Art was always in Ketra Oberlander’s blood, but she didn’t become an artist until she was 40. Ketra, who is blind, started dabbling in art by developing her own art collection.

“I'd been a collector for years, starting out by setting aside a small annual sum and going to art festivals in my area, picking out a unique piece I loved, and buying it without regret I collected on a secretary’s salary," Ketra says. "I've always had artist friends and I've always been around creators: artists, musicians, filmmakers, software developers—people that make stuff up and others give them money.”

Becoming Blind
During her late 30s, Ketra’s vision began to worsen. Diagnosed with severe myopia, a lack of color and depth perception, and cone dystrophy, Ketra was blind by the age of 40.

“It’s like staring at the sun with shortening smeared on your glasses,” is how Ketra describes her vision. “The lifestyle workarounds I can do. Activities of daily living are like a Sudoku puzzle: finding what works in what circumstance, and then rearranging to let it work. I have more difficulty with the social aspects of vision loss, like not knowing when someone is making the ‘escape from conversation’ facial expressions, that sort of thing. Not knowing if I'm boring people,” she adds with a smile.

Shortly after losing her vision, Ketra took a painting class, and her life changed. She began exhibiting her paintings and achieving recognition for her art work.

The Art of Possibility Reaches People with Disabilities
At that time Ketra was working as a writer, and she decided to explore another career path, one that would include art. The idea of art licensing as a career began to appeal to her. She began looking into finding an agent to represent her and her work. After consulting several leaders in the art licensing field, each of them encouraged Ketra to open her own studio and art licensing business. Ketra listened. Her studio and business, The Art of Possibility, opened in January 2008.

“I was filled with doubt and trepidation at first, but I did it!” Ketra says.
In March, two other artists joined the business: Enid Swift, a designer who has a rare, unpredictable neurological condition called Miller-Fisher Syndrome, and George Mendoza, a painter and athlete who lost his sight in his teens. Suzy Combs, a wildlife painter who is hard of hearing, recently signed on, too.

“I'm hoping to grow the agency to help as many physically disabled artists as possible under the Art of Possibility brand,” Ketra says. “I think we add an important perspective to the consumer goods landscape through our work and provide a meaningful connection to people interested in expressing something substantive about their character through their purchases.”

On her website, Ketra has this quote: "I don't have any business deciding what I can't do;" she observes, "people cheat themselves out of all sorts of opportunities because they think they can't do something. Well, what if they can?"

What if they can? Indeed.