I created an art installment that explored and celebrates the communication device supporting me in fulfilling my life. I painted the 144 icons in Acrylic and oils on 10x10 canvasses to elevate them to "high art." I wanted this piece to be huge because I had significantly transformed emotions about my communication device throughout my lifetime. I struggled with how flat and childlike the icons looked. My usual style is much more painterly, and I like to deal with light and shade. While painting the icons, I was worried people would think I did a lot of child paintings and they would miss the deeper meaning of the whole communication device. I illustrated the original icons because I wanted to introduce the broader public to the world of AAC. I hope the main piece will support others who use AAC.   

 The icons have categories of words. Similar to hieroglyphs, icons in the Unity language have multiple meanings.

Which word the communication device says is determined by the sequence of the icons the person has pressed. There could be thousands of different sequences to select. There are also pre-stored words and sentences; depending on how advanced the users are, they can store personalized words.

Likewise, their speech-language pathologist or their caregiver can help program their device. People can select the icons by touching the screen; the device can track the person's eyes, or the individual can scan the device with switches.  The Unity program provides tens of thousands with a voice.