On Feb. 23, freshman Ayaan Jariwala showcased and sold his artwork at the Annual Ramadan Bazaar hosted by the Islamic Society of Chester County at West Chester University. Conestoga faculty, including Social Studies and World Language teacher Kevin Nerz, English teacher Melissa Pacitti and guidance counselor Brian Samson, attended the event and purchased art pieces from Jariwala.
“Some of his knowledge of history is incredible, and some of his drawings were based on historical events, so every drawing has a detailed story behind it,” Pacitti said. “When we went to his art show, that’s when I realized that it wasn’t just (about) his drawings, it’s the stories that he can tell you behind each drawing, which is really impressive.”
Jariwala, who was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) at age 4, discovered his talent for art at a young age. DMD is a rare genetic disorder that prevents the creation of the protein dystrophin, leading to progressive muscle weakness over time.
In Dec. 2021, when he was 11, Jariwala hosted his first art exhibition and auction in India. The event, called “Project Legacy,” was organized with the help of his classmates and teachers at the Riverside School in Ahmedabad, India. The following year, in 2022, Jariwala entered and won first place in UNESCO’s “The Water We Want” art competition for his drawing “The Rainbow Farm.”
“The topic of this drawing is canals and farming,” Jariwala said. “If you see the art you will find it very colorful. I created this huge farm with a variety of crops, a lot of flowers, a huge dam and a canal. I also represented a couple of facts and events such as the green revolution.”
When he was 12, Jariwala exhibited his art at an event hosted by the organization Raw Collaborative over the course of five to six days. Later that year, he sold his artwork at a charity dinner auction, raising over 10 million Indian rupees. Jariwala’s family uses a large portion of the money to pay for his treatment for DMD, including exon skipping and gene therapy that target mRNA and DNA, respectively.
“We were very shocked to know about his condition, and at that time, the world was completely dark about how our son would live and in what direction because all parents want (is for) their kids to move forward in some field. We were a little taken aback,” said Sandhya Jariwala, Ayaan Jariwala’s mother. “But then slowly and gradually, we saw that (Ayaan was) moving towards art, and his art had been recognized. So we also got motivated, and we feel happy that the world has not ended here in spite of his condition. There (are) positive things coming in his life.”
In 2021, Sandhya Jariwala started an instagram account, @ayaanjariwala, sharing her son’s journey where he has also been recognized by news outlets in India. The family moved to the U.S. in Oct. 2024 so that Sandhya Jariwala could pursue her master’s degree. According to Ayaan Jariwala, being able to exhibit and sell his art has benefited him greatly, from his first showcase in India to his most recent art sale at the Ramadan Bazaar at West Chester University.
“I got a chance to express my knowledge, and of course (art is) the reason why I got so much recognition. It actually helped me socialize, it helped me get some support, it helped me create my own identity, even in such difficult hardships,” Ayaan Jariwala said. “When I first started, I did this just for fun, (and) it came out to be pretty unique. People started loving it, and that’s how I found my own identity.”
Vanessa Chen can be reached at [email protected].
