Incredible sketches drawn entirely from MEMORY
Incredible sketches drawn entirely from MEMORY
Incredible sketches drawn entirely from MEMORY: Boy, nine, with autism can recreate intricate land and cityscapes after looking at them for just two minutes
- Conan Andrews is one of the few in the UK to be diagnosed with autistic savant
- This causes his autism to be ‘sensory’ and requires him to ‘express himself’
- Drawing allows Conan to ‘reset his body’ and prevents him getting frustrated
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A nine-year-old budding artist can recreate intricate landscapes and city skylines from memory after looking at a scene for just two minutes.
Conan Andrews, from Brighton, is one of the few people in the UK to be diagnosed with autistic savant, which also affects the internationally acclaimed artist Stephen Wiltshire.
The disorder allows the youngster to sketch scenes in incredible detail after seeing them just once for a few brief moments.
His mother Jonesta Andrews, 47, said: ‘Conan’s autism is sensory and his anxiety comes out in his behaviour.
‘If he doesn’t express himself, he can explode with the frustration. That is why he draws, to reset his body and calm himself down.’
Conan Andrews can draw landscapes and skylines from memory after looking at a scene for just two minutes. He is one of the few people in the UK to be diagnosed with autistic savant
Image shows Conan’s sketch of the HMS Victory. According to his mother Jonesta Andrews, he becomes ‘obsessed’ with certain topics, with war scenes being his current focus. She adds that unless Conan expresses himself via drawing he ‘explodes’ in frustration
Speaking of her son’s talents, Ms Andrews, a children’s entertainer, said: ‘Since Conan started drawing, he has never stopped. I haven’t seen anything else like it, it is quite phenomenal.
‘We went to America for Christmas and stayed in an apartment with a view of the skyline. Conan came down and drew the whole thing from memory within two minutes, it was absolutely amazing.
‘I thought “how the hell did he do that?”
‘Once he said I want to draw some boats down at the seafront.
‘He put his finger up to check the size of the buildings. You can’t train or teach him. It is a natural gift.’
Conan, who lives with his mother, father Anthony, 37, and two sisters, began drawing two years ago, with his work being put on display at a gallery exhibition in Brighton that same year.
He was diagnosed with autism last February and is one of only two people to suffer from the savant form of the condition in his home town.
WHAT IS AUTISM SAVANT?
Autistic savant refers to people with autism who have ‘extraordinary skills not exhibited by most persons’.
Some estimates suggest that of those with autism, around 10 per cent have savant abilities.
These can include math skills, superior memories, or artistic or musical abilities.
Some with autistic savant can remember everyone’s birthday even if they meet them just once and not again for another 20 years.
Others can divide large numbers in their heads or play a classical music piece after hearing it just once.
The film Rain Man featured a character played by Dustin Hoffman who had autistic savant, which made him able to memorise the telephone book and count cards in Las Vegas gambling games.
This led many to believe all autism patients have these abilities.
It is unclear why some autism patients have savant tendencies.
One theory is such patients have better concentration and focus, which they can put to one area of interest.
Source: Autism Research Institute
Conan started sketching two years ago, with his mother claiming it ‘resets his body’
In keeping with the current war theme, above is Conan’s sketch of a battleship
The youngster also drew a Huey helicopter, which were used during the Vietnam War. Conan researches the object he wishes to draw and then sketches all the details from memory
According to his mother, the self-taught artist gets ‘obsessed’ with particular subjects, which he researches at length. His current focus is World War I and II, as well as the Civil and Vietnam wars.
Ms Andrews said: ‘The pictures he does of the ships are just phenomenal.
‘We have been to museums to look at the different boats and he researched them to check all the details and then he draws them from memory with all the windows and funnels. Before he was obsessed with buildings and skylines.
‘We’ve been sitting in restaurants before with a view and he will do a drawing at the table within minutes. He’s given them to the waiters and they’re just blown away.’
Conan can also play a song on the drums after listening to it just once.
When drawing, Conan uses his fingers to gauge the size of buildings. His mother claims her son’s artistic talents are a ‘natural gift’ that cannot be taught or learned
Above is a sketch of the London skyline, which includes the Millennium Wheel and Big Ben
Inspired by a trip to the US, Conan also drew a typical American city’s skyline
Canon, who is a big football fan, has even had sketches published in the Brighton & Hove Albion’s official programme after his famous actor grandfather John Forgeham took him to a match.
Forgeham, who died in March last year and was best known for playing Frank Laslett in the ITV hit Footballers Wives, sat in the stalls with his grandson while he drew the entire stadium scene within two minutes.
In the future, Canon, who attends a mainstream school, may qualify for art scholarships due to his talents.
Ms Andrews said: ‘With his incredible skill, we could get him a scholarship into a very good school but we will have to wait and see what Conan wants.
‘He loves being in the news and the attention he gets from his friends but his interests can change from one minute to the next.
‘Drawing is his main focus at the moment and I am still learning how I can help and motivate him.’
Conan, who attends a mainstream school, may pursue art scholarships in the future
The keen football fan even got the above sketch in the Brighton & Hove Albion’s official programme after his famous actor grandfather John Forgeham took him to a match. Forgeham died in March last year and was best known for playing Frank Laslett in Footballers Wives
Conan’s above intricate sketch is based on World War II’s Battle of Britain
Tom Purser, a spokesperson for the National Autistic Society, said: ‘Although every autistic child is different, many like Conan can struggle with day-to-day experiences that others take for granted.
‘Autistic children can find unexpected changes and unpredictable and noisy environments like the school playground difficult to cope with, so they need more support to help manage their stress and anxiety.
‘An activity like art can help an autistic child to focus so that they are not completely overwhelmed by what’s going on around them.
‘Being autistic can be challenging at times but we’ve seen again and again how awareness, understanding and the right kind of support can make all the difference.’
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