Disabilities haven't hindered these talented artists

Manuel LLobera Capella was born in 1990 in Geesthacht. His talent was recognizable at a quite an early age. His medium is acrylics and oil paintings and he is well-known for being a master at invoking the masterpieces of artists like Cezanne, Gauguin and Matisse. The painting shown here, "Der Raucher" (The Smoker) is acrylic on canvas.

This bronze sculpture was created by Hans Jürgen Heinze, an artist who is both blind and deaf. He has lived and worked in a creative workshop in Lobetal since 1967. Since 2007, he has shared an atelier with ceramic artist Gudrun Sailer in Eberswalde. His remarkable Talent is evident in this piece, titled "Frau mit geflochtenem Haar" (Woman with braided hair).

Felt tip pen and acrylic on cardboard: That's the medium Willfried Kassner chose for his self-portrait with a jet fighter. The colors of the markers are mixed, making them pop off the page and giving the artwork an appearance as though they have been especially created as corporate design. In his works, Kassner prefers strong imagery like technology, ships, rockets, airplanes and fireworks.

Martin Vosswinkel, was born in Erlangen in 1963. An award-winning artist, he has received numerous grants. He currently runs an art workshop in Rothenburg. His composition shown here "Punktlandung" (Spot On) is made of acrylic, India ink and three layers of acrylic glass, giving it a dimensional effect.

The same face was portrayed 70 times in these 70 self-portraits by Stephan Kramer (1949-2015). The mentally ill artist titled his mammoth masterpiece, in which he confronted his life, "Taming the Demons." He received a box of paint supplies as a gift in 1979 and began to paint. His style was quick and expressive. Even after his death, the artist's paintings are sought after for exhibitions.

Boleslaw Jankowski makes art out of a variety of materials, including plaster and cardboard. He creates three-dimensional paintings, finished prints and sculptures. Shown here is his wooden sculpture, "2 Brothers." Jankowski has worked in Bremen at the Blaumeier art studio since 1992.

Florian Schmerer is a regular visitor at the Amos art studio in Kassel. At his vocational school, he sketched circuit wiring diagrams, buildings and machines. Now, his Job involves deciphering, improving and implementing technical drawings. He needs a wheelchair to get around, which is something he deals with in this painting, picture "Stolpersteine" (Stumbling Blocks).

The artist Schanna Saranzew was born in Russia in 1976 and now lives in Bielefeld, where she is an active participant at an artists' house known as Künstlerhaus Lydda in Bethel. She began her career with small sketches; today, her pictures fill wall-sized canvasses and often have the motif of mother and child. She is inspired by classical Russian symbolism.

Mustaphaa El Ayachi was born in Malaga, Spain, in 1977. Although he is physically and mentally disabled, the artist produces work at a very high level. His paints are quickly and spontaneously produced, as if coming out of his subconscious. His work has been presented in a number of shows. These nine portraits show the lively, unsettled sides of the artist.

This work by Jürgen Rudy is not officially a apart of the "Kunst trotz(t) Handicap" (Art Despite Handicap) exhibition now showing in Kassel. He produced the work in two pieces for the high walls of the city's Documenta hall. The pieces both measure eight-by-four meters (26-by-13 feet), a colorful, knitted centerpiece that Rudy spent months shaping into its amorphous form.