Client Profile: Kevin Chunisingh

Kevin Chunisingh is spending the day painting; yesterday, he worked hard on the editing process for his films, which he made with his action camera [an Insta360]. Later on, he’ll be out exploring the beautiful vast stretch of beach close to the quiet harbour town of Burry Port in Wales, and he’ll be searching out inspiration for his paintings, which also take up much of his time. So far, so idyllic…

However, it has taken Kevin (an Attivo client) many years to reach this stage of creative endeavour, because in 2009, he had a serious accident while kitesurfing in Poole Harbour. ‘It went wrong very quickly. To cut a long story short, I was in hospital for 15 months, on my back, unable to move. It was very, very scary,’ Kevin says.

Not long after, he met and married Becky in 2004. The couple were very sporty and took every opportunity to indulge their love of the outdoors. ‘When I first arrived in the UK, I loved mountain biking, kayaking, surfing… there is nothing like seeing the back of the waves as you head out to sea.

The couple moved from Yorkshire to Sussex, then Surrey, and eventually to Wales in 2007. ‘We had discovered it as a mountain biking destination and we were back and forth from where were living, so we thought we would move permanently to the area.

‘After working at David Lloyd for two years, my visa ran out, so I had to go back into computers. But I was very aware of all the adventures people were having out on the road, so I slowly started to explore them again. But then, just as I was making those first forays into a different way of living, in 2009, I had the accident that changed everything.’

After almost a year and a half in hospital, Kevin was confronted with the reality of his new life. From being a super-active person, his world shrank to the four walls of his home. There were, though, moments of light along the way, ‘I began to paint about five years after the accident as Becky had begun an art course. At first, I was just messing around in the background, but after the course finished, I kept going. Since then, I have been painting and making short films as a way of accomplishing something – and as a way to tell a story.’

Kevin and his wife Becky divorced in 2019, and he found the next few years ‘extremely difficult. I didn’t have much support from anywhere, it was the lowest point in my life. I was alone for long periods, sometimes without food or water because of the lack of care package from the local authorities. It was really brutal’. It was only from mid-2023 that life began to improve. A change in support package meant Kevin’s basic needs were met. ‘With this in place, I was able to concentrate more on myself, before, all of my efforts were on surviving. Now, I could begin to develop my skills with the camera and focus on my painting – I was ready to start adventuring again!’

After many years of rehab, Kevin is determined to focus on what he can do, not his limitations. Time out on his ‘life-changing’ Batec Scrambler 2 Handbike enables him to capture photographs and videos of local landscapes and his current speciality, wildflowers. He is also beginning to write. ‘I’ve written a children’s story based on some of my early escapades in the UK, and in the past year and a half, I’ve been trying to get back into my adventures – and art is an extension of this.

‘I go out and see the places near me and have experiences when I’m out – and when I come home (and during the winter, when it’s hard for me to go out much), I paint from those memories. I have zero movement in my hands, I describe it to people as feeling as though I have bricks tied to my wrists and it makes any kind of movement difficult – but not impossible, and it is worth the effort. I’ve also found a special type of camera that captures the scenes outside and enables me to make short films.

‘Because of my injuries, sometimes I might have to stay in bed for two or three weeks at a stretch – unfortunately this is the problem with a spinal injury. So now I try and do as much as possible when I’m upright and healthy. When I’m not painting or seeing what more my video camera can do, I might be reading up
on how to structure a speech, as I’d like to do some public speaking. I still have that drive to achieve, and I believe I have something of value to offer. I have all of these projects that do help me cope with the darkness of the disability. I am lucky, I have the equipment that allows me to get out and about and find new places. I love to go to the beaches in Cornwall – it has my soul!’

Each time we speak, when he talks about the trips he has taken – and plans to take in the future, Kevin’s face lights up. ‘What I’d love to do is more travelling – but for me and the resources I need, it will cost money. I’d love to find sponsorship for this, but at the same time, I want to be able to offer something back for that money; it has to work for both parties.’

Life for Kevin can be isolated. In an ideal world, the chance to make friendships with those with a similar outlook on life, who he could continue to have adventures, and travel, with, would make all the difference. ‘In the summer it’s great spending time at the beach, watching the waves and lining myself up next to the kite surfers, racing alongside them from the shore. But it gets lonely. I think the loneliness comes from the lack of choice. People say hello and talk, but there’s not really much more interaction outside of that.’

What this man has in spades is resilience and determination to reach his potential.

‘My long-term plan is to travel more and document that with my films, painting and writing. I’m always looking for an outlet to achieve something. It’s not the same as before, of course, but it’s better to have something a little less than what you were than nothing at all.’

The pictures you see here were shot on a beautiful (if chilly) clear day and are great – and the photographer points out that Kevin is photogenic – he’s a good-looking guy! Subsequently, the team put him in touch with an inclusive talent agency, who are immediately interested and want to discuss potential projects. If it helps Kevin to travel and to raise some funds to get to all of his favourite places, we’ll raise a glass to that!