On the other hand:

Who pays for the stuff? When somebody else pays for the stuff and the space, they have the right to tell the people who use it what to do. They should say that up front though, and not give the impression that they are giving people choices, because that is untrue.

In William Burroughs’ “The Wild Boys,” there was a scene with an institution where a nun made all her patients work with crayons and paint despite their adult age. They drew religious pictures for her, and if they tried to draw something on their own she would punish them by forcing them to write insulting messages about themselves on her blackboard.

This has Goodie Greeny’s mentality all over it. I’d write about Kafka, a much more inviting and coherent author, but he is overused and Burroughs did a better job of satirizing doctors. He’d been in the kind of places you were sent to. It’s not even appropriate here to say what he had happen to his nun at the end.

BTW I don’t hate Catholics, just self-righteousness.

What would happen if someone introduced another concept here by going up to him first thing and saying something like “Erick. What are you choosing to do today at art?” “My name is —— and I am choosing to paint.”

It establishes him as separate from her. It recognizes his free choice and gives it merit.
It also invites him to speak. It also models free choice.

It might be enough to at least get her thinking in another direction and offers subtle support to him. It might be a first step. If it works and she is able to let go and he is able to speak up it might be something to do each time until it becomes habit for them.

I also think the idea of copying the blog or the concepts written about in the blog and giving it anonymously to the director or at least giving it to her in private would be a possibility like Robin mentioned. I would try gentle example first.

Sometimes, when someone who’s blind has a very small amount of vision, they’re encouraged to do activities that help them make use of the vision they do have, and learn to maximize their ability to understand and interpret what they do see. Unfortunately, it’s very easy to picture medical professionals declaring that drawing was therapeutic, and enforcing it on that guy without looking at what they’re really doing to him. The “I know best, and you have to keep trying at what I tell you to do because eventually I will make you better!” not-listening attitude is depressingly common.

The circles do sound like a protest. I had one mandatory “Draw because it’s considered therapeutic!” assignment (involving a therapist), and I did a bunch of triangles and colored them in. Drawing generic shapes can be a good way of sending a “I’m only doing this because you’re making me” message.

WTFery, indeed.

As for him having to really like sculpting to go there, I’m not sure whether he has any choice or whether it’s just another enforced activity for him. (My hands are too full of paint to have conversations with people while I’m there, and I’m awful at starting conversations anyway.)