Print edition: 
When Stephanie Ward opens an exhibit of 80 of her paintings and illustrations at Fiber Studio tonight, it won't be the first time she will have shown her work in an art gallery, or had pieces purchased by art enthusiasts.
At just 21 years old, she's accomplished both feats.
That by itself sets her apart from many other aspiring artists. Even more impressive is what she has accomplished despite having a brain disease called encephalopathy, which has resulted in developmental delays and other disabilities including mild retardation.
Her art is her passion, her refuge, her pride and joy.
"It relaxes me, it makes me happy," she said during an interview in her home in northeast Wichita, where she lives with her parents, Randy and Jeanne Ward.
In the past five years, Stephanie has created hundreds of works, most of them in the bright hues one might see in a child's drawing, but with an application that is both sophisticated and whimsical.
In 2006, when she was 17, she was a finalist in the USA Arts competition for young people with disabilities. She received a $2,000 prize for her piece, titled "Geisha," which hung in the Smithsonian for several months. That same year, a piece titled "Alligator on Prey" was selected to hang at the Kennedy Center's Hall of States in Washington, D.C.
She works mostly with paint markers and acrylics, creating both pure abstracts and representational abstracts in a distinctive style.
Charles Baughman, her teacher at The Art Park in Wichita, thinks Stephanie has an understanding of art that goes beyond her years and defies her cognitive abilities.
"I really do think she has a gift," he said. "Even when I teach college kids about representational (art) and abstraction, most of them can't bring the two together. But she creates a beautiful world that is dreamlike, or maybe surreal is a better way to describe it.
"I have given her a lot of instruction," he said, "but I've never tried to influence her vision because I think she has her own vision."
Stephanie is fond of creating groupings in her pieces that Baughman thinks may represent families to her. Her own family is her world, tight-knit and supportive. "I don't know where she would be without them," he said.
Jeanne Ward, an artist herself who likes to work with charcoal and stained glass, says Stephanie seemed almost obsessed with drawing and painting at age 2. By the time she was 12, her work showed a level of artistry that led her parents to seek out instruction and guidance for her.
They enrolled her in Maize High School, which integrates special needs students into regular art classes. That is where her talent really began to blossom, Jeanne said. When she was 16, she began taking classes with Baughman. She says today that her favorite artist is Picasso.
"Stephanie just draws what she draws," said Jeanne, trying to describe where her daughter's inspiration lies. "It's just how she sees the world. It's just natural for her.
