Mira Thompson explores disability aesthetics through Grant Ionatán and Finnegan Shannon's work

Mira Thompson reflects on hospital waiting room experiences, connecting them to disability aesthetics and time perception. She discusses Canadian artist Grant Ionatán, whose cystic fibrosis hospital stays inform drawings that visualize altered time perception. Thompson references Alison Kafer's concept of Crip Time from her book 'Feminist, Queer, Crip'—a non-chronological, anti-capitalist time experience for disabled and ill people. She examines Finnegan Shannon's accessible art installations, including a dark blue velvet bench with text inviting rest for those with mobility challenges. Shannon's works like 'Museum Visits Are Hard On My Body,' 'I'd Rather Be Sitting,' and 'Disarming Language' use direct messaging to highlight architectural inaccessibility in museums and galleries. These pieces incorporate pharmaceutical advertising aesthetics and address healthcare system shortcomings. Thompson analyzes how pained bodies challenge Cartesian mind-body dualism, referencing disability activists' term 'bodymind.' The article explores how bodily pain influences art creation and perception, positioning Shannon's bench as reclaiming public space for non-normative bodies.