“Me an Artist!” Building relational communities with neurodivergent artists in Regional Australia

Living regionally impacts how neurodivergent populations interact with their communities. Disparate clusters of villages and towns contribute to both geographical and relational distance that can increase segregation and stigma. However, regional art studios can offer a shared space that not only contests that distance but provides a place where individual stories can be creatively communicated. This study explored how group art-making and exhibiting the artworks influenced artist identity for neurodivergent people living regionally on the Mid-north Coast in Australia. The interpretive study included nine neurodivergent participants who regularly attended art-making workshops. They respectively chose eight third-party interviewees who were familiar with the participants’ art-making processes. A single iterative case-study design was employed using action research (PAR) methodology. Methods included: three think aloud (T/A) sessions with nine participants; nine researcher observations; and eight third-party interviews. The data were thematically coded then triangulated for the analysis. The process of participating in art-making studios proved to strengthen the identity of the participant as an artist which led to growth in self-esteem. Artist identity was further enhanced by exhibiting their completed artworks locally, which increased regional community connection.