Giusiana Prosser, an artist who advocates for rare disease awareness, poses for a photo as this year’s Ms. Wheelchair Northwest.
courtesy photo
MONROE — When Giusiana Prosser paints, she doesn’t start with a sketch or a plan. She doesn’t even rinse her brush. Instead, she mixes emotion straight onto the canvas—using only black, white, and blue—and lets grief, resilience, and rage guide the strokes.
“I typically only paint when I am feeling strong emotions,” Prosser said. “The emotion is literally being transferred onto the canvas.”
For the 22-year-old Monroe resident, painting began as a way to cope with the pain doctors dismissed for years. After a major abdominal surgery in 2020, Prosser picked up a paintbrush while recovering in a hotel room. It wasn’t until a year later, in the depths of worsening symptoms and increasing disability, that painting became something more than a way to pass the time—it became a lifeline.
Now, Prosser is preparing to represent the Northwest in the national Ms. Wheelchair USA competition, to be held July 14–20 in Northeast Ohio. A documentary filming team will be following the contestants, and Prosser knows the cameras may capture vulnerable moments.
“Knowing that I could have a medical episode and knowing it could be out there for people to see is a little bit scary,” Prosser said, “but it’ll be okay.”
More than a pageant, Ms. Wheelchair USA centers advocacy, community, and visibility for women with disabilities. Prosser’s platform is focused on rare diseases and the dangerous delays many patients face in diagnosis.
“Everybody deserves medical care. Everybody deserves to be believed,” Prosser said. “You’re not just a patient—you are a person.”
Prosser’s diagnoses came after a long battle through the health care system. Like many rare disease patients, she spent years without answers.
“I had to go so many places just to be taken seriously,” Prosser said. “So many people are told the pain is in their head. I want people to know that they don’t have to be alone — and that they are worth fighting for.”
That experience inspired her to found the Rare Living Foundation, a grassroots organization focused on storytelling, education, and legislative advocacy.
“There are over 10,000 rare diseases, and yet so many of us feel like we’re the only ones living with them,” Prosser said. “I wanted to create a space where people could find each other, find hope, and maybe even find better care.”
As part of her awareness work, Prosser will also have her own float in the Easter Parade in Snohomish on April 19. The float will be covered in names of rare diseases — a literal vehicle for visibility.
Prosser’s art carries that same mission. At markets and art shows, she’s often approached by strangers who are moved to tears by her work.
“I want people to feel seen when they see my art,” Prosser said. “Obviously I don’t want people to relate to my pain, but I want to be a visual voice for people who are struggling.”
Her signature style — loose brushstrokes, a cool grayscale palette, and deeply emotional scenes — was born the night she painted while crying on the floor at midnight. That painting, the first she ever shared publicly, drew thousands of comments and reactions from people who related to it.
“That’s when I knew — this is what I’m supposed to do with my art,” Prosser said.
