Keagan Sweeney
Artist Bio
I am 22 years old. I have autism. My voice doesn’t work like yours so I use an AAC device to speak. Because I observe more than I participate I feel I see the world in a unique way. I see details and feel feedback from the simplicity of a piece of grass to the complexity of perspective. To me, it is quite simple. There is beauty in everything and wish people would just pause for a minute in appreciation.
My Voice
2022 Poetry Live! Special Recognition
Call upon it
summoning to come
Bribes of cookies
candies and treats
A commissioned work
if done
Like a crystal
clear creek
Crystal clear moving
with ease
Standing still transparent
Crystal clear yet
weak
Melodious monotonous
Painlessly laborsome
Effortlessly daunting
My voice
Artist Statement
It is my hope to publish a poetry book, “My Perspective / Our Perspective.”
Keagan’s’ favorite quote: “Heroes live within the hearts of small children fighting big battles.”
Comment from Keagan’s teacher, Jasmine Castigliano: “For most of her life, people did not listen when Keagan communicated. I’d like to think it was mostly because they didn’t understand the methods she used to communicate. Unfortunately, I think it was actually because they wrote her off as someone incapable of communicating, so they never even tried. About five years ago, I was gifted the best gift Keagan can give – her trust. She told me then she didn’t like to communicate in front of others with her AAC as she thought everyone would consider her a freak. Things have changed for her over the last few years… and through quite a few tears, a few dozen bags of Doritos, and enough swear words to qualify as Samuel L. Jackson’s understudy. Now Keagan stands before you ready to show you who she is. But this time it’s not because she trusts you…it’s because she trusts herself.”