DORAL, Florida — When Fernando Davila was 8 years old in Colombia, he failed an art class because he drew donkeys red.
There was a reason for this: he was colorblind.
Now 72, Davila is an established and respected artist whose vibrant paintings have been exhibited in South America, Europe and the United States.
“I have the greatest job in the world—I paint every morning,” Davila says from his studio in suburban Miami. “Mixing colors. Sharing joy with the world is truly my passion.”
He began painting only in black and white until he was 30 years old, due to color blindness, a congenital condition that makes it difficult so that people can distinguish between certain colors, especially red and green, and shades of color. There is no cure for this condition, which also causes Davila to confuse the colors pink, purple, turquoise and yellow-green.
Since the mid-1980s, Davila painted in color using glasses designed by an ophthalmologist in New York, where Davila lived at the time. One lens is clear and the other is tinted red, and they help him differentiate between contrasting shades that usually blend together. With lenses he can see almost two-thirds of the colors, but without them he only sees about 40% of the colors.
Davila compared his condition to having a box of chocolates but only being able to eat some of them. He says he has such a strong desire to see every color.
“That’s what I miss in life: If someone says, ‘Look at that flower,’ hot hot pink, I want to do that,” he said. “This is what comes so passionately from my heart. I feel the vibration of color.”
His family is ruled by color blindness. His grandfather and several great-uncles saw only black and white, and his mother and her three sisters were also color blind, although the condition is less common in women. His two brothers also have trouble distinguishing colors.
Davila spent his career in Colombia, New York and Florida. In 1999, he was awarded the “Order of Democracy” by the Colombian Congress for his contributions to the arts. He has also published two hardcover books and numerous catalogs of his paintings, and his work has been exhibited at major auctions including Christie's and Sotheby's.
His paintings include romantic images of men and women embracing and landscapes, often using the color blue as a base.
“I think color is one of the most important things in life,” he said. – And especially for me.
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Mike Schneider in Orlando, Florida, contributed to this report.
