‘Embracing Possibility’ exhibit highlights lives, accomplishments of people with disabilities

The collective voices of Gifted Harmony Choir floated through the packed atrium of the Tubman Museum last Sunday at the opening of a new exhibit.

“I see trees of green, red roses too. I see them bloom for me and you. And I think to myself what a wonderful world,” sang the group — members of an organization focused on music accessibility for people with special needs.

Gifted Harmony performed “Oh Happy Day” and “It’s a Wonderful World” in honor of the “Embracing Possibility” exhibit, which chronicles disability justice in Macon through the eyes of people with disabilities, including art and interactive
scenarios.

“It is a tapestry of the collective work of the people of Georgia who have gone out to impact the world with (their) gift,” said Derona King, a citizen advocacy coordinator and founder of Story Matters, who spoke at the opening ceremony.

The “Embracing Possibility” exhibit spans two floors of the Tubman Museum and begins with an overview of the history of disability discrimination, the fight for justice and the laws leading to change.

King read a brief statement of purpose as written in the exhibit program: “To shift the narrative, inviting visitors to witness the power, dignity and capacities of people with disabilities.”

Other parts of the exhibit include a library and sensory room, a film room and other art created by individuals with disabilities.

Art is a form of resistance, according to Georgia state director at the Southern Poverty Law Center Y.T. Bell.

“This (president’s) administration is doing all the deliberate efforts to reduce some of the guidance, provisions and regulations,” she said.

Derek Heard, a self-advocate, artist and founder of graphic art company Derek’s Doodles, contributed art
to the collaborative visual story being told through the exhibit.

“I want to break free of all negativities on how so many people view me because I am more than a diagnosis,” he told folks at the opening exhibit.

King expressed hope for the exhibit to shift visitors’ perceptions of those who are deemed different and encourage folks to
find a common thread.

“[People with disabilities] are the normal people of our society,” James Butler told the audience at the museum Sunday. “We wear faces, y’all. They don’t. They are who they are.”

Butler is a land surveyor for Lamar County and also serves as a member of the Community Advisory Council at Georgia
State University’s Center for Leadership in Disability.

Fiber artist Beth Mount has six “Spirit Keeper” quilts featured in the “Embracing Possibility” exhibit.

Mount coined the term “Spirit Keeper” to describe how her quilts are meant to strengthen and radiate people’s spirit out to the community.

“That is what I felt called to do with my artistry,” she said of the African-American story quilting tradition.

Much of her work is a collaborative effort of “untold stories being woven together.” One quilt displayed on the first floor
of the museum features the work of 40 different people. Mount’s “Cultivating Support Quilt” includes a border of hand prints, each quilted by a different direct support staff member who helps people with disabilities.

“The work people have done in Georgia has had influence all over the world, but it’s easy not to see that, and it’s easy not to know the story,” she said, especially the stories of African-Americans.

Mount, who grew up in Georgia and has lived in New York City for three decades, has a background in person-centered
planning for individuals with disabilities. Person-centered planning is a visual life planning process which helps people hone in on their strengths, aspirations and potential.

Part of the exhibit features people with disabilities highlighted in a visual display made of yarn, including MAPS (Making
Action Plans) and PATH (Planning Alternative Tomorrows with Hope).

Naomi Williams’ son, Noah, is featured on the PATH board. Noah is an abstract artist and endurance athlete who has
spastic quadraplegia cerebral palsy.

A book series, sold at the Tubman Museum’s gift shop his grandmother wrote called Adventures in Noahland tells the
story of his accomplishments and his life with his mother.

“He does the same things as others, he just does it differently,” Naomi said of the first “Adventures in Noahland” book theme.

The books are meant to help kids open up and have conversations about the disabilities community.

“It’s giving people a platform of not being afraid or ashamed and a place where they can say, ‘Oh well, I know somebody
like that, too,’” she said.

Naomi said she felt encouraged by the large turnout of people at the exhibit’s opening ceremony.

“That has really restored a piece of me and given me a little bit more faith in humanity — in believing that as Noah becomes an adult with disabilities that he will be okay,” Naomi said.

“Embracing Possibility” will be on display at the Tubman Museum from now until June 16, 2026. There will be related workshops, book readings, activities and community mural making throughout the year.