Self-Advocate Businesses

Geoffrey Mikol is a professional artist that owns River Bend Gallery with his family, in historic Galena, Illinois. As a person born with Down syndrome, Geoffrey has found a special connection with photography as a means of expressing himself. His artwork is stunning and often technically difficult, catching elusive light that the eye sees but that cameras often miss.

At Rosemerry Sparkle, Britni Allen handcrafts each piece, thoughtfully selecting colors that bring her unique vision to life. The name Rosemerry Sparkle reflects Britni's character and embodies the love, joy, and excitement she pours into every creation.

On December 9th, 2022, Santiago becomes the first artist with Down syndrome and autism to release an NFT collection of 1,000 unique artworks. Santiago paints in an abstract expressionist style, hence the collection name: ABSTRACTO. Santiago is 16 years old and non-verbal, but his art speaks loud and clear.

Over the course of 5 months, Santiago painted over 200 paintings. The artist used a diverse range of materials, including oil paint, acrylic paint, gesso, oil pastel, and charcoal. Santiago’s paintings were all scanned to digital format. Next, following an algorithmic editing technique, different elements of the paintings were combined to create brand new digital artworks. As such, Santiago’s 200 physical paintings yielded 1,000 unique digital artworks comprising the complete ABSTRACTO collection.

Santiago is the main beneficiary of the collection, and this will provide for access to specialized care for the rest of his life. Santiago's loved ones opted to give the artist a platform for him to shine on his own, and for him to create value in the world through his art. ABSTRACTO is meant for those who see the human sensibility of Santiago’s story, and for collectors of fine art by emerging artists from underrepresented minorities. Furthermore, ABSTRACTO champions the Down syndrome and autism communities. A portion of the proceeds is destined towards donations to the National Down Syndrome Society, and the National Autism Association. Santiago embraced what makes him different. Instead of looking at his disability as a weakness, he turned it into his greatest strength. That is because what makes Santiago unique is exactly what gives him a distinct artistic perspective, and what makes his art special.

Visit the website and the Twitter page @SantiagoMakesArt.
 

Art truly captured Sophia's imagination and become her heart-felt and focused way to express herself. Through camps and classes, she has worked in painting, drawing and pottery. She especially loves Chinese watercolor painting. She brings an infectious sense of joy, humor and exuberance to life and to her art, which can be found through sophiola.

SuperBradyShop is an online store created by siblings, Brady & Alexx, to showcase their SuperBrady books and Brady's InspirART prints. This dynamic duo wrote and illustrated two SuperBrady children's books together. Now, they have created a line of themed art prints for kids' bedrooms that highlight Brady's hand-drawn artwork. They hope Brady's art will inspire children to see the abilities in others, as well as to believe in their own talents and in all that is possible.

The Upside Down Collection's mission is to shine a light on all with special needs and their often overlooked abilities. We offer handmade, everyday jewelry created with love by Lucy. It is our way of supporting all of those with differing abilities and honoring God for all His creation.

Jacob is an advocate for the Down syndrome community who creates awesome, hand-painted doormats and apparel. Jacob started making doormats for his family as a hobby and had so many requests he decided to turn my hobby into a business! He wants to show that people with Down syndrome can do anything.

Troy, a potter who was born with Down syndrome hand makes each piece of pottery, sometimes with a little help from his mom. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of each item will be donated to Ruby's Rainbow and other non-profit organizations that are making the world a better place. We're so excited to offer his one of kind pottery pieces to you!

At Two Fresh Brothers, we design, craft, and ship delicious-smelling air fresheners nationwide. Founded by Eli and Malachi in rural northern Illinois, our journey began with a desire to overcome limited options for jobs and find ways to use our skills and creativity to make our own mark on the world. Shop now and freshen up your life, one air freshener at a time! 

Zoie's ART-21 is an online business featuring a collection of vibrant printed inspired and painted by Zoie. Zoie's paintings are an external expression of her inward sense of her inward sense of Joy. Her enthusiasm for color is a direct reflection of the happiness she exudes along with a genuine hope that her Art elicits those same feelings of happiness in the world around her.