Towards Independence
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| Pilot Program 2014 |
In 2014 Deb Chilton has a Regional Arts Develop Grant through Arts Queensland to run a professional development program for artists living with disability and mental illness. Six artists took part in this program with 4 artists successfully connecting with the local arts community following the program.
We gained funding for a further 2 programs to connect artists with disability and mental illness with the Ipswich arts community. To date over 30 artists have been involved in our programs.
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| 2015 Art Exhibition and Graduation |
ArtISability is a community connections program designed to connect artists with disability and mental illness to their mainstream community. From today the National Disability Insurance Scheme rolls out across Australia. In Queensland people are already participating on Palm Island and Townsville.
For those living in Ipswich and thinking of being involved in our future programs the start up date is July 1, 2017. However, the time to get ready for the NDIS in now! Those currently supported by Disability Services will be contracted by the NDIA in early 2017. You will need to have all your documentation ready. This will include:
- Your participant statement
- A carer's statement
- What you receive now
- Your plan for the first 12 month, linked to your immediate goals; your short term goals and any long term goals.
Templates for all these documents are available from the NDIS website and your current providers are obligated to help you get ready to transfer to the Scheme. This involves a number of significant changes in the way people with disabilities are assigned their funding. In simple terms the NDIS is about choice.
Choice around who provides your support, how you want to be supported, how you want your funding to be administered and by whom. You can even chose to administer your funds.
The major change is how you package is now determined. In the past this was based on what you could not do for yourself. Now it is about what you would like to do and how you want to achieve that.
Essentially the National Disability Insurance Scheme is about people with disabilities and their families connecting and engaging in the life of their community, through employment, volunteering, education, life skills training, independent living - moving out of home, early prevention or community groups.
Participation in the local arts community is at the heart of why I wanted to establish ArtISability. My vision was not to add to the 110 art groups in Ipswich or establish a center or organisation for artists with disabilities and mental illness. It was to assist artists to participate in mainstream art groups. The concept that the Every Australian Counts Campaign fought for - this was lead by people with disabilities themselves. This is what the and their families told us they wanted.
ArtISability's current structure is not what artists with disabilities are looking for, nor is it sustainable. Each artist is an individual with their own goals and aspirations. Thus a individual approach is needed.
Which is why we're introducing our new artists network to provide individual tutoring. Matching artists who work with the same mediums. This see artists with disabilities making direct choices about the direction of their artistic practise.
Workshops may continued to be offered from time to time. Our new network is Ignite Artists any is open to all artists to access. Applications will open in September for our 2017 mentorship programs. We will continue to apply for arts funding, but individuals are as to make a personal contribution.
We're getting closer to our relaunch so watch this space.
