Monica

I am the 5th child of 7 and have 13 nieces & nephews. I was born with Total Amelia (complete absence of limbs). My mother is a very strong lady and made sure I was included in everything my brother and sister did; ie, horse and motor bike riding, going off the diving boards at the swimming pools, on trampolines.

I started using artificial limbs around the age of 9 months and had a number of them as I got older. At the age of 12 I developed a bad case of Scoliosis and had to have a rod inserted to hold me straight. I decided to give up on limbs and use an electric wheelchair full time.

I attended a “Special School” for primary education then onto a so-called “Normal” school where I completed Year 12. I have done a number of computer courses with the view to gain employment in the area but found it very difficult to convince people I could do the job, so now my Art is my business. I have my own studio space just a kilometer from Fremantle, Western Australia which is called “Mo’s Art Studio”. The name came because my teacher used to call me Mo.