Whispered insults, social isolation, and lost opportunities — Morn Chear is channeling the stigma he has endured since he lost both his hands a decade ago into artwork that highlights the hardships of Cambodia’s disabled.

At 20, he was electrocuted in a construction accident and both his hands developed gangrene, pushing doctors to amputate them below the elbow.

“I was depressed, I did not know what I could do to earn money to feed my family,” he tells AFP of the shock he felt when he woke up from surgery.

Ten years later, Chear has found his place at an arts collective based in Siem Reap, where he specializes in Linocut block printing — a technique rarely used in Cambodia.