Wheelchair Ballet Underwater: It's More Like Flying Than Diving - Sue Austin

When I lost my mobility, I trained as a diver – which inspired me to make a film about scuba diving in a wheelchair

I started using a wheelchair in 1996 after an extended illness that affected my mobility. Later, when I first used an electric wheelchair, I felt an amazing sense of exhilaration at being free to speed through the streets, mobile again. However, I found that people’s responses to me changed. Through artistic research, I came to understand this arose from the negative preconceptions many people attach to the wheelchair.

The idea for the underwater wheelchair came to me when I trained as a disabled diver in 2005, using fin gloves. I noticed that scuba equipment extends one’s range of activity in the world, just as a wheelchair does. However, the feeling of freedom and adventure associated with scuba equipment is far from how people generally view the wheelchair. So I wondered what would happen if I put the two together.

To read more on this story, click here: Wheelchair Ballet Underwater: It's More Like Flying Than Diving - Sue Austin



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