Disabled artist builds art career

March 18, 2012 (CROWN POINT, Ind.) (WLS) -- A young adult with Down syndrome is hoping to build a career using her abstract artistic talent.

Angela Baltzersen, 24, spends hours working on her drawings at home in northwest Indiana.

"She has always loved to color ," said her mother, Judy. "Most Down's kids we know love coloring but she would go through coloring books at least once a week, but after she finished school she would just sit and draw all the time. Basically all she did was draw and she went from colorful kind of stuff to line drawings.

"She made patterns out of the lines and her sister was here one day and she says Mom I think this is pretty cool I think you should mat them and frame them. I think she could sell them."

Angela is the youngest in her family.

"She was in a special education class but she had special classes with regular classes. She reads and she writes . Probablyat second- to third-grade level on most things. I would guess she's considered moderate mentally handicapped but she does well at reading, She understands, she does simple math."

Angela's mom said she was not able to find a job after high school because of the economy.

"When she graduated, she worked vocational rehab to find a job and the jobs were scarce with the economy and now they're even worst as of Last August."

Last fall, Angela started selling her artwork.

"We took her originals and matted them and framed them and Maria's Hallmark in town allowed her last fall to come in for their holiday open house and she featured Angie."

She had a table set-up with all of her artwork and she got to meet people."

She made a little bit of money to recover some of her costs.

Angela's designs sells from $45 to $125 depending on the size.

Art is her passion

"I like it very much and I do it like every day and every night," Angela said.

This is just the beginning.

"She wants to do some art classes, she wanted to go away to school," her mom said. "There is a school in Wisconsin, that 's called Sheppard's Collge and...for years it has been like home for adults with mental handicaps and so just about three or four years ago they began a college. She wanted to go there. She was going to do foods. She decided after she could sell some of her art and people liked her art that maybe that's what she wants to do. She didn't want to cook anymore.

Angela says she had bigger dreams.

"I like to plan for my future. Maybe sometime in the future, I would like my own studio and have going to New York City.

To learn more about her artwork, visit her website at www.aneladesigns.com

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