46 THE NEW BARKER 
www.TheNewBarker.com
The artwork on the cover of this 
edition of The New Barker was a col-
laborative effort by Patti Gay and 
her adult nonverbal autistic son, 
Noah. During her career as an illus-
trator and art director, working on 
everything from greeting cards to 
children’s books, Patti always took 
pleasure in collaborating with a 
team to create the right image. 
Working with Noah comes natural-
ly for her. Ever since Noah was a lit-
tle boy, Patti made sure that art ther-
apy was part of his daily life. 
      ”I could tell that he enjoyed the 
sensations, textures, and colors that 
came with painting with his fingers, 
rollers, and sponges,” said Patti. 
      She always loved Noah’s art and 
often thought of framing his work 
as-is.  Then, one day, Patti looked at 
one of his paintings and was inspired 
to use it in one of her sketches. She 
began scanning hundreds of Noah’s 
art works into her computer. She 
would create brand new images of 
birds, animals, and beach scenes 
using nothing but Noah’s art as her 
palette. 
      That’s when the idea of Two 
Can Art came to her, more than 10 
years ago. Today, their collaborative 
works of art are licensed to appear 
on a variety of products including 
plates, napkins, mugs, rugs, pillows, 
greeting cards, and more. Some of 
the companies Patti works with, 
like PaperProducts Design (PPD), 
donate a percentage of their sales 
from Two Can Art to autistic-led 
advocacy organizations and family 
support resources. All of the 
proceeds from Two Can Art goes 
into an account that they have set 
aside for Noah. 
      After she scans Noah’s textures, 
Patti works on a sketch of what she 
will be creating. She then scans that 
sketch into her computer and uses it as a reference 
for piecing together the textures to create an image.  
     “It’s interesting to see the differ-
ence between this work and the 
work I do individually,” Patti said. 
“The textures create something 
entirely different. It’s also intriguing 
to see how Noah’s textures are 
influencing my other work as well. I 
think the process has evolved me as 
an artist. I can see it in both this col-
lection as well as my other work.” 
     Describe your studio. 
Our home studio is in the Santa 
Cruz mountains. The natural setting 
provides a wealth of inspiration and 
beauty of both the mountains and 
the ocean. “I have a big window that 
overlooks my backyard where I can 
view the wisteria blooms, orange 
tree and a cascade of yellow roses. 
Lots of chickadees and steller’s jays 
visit our backyard.  
      Do you listen to music while 
you work? I tend to like it quiet. It 
helps with my focus. Noah typically 
does painting on the weekends in 
the afternoons. I have a huge roll of 
paper that I pull out along with a 
variety of paints and ways to apply. 
The foam paints are his very 
favorite. He loves the feel of them 
on his hands.  
     Favorite colors? I am drawn to 
blues but don’t really have a favorite 
color. Noah is drawn to things that 
are yellow.  
     Always on my desk or close 
at hand. It would have to be my 
drawing pad for the computer. It is 
an incredible tool that helps me 
develop images. 
     A day in the life... 
Our morning routine consists of us 
is getting Noah up, showered and 
dressed. His dad makes him gluten-
free pancakes. I tend to work while 
Noah’s aide, Aimee, is here during 
the week. They work on life and 
academic skills, and then take long  
      
walks through our mountain neighborhood  where 
      
Noah knows all of the neighbors. 
Touched By Art
“I am inspired by 
people who are brave 
in their kindness.”
Patti Gay and her son, Noah at the easel.
Patti Gay, artist and collaborator 
with her son Noah.
by Anna Cooke

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