketches%2C+but+she+also+makes+clay+art.+One+thing+she+makes+out+of+clay+are+masks+that+show+different+emotions.+One+mask+she+created+was+to+represent+how+one+feels+after+hours+of+crying-+she+etched+tears+into+her+mask.+She+said+that+it+is+as+if+the+tears+scar+her+face.

Maya Goldenberg

EXPRESS YOURSELF. Miller makes sketches, but she also makes clay art. One thing she makes out of clay are masks that show different emotions. One mask she created was to represent how one feels after hours of crying- she etched tears into her mask. She said that it is as if the tears scar her face.

Kim Miller is an artist who was diagnosed with autism. When Miller was in kindergarten, she struggled to communicate which is common with certain types of autism.

Her teacher began to worry that she was not absorbing what was being taught. That was until one night Miller’s mom noticed that her daughter was repeatedly drawing something.

Curious about the intention of her daughter’s art, Miller’s mom, Eileen Miller, showed it to the teacher on the following day.

As it turns out, the drawings demonstrated what Miller was being taught in kindergarten. From then on, Miller’s mother realized that art could act as a way to communicate with her daughter.

Eileen wrote “The Girl Who Spoke with Pictures,” about her journey with Kim. Miller continued with art, even after she learned to better communicate. She uses it as a tool, helping her to make greater sense of the world.

“Art helps me solve my problems or even understand a concept that seems foreign to me. It is much easier to have it out in front of me so that I can easily analyze it,” Miller said.