A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome
A Face for Picasso by Ariel Henley
Book Cover for A Face for Picasso by Ariel Henley (Henley)
Reviewed by Allyson Valdez, Isabella Vergolino-Holiday, Aaron Valenzuela, Natalie Vargas
Review:
A Face for Picasso by Ariel Henley is a coming-of-age story as Ariel Henley shares her experience with a facial disfigurement and how she navigates life. In Henley’s memoir, themes of identity and societal expectations are prominent. The theme of identity is rather important because Crouzon syndrome is a rare syndrome that alters one's physical appearance and causes the bones in the skull to fuse prematurely. Both Ariel and her sister struggled with their appearances before learning how to embrace their differences. This further implies that their identity is important and something both sisters take pride in.
Ariel Henley as a child (Livermore Lab Events)
An Excerpt from Henley's Memoir (Livermore Lab Events)
In Keywords, the keyword most fitting for A Face for Picasso would be Identity and how unique Henley's identity is both physically and emotionally as it changes through her childhood. The Keywords text states, “Many conditions I had thought of as illnesses emerged as identities in the course of my research. When one can experience a condition as an identity, one can find pride and satisfaction in it. People who don’t share such a condition with their parents must build a horizontal identity among others who do share it” (Solomon, Coats, 99). Though Crouzon syndrome does not define Henley, her experience with Crouzon syndrome is a vital part of who she is and creating her identity. By sharing her story, she allows those with physical disabilities an outlet to be heard.
A Face for Picasso is a narrative approach to understanding the effects of social beauty standards on individuals, exemplifying Henley’s personal journey towards a sense of security in her own skin while living with a unique facial disfigurement and bullying.
Ariel and her sister were born as identical twins, but became non-identical after the numerous surgeries they underwent starting at the very young age of eight months old. Due to their facial differences, Ariel and her twin experience severe bullying, causing exclusion from numerous social activities, mental health issues, and issues understanding her identity as her face continues to change through surgery. Eventually, Ariel becomes so overwhelmed from surgeries done on her face that she gets very upset every time she looks in a mirror. Ariel sees herself but does not accept that it is her real face because it is constantly changing, and she doesn't know how she is supposed to look anymore. The constant changing of her body to fit a societal ideal starts to affect Ariels mental state. To show her frustration, Ariel develops a habit lashing out at her mom.
The memoir explores different parts of Henley’s life, using the book’s structure to show both Ariel’s feelings and thoughts in the moment and her adult reflection to tackle traumatic moments. She provides footnotes to correct certain misinformation in her memories but keeps them written as is to show how impactful certain events are, so much so that they alter details in one’s life. Henley does not shy away from difficult situations, so young readers are encouraged to see Henley’s unfiltered journey towards self-acceptance and change.
She wants her to fix it and it hurts the mom a lot because she doesn't know what to do about it anymore. When they went for the cheerleader tryout, they were not given a fair chance at all. Instead of practicing with the kids their age, they were put with kids younger than them to practice. Then came the day for the audition, and they both did really great but did not get on the team because of the way they looked. The overall look on all these memories is to show how the beauty standard affected her idea on what beauty really looks like until she read about Picasso's artwork.
Biography:
Ariel Henley (Ariel Henley Website)
Ariel Henley is an author, activist, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) consultant, and a Thought Leader. She is the author of the 2021 memoir A Face for Picasso, which has won the Schneider Family Honor Book for Teens, Golden Kite Award Winner, NCSS Notable Book, and was a finalist for the YALSA-ALA Excellence in Young Adult NonFiction Award. Though both awards highlight the story’s appropriate and important approach to lessons for Young Adults, the Schneider Family Honor Book for Teens recognizes Henley’s work as an “artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences” (American Library Association). Numerous news outlets, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, have also published Henley’s work.
Henley has a BA in English and Political Science and a Master’s in Education, specializing in Organizational Leadership and Student Affairs. As expressed in her book, Henley was initially interested in teaching during her undergraduate years and, instead of becoming a teacher, offers services as a DEI consultant in the classroom with accessibility branding toolkits. These services and training extend to the corporate workplace, therapists/mental health professionals, and speaker/ panelist events. Henley's day-to-day career also includes acting as a sensitivity reader, providing editorial services for those writing a memoir or seeking guidance on publication, and working as a counselor for those with facial differences.
Henley and Her Sister (Livermore Lab Events)
Her experience as a person with a facial disfigurement leads her writing and work, specializing in ableism and lookism in a society focused heavily on appearance. In her book and line of work, Henley uses an intersectional perspective to examine how spaces can work to be more inclusive by examining one’s personal bias. Her memoir focuses on her and her twin’s experiences as individuals with a rare craniofacial disorder where the bones in the head fuse prematurely, called Crouzon syndrome. Her narrative approach and personal insight into her experiences with a disfigurement allow the audience a deeper understanding of what daily life is like for those with physical differences.
Instructional Resources:
1. Interview with Ariel Henley
This Q&A with the author discusses the book itself and representation in media, the structure of the text, and Henley's overall goal with the memoir, providing deeper insight into the author's intent when writing, the main themes of the book, and potential essay topics. Students get to read the author's perspective on the novel while forming their own, allowing them to think critically about the novel and how it applies to their own lives.
This Q&A with the author discusses the book itself and representation in media, the structure of the text, and Henley's overall goal with the memoir, providing deeper insight into the author's intent when writing, the main themes of the book, and potential essay topics. Students get to read the author's perspective on the novel while forming their own, allowing them to think critically about the novel and how it applies to their own lives.
2. Defining Ableism
This short YouTube video introduces ableism, what it means, and what it looks like to ensure that students understand what the term means and how to use it correctly when reading the book. The latter half of the video also helps students reflect on Henley's experience and see how ableism affected her school life, self-worth, and perceived value by peers and teachers.
This short YouTube video introduces ableism, what it means, and what it looks like to ensure that students understand what the term means and how to use it correctly when reading the book. The latter half of the video also helps students reflect on Henley's experience and see how ableism affected her school life, self-worth, and perceived value by peers and teachers.
3. 5 Minute Cubism Art Lesson
This is a short five-minute video on how to draw a cubism-inspired face. The video is meant for beginner artists. Students can use any art materials they have on hand (paint, colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc).
This is a short five-minute video on how to draw a cubism-inspired face. The video is meant for beginner artists. Students can use any art materials they have on hand (paint, colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc).
4. What is Cubism?
This nine-minute YouTube video explains what cubism is and why it was one of the most important art forms to be created in the 20th century.
This nine-minute YouTube video explains what cubism is and why it was one of the most important art forms to be created in the 20th century.
5. Crouzon Syndrome
Henley's syndrome and her surgeries are a vital part of her memoir, so a short video showing x-rays, complications of the condition, and the issues that arise as one grows is helpful in showing Henley's experience. Students will learn how difficult and nuanced these surgeries are as they are a hybrid of plastic surgery and health.
Henley's syndrome and her surgeries are a vital part of her memoir, so a short video showing x-rays, complications of the condition, and the issues that arise as one grows is helpful in showing Henley's experience. Students will learn how difficult and nuanced these surgeries are as they are a hybrid of plastic surgery and health.
6. Defining Ableism
This short YouTube video introduces ableism, what it means, and what it looks like to ensure that students understand what the term means and how to use it correctly when reading the book. The latter half of the video also helps students reflect on Henley's experience and see how ableism affected her school life, self-worth, and perceived value by peers and teachers.
This short YouTube video introduces ableism, what it means, and what it looks like to ensure that students understand what the term means and how to use it correctly when reading the book. The latter half of the video also helps students reflect on Henley's experience and see how ableism affected her school life, self-worth, and perceived value by peers and teachers.
7. The Effects of Bullying
This resource is a concise but digestible read on the effects of bullying on the victim, the bully, and the bystanders. Students can draw connections from what the article states, their own lives, and the text, specifically focusing on the characteristics Henley displays as both a victim and a bully to her sister.
This resource is a concise but digestible read on the effects of bullying on the victim, the bully, and the bystanders. Students can draw connections from what the article states, their own lives, and the text, specifically focusing on the characteristics Henley displays as both a victim and a bully to her sister.
8. Picasso and Women in His Life
This article provides a brief summary, pictures, and Picasso paintings of the women in the artist's life, which are frequently mentioned in the book but not depicted. This article will provide a good visual aid and recap of the women Henley mentions, providing students with a way to gauge how they are portrayed and how they connect to ideas of beauty.
This article provides a brief summary, pictures, and Picasso paintings of the women in the artist's life, which are frequently mentioned in the book but not depicted. This article will provide a good visual aid and recap of the women Henley mentions, providing students with a way to gauge how they are portrayed and how they connect to ideas of beauty.
Instructional Activity:
Preview:
In the book, A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome, Henley finds herself and her sister consistently being compared to Picasso's work. This activity is structured as a mini-group research project. Students will draw on their personal knowledge and use outside materials to gain an understanding of keywords throughout the book and their importance to real-world concepts of identity and ableism. Students will then use their new findings to draw a connection between Ariel's story and the relevance of Picasso and cubism to her story and present their findings in a concise and condensed presentation.
California Common Core Standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.4
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.4.C
Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word to determine or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.7
Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further research and investigation.
Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with pertinent descriptions, facts, details, and examples; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.4.C
Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries, thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word to determine or clarify its precise meaning or its part of speech.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.7
Conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further research and investigation.
Resources and Preparation:
Students will need:
- Access to the internet.
- Access to Canva, Google Slides, or Prezi (to create presentations).
- Access to the following links that students can use to answer each question:
What is Cubism?
Who is Picasso?
Instructional Plan:
This is a one-day activity that would be done at the end of the book. It should take about 50 minutes dependent on class size.
Step One: Disperse students into small groups.
Step Two: Give students 20 minutes to answer the questions posed on the worksheet and create a presentation to exemplify their findings.
Step Three: For the remaining 25 minutes, each group will give a short presentation on their research.
Bibliography
Coats, Karen. "Identity." Keywords for Children's Literature, edited by Philip Nel, Lissa Paul, and Nina Christensen, NYU Press, 2021, pp. 98-101.
Henley, Ariel. “Ariel Henley.” Ariel Henley Website, www.arielhenley.com/.
Livermore Lab Events. “LLESA Speaker Series | Ariel Henley: A Face for Picasso.” YouTube, YouTube, 19 Oct. 2022, www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqilIQoL_i4.
