Rosibel Pereira: The Pictoral Magic of Her Left Foot
By Luis Fernando Astorga Gatjens
When she holds the paintbrush between the toes of her left foot the cloth starts to fill with color and light, of life and hope. It's is the left foot of Rosibel Pereira Cordero, Costa Rican painter, whose cerebral palsy keeps her from using her hands.
Her creative passion was not lessened by her disability, nor has it hindered her development and growth as a plastic artist. "Because of my disability, I have had to confront many obstacles, but I overcame them one by one. There is no such thing as impossible, when you have the will," she affirms sweetly and with the certainty of one who has won many battles.
Surrounded by beautiful paintings of landscapes filled with shouting vitality, nature studies, still lives, ethereal dancers and mighty oceans, we spoke with Rosibel at the Exhibition Hall of the Costa Rican Power and Light Company. This Exhibition Hall is in San José, here the painter has opened her exhibit called "Vital Essence", since March 5, 2002.
Tenacious contender
Rosibel Pereira's disability comes from birth. There were some complications experienced by María Cordero, her mother, needing the use of forcepts. Such procedure produced a lesion that caused the cerebral palsy. Consequently, the motor system was not able to preserve balance, making walking very hard and significant loss of fine motor coordination in both hands, plus major communication difficulties.
With the persistent support from her mother, the endless number of physical and occupational therapies, and above al, Rosibel's fighting spirit and tenacious optimism, she achieved a more progressive control of her body. Today she is able to walk and to speak clearly, with her endless spring of ideas. Not just through her voice, but her artistic creations.
One common colloquial expression very common in Costa Rica to express pity is to catalog the person as "pobrecita" (poor thing). Rosibel has never tolerated this word, she rejects ii strongly, and told us proudly: "I have turned my ability into a force against pity."
"My foot is the key of life"
When asking her how and when she discovered the ability hidden in her left feet, Risible smiles graciously: "When I was just five years old, one day I dropped a pencil and I did not call my mother to pick it up. I tried to grab it with my hands, but I could not, so I took off my shoe and I picked it up. That is how I discovered, by chance, that my left foot responded to the orders of my brain at a fine motor level."
"From that moment on, my left foot became my pal and ally. It has been and is the key of my life. That foot allowed me to experience playing with dolls, like any little girl. I even bathed them. At the beginning," continued RosibeL, "my mother did not accept that method and insisted that I not use it, but I was too stubborn. When I was alone, able to take off my shoe, I would make a nice hole so my toes were freed and then was able to hold the pencil to draw."
She has always established goals to overcome her limitations and has looked for ways to achieve them: "I remember as a child, during therapy sessions they wanted to teach me with the traditional methodology. I did not feel comfortable and looked at home for other ways to do the same."
The building of an artist
Rosibel is thankful for life and God, and with many persons who, at different moments of her development, supported and motivated her to advance and grow. There are two persons, to whom she is particularly grateful for her enormous progress, like the Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier would say, in his novel, A Kingdom of this World: Her aunt a therapist.
"An aunt, who is a teacher, helped and motivated me to develop the ability with my foot." That aunt noticed that the little girl liked to draw, and used with her a useful as well as intelligent methodology which was convenient for Rosibel. The aunt and teacher would combine academic subjects like Spanish, mathematics, science, social studies with drawing. Therefore, the future painter was always painting and, learning other new things. "This is how my relationship with art continued to grow. Art became the motor of my life and it is what allows me to develop as a person." Rosibel told us.
The other person whom she always remembers with gratitude, is María Eugenia Leiva, her therapist for many years. When María Eugenia recognized the ability that Rosibel had for painting with her foot, she motivated her to continue. By doing so, not only did that therapist challenged the strict prevailing rules of rehabilitation, but allowed the opening of a wider horizon for the young artist. She supported and understood Rosibel right when she needed it most.
"The relation with art is for me a form of liberation", Rosibel stated strongly.
Of colors and oils
In 1980 Rosibel made her first exposition of original drawings, at the National Rehabilitation Center. Among the many visitors was Marina Volio, the former Costa Rican Minister of Culture. She asked Rosibel: "Would you like to add color to your art?". At the time, Rosibel's drawings were only in black and white."
Rosibel answered: "Yes, I would. I just have not had the chance yet to know and develop other techniques." After that exposition the young artist stopped being self-taught because she was awarded a Scholarship to study at the School of Fine Arts of the University of Costa Rica.
As was to be expected, the university authorities refused to accept Rosibel. Not only they were challenged to deal with a person with disabilities, but with a person with disabilities who painted and wanted to continue painting in a non-academic manner, with her left foot. At the end, her admittance was approved with the condition that she would not bother her classmates.
But her admission to the School of Fine Arts generated a great commotion. Rosibel remembers: "It was very uncomfortable at the beginning. I was the small rare thing." She continued her university studies for four years, and her acceptance was slow among the School of Fine Arts.
Rosibel learned different techniques, including chalk, acrylic, from which the artist chose oil painting: "Oils capture me, because of color, texture, and odor. It is a very kind technique."
Vital expositions
Rosibel's left foot has handled all topics like water, horses, dogs, landscapes, still lives and nature studies. "Art is a manifestation, an inviting impulse from sensitiveness. It cannot be forced or predetermined, because it is born from within," says Rosibel.
She also likes to paint water, because water is life, movement, freshness. Horses, on the other side, have the force, the movement and the provoking challenge. The artist has use all of these themes in her hundreds of paintings already shown at more than 30 national and international expositions. She has held expositions at the Organization of American States, Washington D.C., and art galleries of Miami, and in 1993 Rosibel was awarded with the United States Victory Award.
A testimony
Rosibel is an artist who paints what is full of beauty, but knows about the hard and difficult part of life. With respect to human rights disability issues, she is aware of the advances in legislation in our country during recent years: laws are in effect, but there is much to be done to have changes made where the action is, where the people need conditions to change.
As a member of the Board of Directors of the Asociación Nuevo Renacer, an organization providing lectures to community schools, high schools and universities, Rosibel is also very active in the social movement of persons with disabilities. Her goal is to foster conditions to improve the quality of life of life of people with disabilities. In this direction she is one of the representatives of persons with disabilities at Rehabilitation and Special Education Council of Costa Rica, the main coordination body of disability-related institutions in our country.
And if this was not sufficient, this dynamic, artistic, and committed woman, Rosibel is an active member of the Costa Rican Human Rights Forum for Persons with Disabilities. This is a coalition of organizations and persons with disabilities working toward social, economic, political, and cultural strengthening of persons with disabilities.
With her ideas and actions, Rosibel Pereira is a woman of the XXI Century and with her paintings and writings she is leaving an example of dreams, struggle, and endless love for life.
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