Born Anxious is a homegrown clothing label with two objectives, to make the clothes as comfortable as possible, whilst also remaining planet friendly, and to hold important information that will aim to help not only the child, but also the caregiver as well when required. As an autism mum myself, I have thought about what could help me and other caregivers whilst trying to be as generic as possible within the designs, alongside giving those the opportunity to personalise their products as well.
My name is Dez, and I am a self-taught autistic artist born and raised in Manchester, England.
I was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder in my 20s and now early in my 40s, I have had the late diagnosis of Autism and I am currently going through a diagnosis of ADHD.
I have created artwork on a free app on my phone over the years but started to really focus on it around 2018. Realising how much creating art helped me with my condition I wanted to promote this and decided to give myself the artist name Loveartpix.
I use art as my own personal therapy to express my heightened emotional states when they become to overwhelming. Creating art helps me to focus and to channel my erratic thoughts. This has become a positive pattern that I use daily as a life skill and coping strategy which I feel many others could benefit from.
My autistic diagnosis has changed my life in so many ways and everything finally makes sense in relation to how and why I see the world in the way I do. I blog about some of the highs and lows which affect me personally to help spread awareness of the neurodivergent condition and help me process and digest it to.
I am a strong believer in helping others and over the years of creating artwork, I have donated some of these works to charities, enabling them to raise thousands of pounds in auction. Some of the charities I am proud to be affiliated with include The Maggie Oliver Foundation, NSPCC and RMHC.
Being self-taught and very emotionally driven, a lot of my artwork comes from the mood I am in at the time. If something triggers an emotion in me then I try to express it through my art. A lot of my artwork is focussed on Manchester or my neurodivergent condition. My artwork can be printed on most things, but I tend to have it printed onto glass and framed and then I like to add resin and other mediums as i feel it gives the art layers.
Some of my art collections can be found in and around Manchester including Oxford Road and Victoria Rail Station. My artwork can also be found in Blackpool, around Cumbria and even in France, at the Normandy Memorial Trust – see Blogs on my website for more details.
Art has really changed my life and I have met some amazing inspirational people who have been very supportive and continue to help me with my endeavours to spread awareness of being a neurodivergent adult in a neurotypical world.
Each year has been more productive than the last, which I hope will continue to grow. In 2022 I visited schools and prisons to help with education through art therapy and I was also nominated for my first award as ‘Rising Star/Emerging Talent’ by ‘This is Manchester Awards’. Since I am self-taught, this was a huge achievement for me and only spurs me on more.
Away from art I am strong on self-education and mindfulness. My condition plays a strong part in my life as it affects every aspect, so I try to manage this with positive thinking, structure and patterns. I want to build my platform as an artist to help break the stigma around neurodiverse conditions and normalise speaking and being open about this topic without fear of negative judgment.
Moving forward some of my goals include launching my first art exhibition which will promote being neurodivergent. I am currently involved with a film company who are making a documentary on the affects my condition has on my life and how art has made such a positive impact.
I feel very blessed to have found art and creativity, not only is it my passion, but it is also my daily lifeline.
