AMAZING ARTIST

Born with congenital glaucoma and anterior segment dysgenesis, 14-year-old Ayesha Moore has undergone about 20 ophthalmic procedures during her young lifetime, not counting numerous examinations under anaesthesia. Corneal opacities limited her vision since birth, and recently, a gradually progressive keratopathy is threatening the remaining functional vision in her right eye so that limbal stem cell therapy and deep lamellar keratoplasty are now being considered.

However, Ayesha’s story is of interest for reasons beyond her complex ophthalmic history, because it should be told that Ayesha excels in school and is a talented artist who at the request of her ophthalmologist, Ken Nischal MD, created the beguiling cartoon logo for the World Society of Paediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (WSPOS). These details about Ayesha serve as an inspiring reminder to all that disability is not synonymous with inability.

“Ayesha has always demonstrated a remarkable spirit and resolve despite being affected by low vision. She developed interest in drawing at a very early age, and it was a natural evolution to invite her to design two novel characters for the WSPOS logo. Of course, she was delighted by the opportunity, but not half as happy as we were that she accepted the charge and produced two fantastic cartoon figures,” said Dr Nischal, executive director of WSPOS.

“Ophthalmologists can’t always make their patients see 20/20, but we need to approach children as a whole and inspire them to achieve their maximum potential. By supporting a child’s aspirations, physicians can have an immeasurable positive effect,” he told EuroTimes.

Ayesha came under the care of Dr Nischal at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London soon after her birth in Frimley, England. A few years ago, Dr Nischal joined the faculty of the University of Pittsburgh, where he is professor of ophthalmology and director, paediatric ophthalmology, strabismus and adult motility. He continues to see Ayesha in the London private practice he maintains.

Ayesha’s father, Jim Moore, told EuroTimes that she has retained functional eyesight far longer than anticipated thanks to the excellent care she’s received. However, she’s faced an ongoing battle in which advancing corneal neovascularisation and opacification is now threatening her sight. Use of optical coherence tomography as a noncontact method to visualise the palisades of Vogt where the limbal stem cells are believed to reside was developed at the University of Pittsburgh. Ayesha will undergo evaluation there to determine if limbal stem cell deficiency underlies her condition.

Ayesha’s father recalls that she has loved to draw since the time she could take pencil to paper. Although she has an incredible visual memory, because of her low vision, she has no visual recollection for realistic details. Therefore, the artwork she produces is in a cartoon style influenced by the animated programmes she’s seen on television and the Internet.

A gallery of Ayesha’s drawings is available online (www.ayeshamoore.com), and while she is gratified to be sharing her creations with the world through that website, Ayesha’s dream is to build a career on her artistic talent.

“Ayesha does well in her academic studies, but art is her true passion, and while she finds enjoyment in drawing, Ayesha, like other creative people, gets particular fulfillment from having an audience for her work. It is partly for that reason that she was especially pleased to draw the cartoon logo for WSPOS,” Mr Moore said.

“Knowing her sight is deteriorating and with the future uncertain, Ayesha is very keen to do as much as she can as an artist while she is able, and she would be thrilled to have offers for more projects. Most importantly, Ayesha wants people to not make assumptions about her based on her visual impairment. Ayesha would say, ‘Just give me a chance, and I will show you what I can do.’”

Illustrations by Ayesha Moore, including illustration for WSPOS logo (below)

www.wspos.org