FARMINGTON – Donna Asmussen sees the world much brighter and hears the world much louder than the rest of us, since a fall left her with a head injury.

Nevertheless, her paintings depict the picturesque landscapes that surround her, whether it be a rolling blueberry field, a surging stream or Maine’s rocky coastline, surprisingly true to form.

And while a head injury would make most pack up their palettes and paint, for Asmussen, of Mount Vernon, it was the perfect time to bring them out.

“Art was always in the background,” she said, making reference to the artistic genes in her family that came from her dad, a painter, and transferred to her and her brother, a cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle. “After the injury, it just became what I did and afterward, it made perfect sense.”

A former teacher and a consultant for the state’s Department of Education regarding students with disabilities, Asmussen’s life took an ironic twist in February of 2002 when a hard fall left her with a head injury.

That injury caused her to be so hypersensitive to light and sound that she must wear dark contacts and thick opaque sunglasses, even indoors, and not be in places where there is a lot of background noise or music playing. The time her mind can focus without tiring is short, meaning she can’t work a full-time job. “It keeps my life very quiet and contained,” she joked.

While her work as an educator used to consume her life, now Asmussen’s passion is for painting, something she toyed with several times throughout her life but took up seriously as a way to balance her mind, and body, after the injury.

Go with the flow

Due to the light and sound sensitivity, she can’t paint outdoors although she does paint the outdoors. So, she goes to places she loves. The beauty around her, the smells, tastes, feelings and sights, infuse her senses and then she heads back indoors and paints what she remembers.

Meanwhile, her hypersensitive eyes can now see through the dark of night, which means she can paint night scenes that most artists wouldn’t be able to see.

“I paint what I love,” she explained. “Whatever is in my head that day just comes out on paper. I just paint. You have to flow with it. I think flowing with painting and flowing with healing from an injury go hand in hand. What happens in your life, you learn to flow with and learn to live with.”

Art is healing for Asmussen, but her greatest joy is bringing nature into the homes of people who purchase her work. “My paintings make people feel peaceful,” she said.

They also make her feel peaceful. “Giving in to my art and just relaxing is healing. It is what I love.”

Through painting, she has found a network of caring artists who help man her booth at shows when she becomes tired and overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle and needs to lie down.

She also has found a chance to give back, donating 30 percent of sales from a painting titled “Peace Prayer” to the Seeds of Peace Camp. The painting, which depicts a powerful dove, came in a vision she had after 9-11 of a dove rising out of the smoke and rubble. The background of the painting appears a textured purple, but in fact is the fusion of the red and blues of an American flag blended together.

“Life changing illness or injury happens. For a while I was fighting the artistic part inside me. Now, it’s finally had a chance to come out.”

Donna Asmussen’s exhibit, Art Journeys, is on display at Braided Steams Gallery at 155 Front St. in Farmington. The exhibit runs through the end of August.

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