Donna Mae Bolai is a deaf cartoonist who was born in Trinidad & Tobago. Raised in England from the age of 5, she attended Woodford School for the Deaf in England, and trained in oral deaf education.
As a child she always interested in animation after seeing Mickey Mouse and other Disney cartoon characters. Once she graduated, she returned home to Trinidad and began working as a graphic artist at McCann Ericson, the island’s leading advertising agency at that time. After many years of experience in the Ad agency, she decided she wanted to explore other creative avenues. She took courses in pottery, cake decoration, batik, brass jewellery and glass engraving.
Moving to Canada she learned ASL and began drawing cartoons for the deaf community paper. Today she has her own business; “Deaf Cartoons by Donna Mae” and as a freelance artist, she strives to create work that promotes the deaf culture and reflect her sense of humour.