By Taylor Wooten, [email protected]
An Edinburgh artist had an impressive showing at the largest juried art fair in the nation.
Two weeks ago, Shane Shannon traveled with his family to Michigan for the Ann Arbor Art Fair, where he sold 21 prints and made about $2,500.
Shannon’s work is made using acrylic paint on large, 30-by-40-inch canvases. Most of his 14 pieces are bright and colorful, depicting space scenes and imaginary worlds.
The 21 year old was diagnosed with autism when he was just two years old. Autism is known as a “spectrum” disorder because there is wide variation in the type and severity of symptoms people experience.
Symptoms can include difficulty with communication and interaction with other people, restricted interests and repetitive behaviors, and other symptoms that affect the person’s ability to function in school, work and other areas of life, according to the institute, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
At the three-day art festival, his father, Lewis Palmeter, initially took the lead in introducing his son, telling his story and discussing the art. But, as the days went on, Shannon became confident enough to introduce himself as the artist and answer any questions.
“For me, it’s simple,” Palmeter said. “People love color. It’s got lots of color. It’s got lots of things to keep your brain busy.”
The confidence he gained through the art show was even more evident after the fair when the family saw two girls at a comic book store that had visited Shannon’s tent. After Palmeter pointed out that they had viewed Shannon’s art, he had no trouble approaching and speaking to them.
“He just went right over, and I’ve never seen him do that,” Palmeter said.
For some of his life, he was nonverbal. He attended Southwestern Elementary School in Shelby County until first grade, when his family decided to homeschool him instead.
After getting into trouble in class, his family decided to let him stay home for a few days to sort out the issue. His father recounted his clever way of getting out of returning to the classroom.
“So he goes back to school three days later, walks right into the special needs room, looks the teacher right in the eye and shoves the books off the desk and goes, ‘I think I’m gonna have a bad day,’” Palmeter said.
His son was one of the only kids who knew how to read in his kindergarten class, Palmeter said.
In a group effort, each family member taught Shannon a certain subject. One of his grandmothers, Sandy Palmeter, studied art during her time at Franklin College, so she took it upon herself to teach him all she knew. Art runs in the family. Shannon’s father, grandmother and great grandmother all paint.
There was no indication of just how creative Shannon was prior to his painting. But after several years of learning from his grandmother, he’s gotten pretty good, Shannon said.
The idea to begin attending art fairs began right before the coronavirus pandemic, when Palmeter went out and bought everything his son would need, including a $3,000 tent, Palmeter said.
But, the pandemic caused art shows to be canceled. It also caused a loss of confidence in Shannon, as the twice weekly outings he had with Palmeter’s mother-in-law were put to a stop.
“I could tell COVID had really taken its toll in his self-esteem,” Palmeter said. Prior to the pandemic, Shannon was isolated due to his disability, being homeschooled and living in a rural area, he said. The pandemic added another layer.
Palmeter hopes Shannon will be able to use his art as a business when he and his wife are no longer around to support him. They’ve already got him started. At SSGalleriesLLC.com, all of his paintings are available re-printed and for a few, as originals. The prints range in size, from 8-by-10-inches to the full 30-by-40-inch originals.
Shannon is great with computers and went through a period of time when he was nearly addicted to gaming, which gives Palmeter hope his son will be able to run his own online store, he said.
“I’m trying to build him something that he can deal with when we’re gone,” Palmeter said. “So he’s trying to learn.”
Beyond that, Shannon values money highly. When he was young and had his computer time taken away for acting out, if he paid a dollar, he could get it back, Palmeter said.
“He looked right at me at about 10 years old and said, ‘I’m not giving you my money!’” Palmeter said.
While he thinks it is important for Shannon to begin developing a stable business out of his art, it is about more than just the money, he said.
“We want him to make money, but for me it’s if I can give that boy happiness, because that’s what parents are supposed to do, right?” Palmeter said.
With the success of his first art fair, Palmeter and the rest of Shannon’s family are planning to throw him a small party to celebrate and show their pride in his work.
“When we got home, I thought, ‘you know what, he did a great job,’” Palmeter said. “He made it through setup — setting up a tent — and our show. It took us about six hours. It’s a big deal.”
Some of Sandy Palmeter’s work is available on her grandson’s website, along with one painting by Lewis Palmeter. Both artists’ work feature a limited color palette that contrasts against Shannon’s bright work.
The family plans to continue developing the website and accompanying store, and will continue to enter local art fairs so Shannon can show off and sell his work.
Shannon’s next showing will be Sept. 11 at the Penrod Arts Fair, located at Newfields in Indianapolis. The fair runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and tickets are $15 pre-sale or $20 the day of the event.
