Needham Market autistic artist Tom Coomber shares the world the way he sees it
Tom Coomber sees things differently from most people. Autism heightens his senses. Colours are more vivid. Smells and sounds more intense.
At times it can make the world a troubling place. But when he picks up a paintbrush he can share his feelings and experiences in a way that could otherwise be incredibly hard.
Art has brought him joy for as long as he can remember. And last year marked a pinnacle of achievement when one of his paintings was shortlisted for the prestigious Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.
He is being helped to bring his talent to a wider audience by Art Rabble, a social enterprise that showcases work online by artists with challenging conditions and disabilities.
Its founder Lisa Lim describes him as one of their brightest stars.
Tom, who is 25, lives in Needham Market with his mum, dad and sister, and their dog Willow. He was born in Chelmsford, and went to school in Essex before moving to Suffolk in 2007.
“I was diagnosed as autistic when I was five. I don’t remember anything about that,” he says.“That was along with dyspraxia and some issues with sensory processing. The dyslexia and cluttering diagnoses came when I was 18.”
He is keen to encourage people to use the right words to describe someone as autistic, rather than saying they ‘have autism’.
“We talk about this in the way you would about someone being deaf rather than having deafness,” he explains.
Speaking about its impact on his life, he says: “I don’t know any different, just as many readers won’t know what its like not to be autistic.
“It’s a bit like being left handed. At the moment most people are right handed and so the world is set up for right handed people.”
Tom discovered his creative side at a very early age, helped by the fact there were art and craft materials readily available at home.
“Ever since I was very, very young, there were drawing things, an easel and chalk board, finger paints, cardboard boxes for gluing, playdough and rollers and cutters around nearly all the time.
“I enjoyed using them and, of course, practice makes perfect. My family always loved my work and would display it and ask me questions about it.
“I’d just draw or paint things that interested me whether that was toys I was interested in, stories or landscapes.”
It didn’t take him long to realise that he wanted art to be more than a hobby.
“I wrote down that I wanted to be an artist for the first time when I was eight. My ambition has never changed.
“Other jobs would get in the way of me being an artist, I would never stop making paintings, drawings and models.”
Growing up, he was hesitant about sharing his pictures with anyone outside his family.
“At first I was very nervous about showing people my work, but my mum would show friends who were artists and art teachers, and they would also encourage me, or give me technical advice for example about canvas preparation.
“Hannah Aria, an artist in Ipswich, has been a great help and encouragement. Jane Spencer-Rolfe, a neighbour in Needham, has also been very encouraging.
“I think being autistic gives me a good focus and since I left college in July I’ve been able to focus on making art.
“My parents looked round for exhibitions and I also opened my studio in June as part of the Suffolk Open Studios event, and will do that again this year.
“I use our garage as a studio. I really enjoy it in the summer with the door wide open. I can see people and dogs going past on the pavement, but I don’t think I’m very visible.
“Last year I was lucky enough to have a bursary place on the Art Safari event in Woodbridge and painted en plein air (outside) for the first time
“It was very enjoyable as it was a lovely day and we were in a nice place. I’ll probably do some more this summer.”
Tom’s style of painting is bold and vibrant. He uses acrylic paints because he feels they suit his aims, and way of working.
“Acrylic paints dry quickly so it’s easy to paint layers over a couple of days, or paint over bits I am not happy with in the picture.
“They are very bright colours, and I think the overall effect is to show people what I see when I look around the world.
“My senses are very heightened – I experience colour, smell, sound and texture more intensely than neurotypical people.
“Autistic people have more nerve endings and so we do see the world differently. This makes the world quite a tiring, stressful place to be at times.”
His subjects are varied. “I prefer landscapes to figures. I have painted the same view a few times, of some scenes in Needham Market,” he says.
Having a picture shortlisted for the Royal Academy exhibition was a huge achievement for Tom.
“That was very exciting,” he says. “It was a great day when we went to London to drop the painting off, the atmosphere was brilliant at the RA.”
Every year some 13,000 entries are submitted, with about 4,000 making it through to the shortlist. But of those only around a quarter eventually go on show.
“Sadly, we had to go up again to collect it, and unfortunately that turned out to be the day when the chosen artists were having their party,” he recalls.
There is often a degree of misunderstanding about what it means to be autistic.
Tom says: “Autistic people have certain reputations which aren’t necessarily accurate. Neurotypical people think we are loners, but actually many of us are lonely and find it difficult to meet people and make friends. There is a theory that we are very gifted at maths or code cracking, and for those that are interested in those things, they will want to practise these skills a lot and probably improve.
“Others are left cold by these interests, and it is almost painful to have to try and do them.”
For Tom, it is art that has transformed his life, and he has plans to further develop his skills.
“My art is something that other people value, and my skill is admired which is a nice experience.
“My paintings are a way of showing beautiful or quirky things, or both, that I see as I move around our shared world.
“I don’t really know what I could do if I didn’t have art.
“Painting makes me really happy, and the whole business of being an artist, helping at exhibitions, being an expert and able to talk to other artists as an equal gives me a lot of confidence and makes me realise how much I do know.
“I want to carry on developing my skills and am going to do a life drawing course this year in Ipswich, and am looking at an oil painting course.
“I may not use these skills to make any pictures for myself, but I want to keep learning new things.”
He adds: “I would like to have a warmer studio, or live somewhere I can have the door wide open all year round to work.”
He discovered Art Rabble after a friend of the family passed on their details. “We got in contact and were really pleased that they were interested in helping me.
“It’s tiring for me to try and organise and present my work, how to get people to see it, so any help that way is very useful.
Art Rabble was set up in 2022. As a social enterprise its primary aim is to do social good not make large profits. Fifty per cent of the profits from each sale goes to the artist.
It also aims to challenge stereotypes about disability and recognise the skills of its artists by paying them directly for sales of their work which includes framed prints and greetings cards.
To see more of Tom and his fellow artists, and to buy their work, go to art-rabble.org
Lisa says that unlike much of the artwork you see on the high street, Art Rabble invites you to get to know your artist; who they are, where they’re from and, most importantly, where they’re going.
“Understanding what they have experienced, hearing about their life as you may not have before, is really inspirational. We felt that Art Rabble should be affordable art, with a story to tell.”
Their artists live with a wide range of conditions. Some have Down’s syndrome, or learning disabilities. Autism, dyslexia, mental health challenges, Parkinson’s disease, and fibromyalgia are among the challenges that others face.
Lisa says the aim is to support those who can struggle to get their work into bricks and mortar galleries and exhibitions.
“This is not because they are lacking in talent but that they face barriers that other artists may not.”
She adds: “Unlike charities we do not apply for funding or grants, nor do we have an army of volunteers in the background, we try and stand on our own two feet.
“With the support of like-minded, art-loving, people, we can make a real difference.”
