ELLIS & JASON

Picture conversations between me                  and my son

The Big Blue Hug began as a way to communicate with my son, Ellis. It changed our lives and now we are sharing our story with you.

Ellis has AUTISM. When Ellis was 5 years old, he could barely speak. In fact, he could not even relate to me as person. To Ellis, 'Daddy' meant: that person who got things he desired. When I discovered Ellis 'thinks in pictures' everything changed. I began drawing to support my verbal communication with Ellis and we had our first breakthrough. He understood me much better when I added drawings to our conversations. Only a few months later, he began drawing back to me. 

Big Blue Hug was inspired by a drawing Ellis made on the chalkboard to ask me for a bed time hug. I was so touched by the drawing that I wanted to celebrate it. Framing a photograph of a chalkboard drawing did not do justice to this amazing gesture. So I photographed the chalkboard drawing, placed the photo under glass and traced it with a glass paint. WOW! It was so beautiful! I felt that our picture conversations were important and I needed to share them with others. Now I had a way to do it. Big Blue Hug was born!

Our Vision: Big blue Hug is my way of giving Ellis the opportunity to develop life skills by participating in the family business. As the business grows, we will make Big Blue Hug a hub for others with special needs to contribute in a meaningful way to a meaningful project. Our dream is that one day the Big Blue Hug will thrive as a studio with a special needs team. People will love our art and products because our team's unique skills and point-of-view will make our art special. Here's to the future!

If you like our story, you will love our ART!

Learn more about what  makes our art so original and beautiful here!
Learn more about how to Picture Talk here!