Using my artwork to support education and awareness

Art For Epilepsy 

Art 4 Epilepsy Action during the month of May opens for bids tomorrow.  Emerging and established artists from across Australia have donate artwork to raise funds for Epilepsy Action Australia. To view the artworks click on the website and follow the links.

Epilepsy Action Australia supports people with epilepsy and their families across Australia together with education and awareness programs.  I have donated this piece to support their on going work.

Despite being the world most common neurological disorder the are many misconceptions surrounding the disorder.  Epilepsy Action provides education to organizations, workplace and schools to dispel the myths as well as specific seizure first-aid. 

There are over 40 different types of epilepsy with gal mal or fitting being the most widely known.  Anyone can have a seizure during their life time.  This is not always a result of epilepsy.  Seizures can be associated with illness or brain trauma or point to a more serious condition such as brain tumor. It can also accompany other disorders and disabilities, such as cerebral palsy. 

'I kinda think it neat I have epilepsy as it proof I have a brain and it is functioning.   I often wonder about other members of the general public.

The most famous person who suffered from epilepsy is of course Julia Ceasure, from with the name 'seziure' is deviled.

I have experienced seizures in different forms for over 20 years. Abnormal seizure activity can be picked up on a EEG and in 70 % percent of cases be controlled by medication.  Other treatment such as surgery have been developed. I however have a normal  EEG and my seizures have never been fully controlled.  For many years my seizures were put down to stress. 

While stress definitely contributes to my seizures, I have a tumor in my frontal lobe, and last year it was finally confirmed as the cause.  My epilepsy is a result of 'Alice in Wonderland Syndrome' and seizures are just one of the troubling symptoms.  My seizures can cause dehydration, affect my heart rate and temporary paralysis.  Fatigue make these symptoms more visable.

The frequency of my seizures mean I am unemployable and I find epilepsy is more disabling than the cp which everyone can see and assumes affects my intellect.  Despite the many challengers life has put in my path, I enjoy a full and rewarding life as an artist and disability advocate.

Would you know what to do if someone had a seizure?

In Australia the number to call is 000

If the seizure last more than five minutes

Is followed by another seizure

Occurs in water or while eating

The person is also a diabetic 

Or not a known epileptic

Call 000

Do not restrain them or put anything in the mouth as this may cause injury.

If you would like more information

visit the Epilepsy Action Australia Website.

 Most people with epilepsy live normal lives.
'I may have epilepsy but epilepsy does not have me!' 

ndis weekly chat!

Has the ndis changed my life? I would have to say ~ yes! The National Disability Insurance Scheme is the new way people with disability and their families are assisted to participate in the community.  Whether that be through education, training, studying, looking for work, work, volunteering, daily living skills training, independent living or sport.  The ndis gives people a way to build the life they want to live. 

Living Independently

My small vegie patch

One of the things the ndis is designed to achieve is to assist people with disabilities to be as independent as possible.  Due to the degree of their disability some participants will always be dependent on others.  While the independence of others with disability may be improved through mobility equipment, assisted communication, modifications to their home, or on going therapy.

This is achieved through funding such things as Improved Daily Living.  One of my goals is to increase my core muscle strength to maintain my independence I achieve this through accessing fortnightly physio sessions with my funding.  ndis looks ahead by taking a whole of life approach, as I age life becomes more difficult thus I become more dependent on others. 

Currently the ndis supports me to live in my own home with assistance with my daily living tasks. This is not a goal every ndis participant will choose.  A participant can improve their independence in other ways than changing their address.  For example the might learn how to catch a bus independently or learn how to make their own lunch before the go out for their day activities.

At present growing my own vegs improves my diet, health and lifestyle. Goals to not need to be news worthy.  A goal can be getting out the front door in morning independently.

Some ways my support workers assisted me to be independent this week were:

• Assisted with my at home physio program
• Assisted me to buy plans for the garden
• Assisted me to take my cat 'Ashes' to the vet.

A new ndis goal I am working on is self-directly my own supports. I have choose to do this by:-

• Keeping some support hours with my support service provider
• Contracting an art support person to assist me in my art studio for 10 hours per week.
• Engaging two support workers directly.  One is called my team leader and she assist me to coordinate all the different supports I access and to be part of the Ipswich Arts Community,

This week that meant the team leader needed to pick up my artwork from the Ipswich Art Awards Display and some work I had framed to go to Aspire Gallery. 

My team leader said she is enjoying her role because their is lots of variety in her job.  This week I wanted to sit by the river for a few hours. How is that for a office. However she is also assisting me with training other staff and writing a team training manual if I need to recruit again in the future. Meanwhile the support worker I hired and my cpl support team assist me around the home and in the garden.

Fund Management - Your Choice

Choice is one of the things I enjoy the most about ndis. Some service providers are struggling with this change and recruiting the staff to make change and flexibility possible. While participants struggle to navigate the pathways once their plans are approved. 

Under the ndis participants can chose how they want to be supported; who they want to support them (service providers and suppliers or engaging their own team.) and when they want to be supported (They might like to go watch the footy or go to the pub with their mates). This is what a normal life looks like to some participants.

To do this a ndis plan is developed.  You decide your or your child's goals and how you want to be supported.   Make your plan about you, your goals and your needs.  Not services and programs. Although in terms of planning your ndis pathways it is helpfully to have a good knowledge of services that might suit you and your goals. 

Your plan make up is determined by how you want to achieve your goals and daily activities.  To assist you to set this up you need to decide how your package will be administrated.  I've been sharing how I have structured my supports and how they enable me to achieve my ndis goals. To start with their are three pathways to chose from and then you select stepping stones to allow you to reach your goals.

1. ndis management - the ndis pays for your supports direct. If you ask they will also provide support coordination.
2. Ask a service to 'host' your funds. A bit like a bank account and they too charge fees. A host provider can also provide support coordination or you might pay an independent person to do this. or
3. You can self-manage.  I was talking about how my main support worker assist me to coordinated my different supports needs this is know as 'self-direction'. Management is how you set up your budget and how you pay your invoices.  Their are many different models to chose from, far more than I've explored.

I self manage through the assistance of a Plan Manager, but I could do my budget myself and pay the invoices through the ndis portal. I have chosen to chose the services I want to engage and set up what is known as a Service Agreement, once that is signed I send that to my Plan Manager to set aside the money I will need to paid for that service over the next 12 months.  A service provider will want to ensure you have the funds to pay for their services, so the must provide you and the person managing your funds a copy of the quote.

You or the person managing your funds need to ensure all the supports you intend to access in the next 12 months are affordable. There are many people who can guide you through this process and I believe their are computer programs that can assist as well. So you might want to use google to do some research as well as talking to other participants about the model of administration they have chosen.

My Administration Model

Form the outset I wanted to work towards self-directing my own supports, through the hiring of my own support staff over a 3 year period.  However, life doesn't always go to plan and I have already taken on self-directing my own supports in part.  As part of my first plan the ndis gave me funding to work with a Plan Manager and I have already shared how she managers my budget.  Regardless of how you chose to have your package managed the ndis will supply that funding.

Your Plan Manager or Host funds provider may also provide service support coorindation and support you to establish your service agreements with providers.  Always insist on a copy of the agreement and quote for your records. A host provider can not select the service providers you use or how often you access a service if they do you need to lodge a complaint immediately. My recommendation is you have chosen you host fund provider or plan manager before your plan is approved.

Intitally I did my own supports coordination and meet with a number of providers, even through I had a great knowledge of providers in my area it was overwhelming.  Providers were telling me what they thought I wanted to hear.  I now recongonise that a traditional support service isn't going to work for an artist, which is why I moved to self-direct my supports,

I think over the last 20 years I seen and heard so many redidiclous things everything from flip flops on feet were allowed to ware under HR&S to I work my way so do what you're told.  I  not sure anyone realizes the intrusion support workers can be,  To hire my own workers without the protection of policy and procedures seemed to hair raising to me. 

If you do decide to engage your own team be mindful, in addition to managing pay roll as an employer you are obligated to all legal requirements as a employer.  How you establish your administration warrants careful consideration and advice from people you trust.  Always remember the game change that choice and control gives you as participant.  You can now change your providers at any time and that includes a host provider or Plan Manager.  There are some pentally fees it you break and agreement, however in the long run like me you might be better off. 

I have enjoyed the flexibility that self-directing allows me this week. Simple things like my worker using her own car so we can make many stops while we're out or doing things on the spare of a moments, like lets go down to the night markets for a Chi Tea. 

I hope this gives you so insight into how to develop you ndis pathway and the different administrations models available to you.  ndis has changed my life for the better.

Plan Management

ndis support for visual arts

Are you an artist living with disability?

What would it take to live your best life?

The National Disability Insurance Scheme known as the ndis assists people with disabilities and their families to live their best life. If you are between 0 and 65; have a life long disability and needs assistance with daily living tasks; mobility equipment or assisted technology you maybe eligibility for assistance from the ndis. You can check your eligibly on the ndis website. The key goal of the ndis is to assist people living with disability and their families to participate in the community.  For a family with one or more children with disabilities that might mean some assistance with respite care; or vacation care; mobility equipment and some support from therapists. 

For adults with disability the ndis should allow you to participate in a number of areas of community life or even travel.  However the ndis will only pay for assistance relating you your disability. They will not pay for art supplies; classes; retreats; travel costs or gallery hire.  These are costs shared by all professional artists, the ndis will assist with additional costs due to your disability.  If you paint with your month the ndia might paint for modify paint brushes and easels; as well as you day to day support needs.  These are referred to as reasonable and necessary supports. 

This might include assistance with daily living activities; mobility equipment, social support and developing daily living skills. You can find a full list of types of supports on the ndis website. The ndis will continued to rolled out over the next two years and the expected start up date in your area can be found on the ndis website. 

Regardless of where you live in Australia you can begin you pre-ndis planning now. To date we see those participants who pre-plan are most satifty with their approved plans. Your ndis plan is based on the goals you tell the ndis you what to achieve. Your first plan will last for 12 months and then you can determine the length of your plan after that. ndis is about your life (the participant); the activities you want to engage in and who you want to assist you.

Pre-planning is not about the programs you want to access; the services you want to use or who you want to be on your support team. Although many participants are experiencing difficulties in exploring their ndis pathways, this is where having a basic idea on the types of supports and the services you want to access could be helpful. Selection of supplies and services occurs once your ndis plan is approved.  

Pre planning

Pre-planning should involve mapping your current informal and formal supports. If you have never received support before all your current supports are informal.  These supports may include family members; friends or school mates, people you don't pay to help you!

In developing your ndis plan you want to determine where the gaps in your supports currently are and what other supports need to be in place. Under the ndis the lists of types of support is expanded.  It includes everything that was available - e,g, personal care, community access, respite care, day centres, social activities; independent living; and behavioural management.  However things like house modifications; mobility equipment; communication devices; early intervention programs and physiotherapy are now included.

So remember the question at the start of the post?  What support or assistance do you require to live your best life and what do you imagine your best life to look like?

Going for gold!

Most likely until now someone in has determined what you need to live a reasonable life.  Many people found this did not allow them to achieve their hopes and dreams.  The day your child was born you had hopes and dreams for them . . . Can you remember what they were?

Education? A job? Marriage and grandchildren? Buying a home? Or travelling the world?  Being born with disability or acquiring a disability should not automatically discount any of these choices. However other things like where you live; access to education, resources and early intervention programs; access to treatments and therapies, and natural abilities. Once even learning and intellectual disabilities were seen as barriers to education, we bow know what is needed are different learning patterns and thus by addressing these access issues people with learning and intellectual disabilities are attending university.  If a child can learn to walk then the are able to learn.  It is not a persons impairments that disables them but the structure of society.

the role of the ndis and your plan is to address these access issues.  Assuming you can create artwork we are now going to explore potential access issues to your life as an artist.  Art is many different things to different people in this post I'll let you decide if your creating art or otherwise.

The more important questions are why do you create art and what processes does that involve? So whether you draw, paint, make prints, work with clay or textiles or anything you intend to display or sell as art these are some tips to establishing your plan and supports to enable you to achieve your art goals. 

When I look at planning, writing goals or activities I chose to engage in I look at goal areas.  Art is only one aspect of your life, your ndis plan covers all areas of your life. Art may form the major part of your ndis plan or you may just want 5 hours support a week to do art at home.  Every artists is at different stages in their development in setting ndis goals around your art you will want to ensure this provides the level of support you need.

In a ndis planning meeting your planner with look at accommodation, education, training, daily living skills, employment, volunteering, sports and recreation, heath and welling being and social needs. No where is there an art box to tick. This is why the term 'visual art' needs to appear in the wording of one or more of your goals. 

In my first ndis plan my goal was to extend my visual arts practise. Last week I received a highly commended in the Ipswich Art Awards, In the art world I might be known as an emerging artists. So in terms of your art development you might class yourself as a beginner, an emerging artists, established artists or a mid-career artists.  If you are a established artists, being funded as a beginner to attend a few workshops and maybe an art group. Is not going to get your next solo art exhibition on the gallery wall.

So step 1 is what is your goal? Step 2 is what activities you undertake to achieve your goal and step 3 is what support you need to achieve your goal. In my second plan because I have had a recent solo exhibition and now won a award for my artwork, my new goal is to work towards a solo exhibition outside the Ipswich region, to do this I will need to write some submissions or expression of interest for art galleries.  I also enter competitions where the prize is gallery space.  So this is my activity plan, I need support to source art supplies, product artwork, document my work (portfolio that involves taking photos); marketing and social media; gallery submissions; transporting my work and public appearances.

You need to capture what activities are involve in your art production when you word your goals.  The activity statement will probably not make it into you plan.  However if you are working as a practicing artists and engaging with other artists you may also want to develop a activity statement or business development plan as part of your art practise. 

It is best to assume you planner knows nothing about art; the process of producing art; or how to get your work seen.  Telling your planner you are an emerging artist who sell your artwork and where you have exhibited may mean nothing.  Nationally visual artists with disability are being under support due to planners not understand what their daily activity look like. 

Tip one: Take photos of your artwork!

"This is me in front of my art display at a local coffee shop. I made $93 dollars from items on display. Later 3 pieces sold for an average $290.00. My next solo exhibition is in February 2018."

This still doesn't capture process involve or it tells me is your able to produce art at gallery level to sell.  You may need to develop an activity sheet or statement. 

Activity Statement

On Mondays and Thursdays  9am to 3 pm my support worker assist me in my art studio.

On Saturdays when I do my shopping I collect any art supplies or equipment I need this averages 1 hour per week. In the afternoon I attend workshops run by different members of my art group between 1 pm and 4 pm.

I visit the art gallery in Brisbane and GOMA once a month for inspiration and openings of other artists in my art group about every second Friday night to do this I need support from 5 pm to 10 pm.

My art group have an exhibition in the Ipswich Community Gallery in August and I hope to have 2 artworks in the exhibition.  I also am working on artwork to enter into 3 competitions.  For this I will need 2 hours per week support to transport work to and from the framer and then to the exhibition site, Each exhibition has a opening night which artists are expected to attend. 

Your activity statement starts to give you planner a insight into the time and commitment you put into your art and how many hours you will need support.  Your not working 9am to 5 pm, so you need to demonstrate you are working and or studying part-time or full-time.

So to write a goal such as: 'My goal is to sell my art' isn't a great goal for the ndis. A better goal might be: "To grow my art practise by contributing to my art groups end of year exhibition; develop new skills by attending workshops through my art group and work towards my first solo art exhibition." This should ensure better support for your art practise. 

So your ndis goal # 1 is:-

As an emerging artists in the region my goal is to extend my visual art practise, through the development of skills; exhibiting and production of artwork for my first solo art exhibition.

The steps or activity you undertake are:-

• Developing skills through community classes and workshops.
• Participating in a local at group.
• Producing artwork for the art groups end of year exhibition and my first solo exhibition.

In pre-planning it could be helpful to map out what activities based on a average week. This could help to determine the support you need. 

You also need to decide 'how you want to be supported?'

• is it 'one on one support'
• is it in a group of artists with disabilities
• is it to work in a studio or home studio
• do you need support with transport

All these things will determine the amount of support the ndis will provide.

Tip 2: chart your art activities to show your planner

Defining supports you may be able to access.

Dingle Dell is an inclusive art space in Ipswich

Owned by ALARA Queensland 

A disability support services.

ALARA runs a number of arts program and

Dingle Dell enables participants and
other community members to sell their work.

Centre based activities

Some support services have decaticed art programs.  These provide group support to enable participants to produce artwork.

Community based support group or individual

Community access support could include support to attend classes in the community, visit art galleries; workshops; festivals; and source are supplies.

One on one support might allow you to work in an open studio or your own studio space.

An open studio is where you share studio space with a number of other artists and thus costs involved in running a studio. Many open studios allow the public to come and watch the artists at work. In the Ipswich region Golbery's Basement is an example of an open studio.  You may need support to get to and from the studio and to work in the studio itself. 

Supported Studios

Are disability support services that exists solely to support visual artists to produce, market and sell their artwork. Supported studios in the Brisbane area are Arts From the Margins and Brisbane Outersiders Studio - supported by Access Artists in Queensland.  You can find out more about the role of Support Studios here.

 

Tip 3:  To enable your planner to understand the process you take to produce your art, you could take a video. 

However not everyone wants to sell their artwork. Your goal may be to meet other people who enjoy arts and craft or beginning to explore the world of visual arts.  For these participants attending a arts program offered by a support service might meet thet needs, or you might want community access support to engage in a community arts or craft group.

ndis goal:

To  interact with other people who enjoy art and craft like me and to have fun!

Activity:

To attend a center base program which has a focus on arts but also offers social activities to make new friends. 

Under the ndis art therapy and art 4 well being is another way you can asked to be supported.  It is well documented that art is good for the soul and beneficial in aiding those with sensory and behaviour disabilities.

The last element of your ndis plan is how you chose to have your ndis package managed.  The options are:-

1. Have the ndia manage you funding.
2. Use a host funds provider.
3. Self manage through a Plan Manager.
4. Do it all your self.
5. Or a combination of 2 to 4.

When it comes to plan managing their are many very options. I have recently begun self-directing through engaging my own support staff.  This has allowed me to employ staff who appreciate art and thus more respectful of how I utilise my time and artwork. 

Tip # 4

Talk to other artists with a disability who are or will be partisipants of the ndis.  It also may be worth talking to Access Arts or current providers. 

Each style of administration has its advantages and disadvantages and their is information on the different possibilities on the ndis website. Regardless of which way you chose to have your package manage the ndis will cover those administration fees.  The more you chose to self-manage or self-direct the more legal and financial responsibilities you will have. 

If you are thinking of self-managing it would be good to talk to others who self-manage and find different models.  In the last 12 months I have gradually increased the role I play in managing my funding.   Budgets and understanding insurance are not my strong points, but the more I do, the great my understanding becomes.  The ndis also provides compasity funding so you can build your skills in this area and overtime you might be able to do more in the management of your package.

Tip # 5 - Research different management options, how you want your package to be administered is one thing that needs to be tied down in your ndis goals. 

In my secound ndis plan my main goal is to build my self-directed team.  I have engaged a team leader with the skills to assist me in self-directing, that person handles the roster, timesheets, and ndis reporting on my behalf.  So self-managing no matter what model you chose doesn't mean your on your own.

What is not part of your ndis plan?

• Your disability or how it limits you! Your plan is about how to support you to live your best life!
• The name of the support providers; plan managers or suppliers you want to access.
• The number of contact support hours you can purchases.
• 
  
  How to use you core supports. Supports such as one-on-one; community access; in-home supports; social groups or centre based are now interchangeable. 
  
  

Remember art is only one area of your life and you will have support needs that do not involve art.  One of my other goals is to improve my health and wellbeing.  I do this through working with a physio theraphist. The ndis funds all reasonable and necessary supports such as personal care, in-home assitance, community access, equipment and theraphies. It is reasonable that you might go to the gym or night clubbing and be supported to enjoy these activities. 

It is important youe ndis plan captures all you want life to hold. Whether this be education and training; accomondation and lifestyle support, employment, improving independence; and sports and recreation.  ndis is here to empower you to live the life you and your family want.

The Business of Making Art

If you are a practising artists - engaging in the arts community; producing art, entering competitions and/or selling your work you are effectively self-employed. Whether you're making any money is a different issue. Thus to some extent you are managing an art practise.  This combined with knowing what support you need to produce your art, means you already have some skills to enable you to self-manage and/or sell direct.  So stop selling yourself short!

Doing it my way!

In 2016 I attended a conference, My Art, My Way!  This is important because there is no right way to do art, to set up your art practise or to put together your ndis plan. 

The plan is about the participant building their goals and supports to support the life they want to lead.  I am a multi-media artists and work across a number of art forms in my own studio.  You might only work with oil paints and work in a studio with others.  I exhibit my work and one of my goals is to exhibit outside my home town.  You might be a digital artists and aim to sell your images online via accessing a file for payment. 

Speaking Up!

If you are one of the artist who we believe have been under funded due to ndis staff not understanding your daily activities, do not rob yourself on needed support as a practising artist.

• You have a right to appeal and seek a review of a plan that is not working for you. 
• You have the right for a support person and/or access a disability advocate service.
• You have a right to ask for things to be carifity so you can give additional information that may straighten your request for a review.
• You have a right to make a complaint about unfair decision making.

I recommend you chose a support person who knows you and your art practise.  If you are a practising artists you need to be clean what that means.  You're not doing this as a hobby, for enjoyment or general well being, this is how you are employed and potently make an income.

Your activity statement needs to spell out how you produce your art; how you market yourself as an artist; what are the outcomes of your art practise. If you did not do this in you initial planning meeting, have someone who understands artistic practises write and activity statement with you and take photos and videos to support this statement. 

If you need assistance with writing an activity statement talk to a support coordinator, another artists or the state body who advises on arts access needs. In Queensland this is Access Arts.  Arts Access Australia and the Support Art Studios are aware of this emerging issue and seeking to work with the ndia to address it. A list of state representatives (in Queensland that is myself) and Studios on the Supported Studio Network.

If your working in the studio three days a week, you need to ensure that you are funded for that support and pre-planning and providing documentation of your arts practice is the best tool we have to date,

 

I am sure I not explored every options when it comes to creativity, art or points of sales.  However the point is the you as a ndis participant are the designer of your art practise and ndis package. So go grab every opportunity! 

Achieving my ndis goals

One of my ndis goals this  year was to extend my visual art practise in the Ipswich region and beyond. Through my supports accessed under the ndis this week my piece, My fall into the rabbit whole received a highly commended in the Ipswich Art Awards, which is part of our festival over ten days.  

My other passion is to assist in creating a inclusive arts community, here is a post for my timeline.

' . . . I live with disabilities . . . being disabled 'is a state of mind'. Living without barriers has allowed me to accomplish my goals. My highly commended at the Ipswich Art Awards is proof that disability is no barrier to the mainstream visual arts. 

It's been a joy to watch the Commonwealth Games on TV this week and see all that inclusion can be.  Athletes events in the same venue and the same time. The media has been great at covering all events and interviewing athletes with disabilities.  It is time for the rest of Australian society to catch-up with the work of inclusion in the sporting field.

Unlike the sporting field artist with disabilities do not need separate rules for exhibiting their art and competing. I prove that this week. My CP does affect my hand control but not to the degree I can't win prizes in mainstream competition.

The ndis is designed to assist people with disabilities and their families to participate in life.  This involves setting their own goals and achieving their own dreams just like I have done in my art practise. I hope other artists with disabilities will follow my lead. 

Its time for business, employers and organizations to step up and assess their own requirements in building an inclusive environment. I was out and about yesterday, training my support team to support me in the community, we live in a beautiful historical city, which means physical access is difficult but I said to someone yesterday, 'I wouldn't have it any other way.'

People living with impairments must share the responsibility of building inclusion, it is only through observing and experiencing our challenges that the community can appreciate our access needs. 

'Some things can only be learnt by participation!' The Commonwealth Games has highlighted this.  My wish is in Queensland is we build on the work the Games have begun!

So what choices can others living with disabilities make under the ndis? The short answer is the same choices as every other Australian resident. Specially to the ndis these are choices around who will support them and how to achieve their goals.  The ndis recognizes that participants are individuals requiring individual responses.  Not everyone whats to approach their goals in the same way or through the same types of programs.

The roll out of the ndis has presented issues not antiparticpate by the government and these need to be addressed now. However this doesn't mean the scheme has failed, rather it is a recongize we in Australia can do better and the rights of those living with disabilities need to be protected. 

This week I have been training a team who will be assisting me to build my art practise moving forward. The ndis has made it possible for individuals like me to direct support.  Team Deb will assist me in my studio, to document my art practise, to market on social media; to complete gallery applications and assist transporting my art.

I also had my first plan review and my next plan will reflect this change. My new # 1 goal is to build support team through engaging my own workers, using disability support services as a back up. I like everyone am still learning to use my package effectively. My review wasn't difficult or confusing, but an opportunity to  twig things to make them work better. The staff at the ndia know how difficult the first year has been.  They are there to support you to make adjustments not to grill you over your expenditure. 

Calm down and let the ndis empower you

to live your best life!

Wheelie supported by the ndis

Recently my support workers have been supporting me in my home art studio to create sculptures.  I often need them to hold the piece while I work. This week my support workers have been busy assisting me to drop my work at various galleries and venues.

Let the Ipswich Festival begin !!! 

Ipswich Artists are always a buzz this time of year with the festival about to begin. Competitions, exhibitions, workshops and an explosion of colour!  Preparations completed I will be using plenty of community access hours over the next 2 weeks to participate and enjoy the festival.

For the first year I do not need to forgo supports in other areas to make my festival commitments.  I have enough to meet my needs and not run the risk of being unsupported in an exhausting period, nor do I have a 8 pm curfew!

Having my core-supports interchangeable puts me back in control of my life. My one hope for the ndis was my art no longer needed to fit around my supports.  Now my supports fit around my art and art calendar. 

Today I found out two of my artworks were chosen for the Brisbane Rotary International Competition and the first year I entered sculpture I was successful.  Apparently the standard was 'impressive' this year.  This is another way my support will be needed - attending the awards night.

This week I commence self directing my own team. I have a team leader who is able to be flexible in her hours because she is working 25 to 30 a week.  Also to be known as my PA Shh! Don't tell the ndis. 

People with disability don't just need support from 9 am to 5 pm, we live 24/7 lives just like everyone else on this planet. I am engaging as a professional artists. I do not just want to do art to feel warm and fuzzy.  I want to interact with other artists and share my work with the world! 

We still have a battle convincing both the community and the disability sector that the work of artists with disabilities belongs is our state and national galleries.  This Deb doesn't consider herself as having a disability is nonsense . . . come wheel in my wheels for a day.  I just a good actress who hides her struggles to have opportunities to shine. 

Just like the athletes in the Commonwealth games their should be no separation, we want to be include in. Like many my work achievements stand for themselves.  Now I just need the disability sector to recognized artists as being self-employed.  Art is not just for social participation or therapy.  Art sometimes is hard work!

That this weeks wrap . . . I am off to enjoy the Ipswich Festival say hi if you see me wheel by!