Remembering the quadriplegic artist who drew the outback without using his hands
Tracy Dodd showing her grandson Alistair Brookes the work of the Gunggari artist at the Roma on Bungil Gallery. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article contains the name and image of a person who has died, used with the permission of their family.
An unfinished drawing of a turtle shell sits in a quiet south-west Queensland studio surrounded by pens and pencils bearing distinct teeth marks.
One of the last drawings Bill Dodd started before he died of cancer in late 2024, along with some of his chewed up pens and pencils. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
It is the final, unfinished piece by Gunggari artist Bill Dodd, who spent decades creating art without holding a pen in his hands.
Instead, his detailed images of horses, birds, and country were brought to life by a pen held tightly between his teeth.
Born and raised in the small town of Mitchell, about seven hours west of Brisbane, Mr Dodd spent decades teaching himself to draw while paralysed from the chest down.
Artwork by Bill Dodd on display at the Terra-Rara Rare Earth exhibition at Roma on Bungil Gallery in July 2026. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
"He taught us the everyday struggles, you just deal with them, because he's been tetraplegic [also known as quadriplegic] for so long," his wife Tracy Dodd said.
Just three days before his 18th birthday Mr Dodd was swimming in a local river.
Diving headfirst into the water he hit the riverbank, breaking his neck and damaging his spinal cord.
Since becoming quadriplegic Bill Dodd has published several books and created hundreds of drawings. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
The active young footy player was suddenly living a life in a wheelchair.
"He thought his life was over," Ms Dodd said.
"Before the accident, he was a big sportsperson, on his horse all the time. He loved boxing, football and he was fit."
Gunggari artist and writer Bill Dodd with his wife Tracy Dodd. (Supplied: Tracy Dodd)
Mr Dodd would eventually find an outlet in writing and drawing.
"Someone asked him one day to write down his thoughts and put pen to paper," Ms Dodd said.
"Once he started he never stopped, and it turns out he's very talented."
'I loved him for him'
Tracy Dodd in front of artwork by late husband Bill Dodd, which she says just scratches the surface of creations over the years. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
Ms Dodd met Bill years after his accident.
She said he quietly carried a heavy emotional weight.
"It was sad to think that this man had lived for so long thinking he was hard work," she said.
A poem written by Gunggari artist Bill Dodd after he became quadriplegic while diving into a river. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
"You don't go without because you think that you're a burden.
"I wanted him to live a life outside of the hospital. I wanted him to see that someone loved him for him and who he is."
Even after being diagnosed with advanced bladder cancer in 2024, Mr Dodd never complained.
Today, Ms Dodd still finds chewed-up pens through the house.
Tracy Dodd (middle-right), her daughter Kayla (right) and Kayla's husband Lane Brookes and two kids Alistair and Elsie. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
"He was one of a kind. For someone who couldn't move he had such a big presence," she said.
"Our life was so much different to everyone else's, but it worked. It worked for us.
"He deserved everything we could give him."
A lasting legacy
Now, Mr Dodd's lifelong craft is being shared with the world.
The First Nations art collective he belonged to, Yimbaya Maranoa, has dedicated their new Terra-Rara Rare Earth exhibition to his memory at the Roma on Bungil Gallery.
Bill Dodd's stepdaughter Kayla Brookes with her daughter Elsie Brookes. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
For fellow member and Gunggari artist Vernessa Fien, who knew Mr Dodd her entire life, curating the exhibition was bittersweet.
"It's hard not to get emotional about it. He's achieved so much," Ms Fien said.
"He's written a book, poetry, he's done writing and artworks, and he was a very good sportsperson and cattleman.
"I think he'd be very humble in his thoughts in that we were doing something for him."
Tracy Dodd stands in front of artwork by her husband, Bill Dodd, on display at the Roma on Bungil Gallery in July 2026. She says the exhibit just scratches the surface of the drawings he created over the years. (ABC Southern Qld: Bella Munro)
Walking down the hallway, looking at the decades of work hanging on the walls, Ms Dodd felt a wave of emotion.
"Bill's family, my children, and myself just want to get his work out there and show people what can be done," she said.
"This man had a big disability but he didn't let that stop him.
"Once he set his mind to something he would get it done."
