About Me
Hello I’m Howard Bright. I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in late 2021 when I was 43. It’s forced some significant changes and adjustments into my life, some psychological as well as the obvious physical ones. Parkinson’s has changed what I can do, and whilst it is easy to see it as a limiting condition, I have been determined to (with apologies to Churchill) keep buggering on.
It was in that spirit that I decided in Autumn 2022 to try my hand at acrylic painting. This came about because when going through the diagnosis process, one medical professional I saw talked about keeping active, and the opportunities to take up new hobbies. I replied, “well, I’m not going to take up bloody painting, am I?!” As I turned 44, partly out of rebellion against Parkinson’s, I thought I’d have a go and see if I could actually paint. I found, to my slight surprise, that I enjoyed it a lot. After a few months and many canvases, a friend jokingly referred to me as the Parkinson’s Painter, and the idea for this website was born.
This site isn’t about ‘showcasing’ the art I produce; the idea behind it is to show that Parkinson’s doesn’t have to stop you trying new things, including things that one might assume would be nigh-on impossible with Parkinson’s. That’s not to say my condition doesn’t present challenges and I want to be ‘true’ to that on this site. That means showing pieces on here also where my shaking has caused problems, or my meds have made me lose focus, or whatever. But this process isn’t about my being a ‘good painter’ (whatever that means). This is about me doing something I never thought I’d do before I got Parkinson’s, let alone now I have it.
I've been asked several times now if my paintings are for sale, and whilst that wasn't my aim for this site, the answer is yes! If you like a piece, just contact me with an offer, and I'll donate a significant proportion of the proceeds to Parkinson's UK. Speaking of which, Parkinson's UK ran a story on me in their magazine recently - Painting and Parkinson's - Howard's story | Parkinson's UK (parkinsons.org.uk) - so I finally have a claim to fame!
