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Artists' ability in focus through shadows

A pair of Malaysian shadow puppets will dazzle visitors to Bunbury’s Paisley Square tomorrow as part of Mental Health Week Exhibition 2013.

The puppets, created by Art Partners duo Zoe Hogan and Anne-Marie Hastwell, will be on display alongside a range of other works as part of a showcase raising awareness of mental health issues.

Art Partners is a mentorship program which matches people living with a disability with mentors and they participate in a mainstream art class together.

The program is designed to integrate people living with a disability into the wider community to combat the isolation and loneliness which can lead to feelings of depression.

“Zoe has high functioning autism so conversational skills are not her strong suit,” mum Kim Hogan said.

“She will go to the beach and draw Picasso like paintings in the sand and but when people come up to her and compliment her work she doesn’t know how to respond.

“She finds it very hard to express herself but art is one way that she is able to accomplish that.”

Works by eight Art Partners participants will feature in the Mental Health Week 2013 Exhibition which runs from 9.30am to 1pm tomorrow at Paisley Square.