Johnny Carroll-Pell is a young artist from Brighton who is diagnosed as severely autistic. Though he finds verbal communication challenging, he finds expression through painting. To coincide with the first major exhibition of his paintings at the Phoenix Art Gallery in Brighton, this book contains 100 pictures celebrating his art. The title replicates his popular Facebook page ‘Art By Johnny’ and several further exhibitions planned around the country. The paintings and photos here are selected by his parents, Henry Normal and Angela Pell, who have written a book about bringing Johnny up called A Normal Family.
Johnny is also the subject of several BBC Radio 4 shows, a couple of poetry books written by his dad, and the inspiration for the film Snow Cake, written by his mum. Edited by Henry Normal.
Many artists would envy the spontaneity and freedom of expression that Johnny shows as he paints - and the joyous and arresting results speak for themselves. Years ago, we used to say that people with autism showed no emotion and had no imagination: looking at these beautiful paintings makes me ashamed that we could ever have been so blind. Jane Asher - President, National Autistic Society