Ari Kerssens

Ari Kerssens, 28, is a Dutch-Kiwi hailing from Tāmaki Makaurau. He perceived the loss of his sight, as a 19 year old makeup artist, as an end to his career as a creative. Thankfully, after several years, he realised he was quite incorrect; and is now a passionate advocate for disability within and beyond the arts. He loves empowering creatives to explore their practice beyond the constraints of vision, and doing so himself; being currently on a journey of learning accessible music production after two years in his band. When he’s not creating, Ari works as an accessibility advocate and consultant, volunteers for Retina New Zealand, writes, manages the Free Fares to Freedom campaign, and and loves to travel and socialise whenever he can.