Macon Magazine

Alan Gibson has never seen the world the way you and I do. Many years of graphic design work for Knight-Ridder newspapers and Macon Magazine garnered many awards, paid the mortgage and kept the car running. But Gibson is truly an artist. He loves bright colors and brighter subjects for his art. He is famous for his abstract flowers and his party panels of funky folks enjoying martinis or wine. He went through a “funky fowl” period where he painted imaginative works that landed him in a show in Highlands, N.C. “My art has always been about fun color and fun-filled living,” Gibson said. “I’ve always thought of myself as a free spirit.”

A call to Gibson’s cell phone yields a mellow Lou Reed singing “Take a Walk on the Wild Side,” but that free spirit has had to slow down a bit lately. Gibson was diagnosed with glaucoma three years ago. It progressed with deadly speed and Gibson is now blind.

Emory doctors determined the unusual type of glaucoma is genetic. His grandmother suffered from it in the 1970s. Gibson’s diagnosis and resulting blindness were devastating at first.

“Trying to apply for disability and Medicare was a complete nightmare,” Gibson said. “Not being able to drive and just go whenever I want has been the hardest. Now, though, honestly, I’ve found blessings in my situation. It’s sort of a gift not to be able to judge people on looks.”

The 45-year-old Gibson is helped by a very supportive family and loyal friends. His partner Ronnie Peavy makes it possible for Gibson to work at home. Peavy organizes everything from his paints to his bills and attached a cord, or leading line, from the house to Gibson’s workshop so he can find his way there by himself. Peavy shakes his head in disbelief when he talks about Gibson’s accomplishments as a blind artist.

“He is just amazing,” Peavy said.

How this artist has found blessings in his blindness is hard to understand until you watch him work and hear his infectious laugh, as he laughs at himself and the world.

“People keep asking me how I can keep working,” Gibson said. “But it beats the alternative. And I’ve now decided that sight is the lazy way to live. My other senses have completely taken over.”