We are here.
A vibrant and welcoming exhibition featuring the creative work of neurodivergent, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ artists.
Each artwork expresses a unique voice while contributing to a shared story of lived experience. Some pieces are gentle and symbolic; others are bright, bold, or full of joy. Every work offers a meaningful glimpse into the artist’s world.
The exhibition supports creativity without asking artists to explain themselves or fit into expectations. The viewer is encouraged to explore at their own pace, taking time to connect with the community’s diversity, imagination, and strength.
Identity creativity belonging
Cornell Liu - Australia: The Colourful Continent (2026) - This was the most detailed artwork, and the piece Cornell spent the most time on, working on it over three weeks (an hour per day). Because Cornell enjoys colouring, we created the Australian map using numbered colour blocks, with each number matching a different colour. Cornell loved this process and stayed deeply engaged throughout. The small, consistent steps can lead to wonderful results.
Cornell Liu - Endless Vitality (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - Leaf printing became a wonderful hands-on creative activity and a great opportunity for Cornell to connect with nature. We broke the creative process down into simple step-by-step stages, and Cornell was able to follow each step with impressive accuracy and focus.
Cornell Liu - The Tree on a Snowy Night (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - This was Cornell’s first time formally learning to create with brushes and canvas during a workshop organised by Affirming Access. He absolutely loved the feeling of the brush touching the canvas, and it brought him immense joy. This became the beginning of our creative journey.
Cornell Liu - The Girl with a Daisy Earring (2026) - Acrylic and mixed media on canvas - For each artwork, we try to “translate” more challenging elements into creative approaches that Cornell can enjoy and comfortably engage with at his current ability level. For this particular piece, we lightly sketched the outlines in pencil beforehand so Cornell could trace and build confidence through the process. We also incorporated elements of cutting and collage, as Cornell especially enjoys hands-on creative activities involving paper and texture. This inspired the addition of earring and necklace details to the artwork.
Grace Nicholson Perry - Blue (2026) - Acrylic on canvas
Grace Nicholson Perry - Mask (2026) - Oil on canvas
Grace Nicholson Perry - Seventeen (2021) - Oil on canvas
Letizia Del Nero - Yellow (2026) - Oil on canvas
Melaynie Jaye - Sleep (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - Sleep is one of three artworks that form a collection.
Melaynie Jaye - Black Hole (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - Black Hole is one of three artworks that form a collection.
Melaynie Jaye - On The Inside (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - On The Inside is one of three artworks that form a collection. This collection explores the quiet, persistent grief of existing behind a mask that was never meant to fit forever. As an autistic artist, this body of work is my personal portrayal of what masking feels like, an attempt to translate an internal experience that is often invisible, misunderstood, or dismissed. It speaks to the experience of being visible, yet fundamentally unheard to moving through the world in a way that is constantly observed, interpreted, and adjusted for, while the truest self remains hidden beneath layers of careful performance. Masking becomes both shield and burden. It protects, softens, translates but it also erases. Expressions are rehearsed. Reactions are filtered. Identity is negotiated in real time, until the boundary between what is authentic and what is constructed begins to blur. The works in this collection sit within that uncertainty, where the self fractures under the weight of being “appropriate,” “palatable,” and “understood” only in ways that are not entirely true. There is a particular loneliness in this experience: to be seen constantly, yet never fully known. To communicate endlessly yet feel that nothing essential is ever received. This silence is not the absence of voice, but the result of it being reshaped, softened, or dismissed before it can exist as it is. Throughout the collection, moments of stillness, distortion, and quiet rupture reveal what lies beneath the surface performance overwhelm, exhaustion, and a longing for unfiltered existence. These works do not seek resolution. Instead, they offer an invitation: to witness the internal landscape that so often goes unseen, and to reconsider what it means to truly hear someone. “Seen but not heard” is not just an observation. It is a lived contradiction, one that asks how much of a person can disappear before they are no longer recognized, even by themselves and if we were to drop the mask, would we be accepted for who we are?
Rollin Thornton - It's Not That Physical (2025) - Acrylic on canvas - An interpretation of freedom only being alone at night can bring.
Rollin Thornton - Caught in the Grey (2026) - Acrylic and sculpture - Originally based off a Zine I created called The Void, it trans morphed into this depiction of depression and conformity by the world, resulting in one caught in a void or 'the grey'.
Rollin Thornton - The Walls Have Eyes (2025) - Air-dry clay - Nowadays you can’t do anything without being recorded or seen. Even alone it feels like being watched. This is my body horror interpretation of it. This artwork is typically displayed in otherwise normal rooms. Always watching.
Rollin Thornton - 'Murder of Crowes' (2023) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. This depicts a woman named Starla Crowe amongst her family. In universe she painted an artwork like this. The crow trying to peck out her eye reflects her toxic power-based relationship with her family.
Rollin Thornton - 'Hell'-ish (2022) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. This is the first of the squares I made. Both women are recovering characters in my works. The red head is condemned to life forced acting as a martyr and then she acted out, she was deemed a sinner. The other woman, by all regards was a good person but was outcasts for being herself until the two found each other.
Rollin Thornton - The Royse Garden (2022) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. This is an artwork of a woman sitting in a garden. She is as part of the garden as everything else. As if she's always meant to have been there.
Rollin Thornton - Untitled (2026) - acrylic on canvas - This is one of three artworks that are in a series I call 'DND and friends'. An acrylic work depicting how I see my friend's characters. In a world where you can't see them by game design, I will always see them even through their personas.
Rollin Thornton - Meef (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - This is one of three artworks that are in a series I call 'DND and friends'. An acrylic work depicting how I see my friend's characters. In a world where you can't see them by game design, I will always see them even through their personas.
Rollin Thornton - The Collector (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - This is one of three artworks that are in a series I call 'DND and friends'. An acrylic work depicting how I see my friend's characters. In a world where you can't see them by game design, I will always see them even through their personas.
Rollin Thornton - 'The Watcher' (2022) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. In the story that this is based off, 'The Watcher' is found being tortured in a place that is meant to be Heaven. This artwork depicts the woman's realisation of the world she has been thrown into, the humanity within what is not human, and that moment of understanding that even 'Heaven' is built on suffering.
Rollin Thornton - Times That Change Us (2022) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. Based off a work of the same name, this artwork depicts the three main characters, Otis (left) a trans man, his younger self (middle) and his 'dead' fiancée (right).
Rollin Thornton - Mors Family (2022) - Acrylic on canvas - This is a part of a series of works based off novels I am writing. This artwork is about a family that defies the bounds of life by finding love in an unexpected place.
Rosie Potter - Untitled (2026) - Photography and mixed media - Rosie is a neurodivergent artist living and working on Gadigal Country. For joy, mental health processing, and self-expression, she has always created mixed media artworks and documented her life through photography. In a blend of photography and mixed media, she has put this series together to evoke thought and feeling in others and to offer deeper insight into how she sees the world.
Dianah 'Dee' Felipe - Apertures Conscious Continuum (2026) - Digital artwork
Devon Gallagher - Camel Sprout (2026) - Digital Art
Patrick Harrison - Self Portrait (2025) - Oil pastels on paper - This is an expression of myself that I created at school. I liked the colours. I like Math and English.
Patrick Harrison - Landscape Field (2025) - Acrylic on canvas - We decided to do some fun family art.
Patrick Harrison - Patagosaurus (2025) - Sharpie and pencil on paper - I feel like this is the best drawing I have ever done. I really like dinosaurs.
Patrick Harrison - Halloween Pumpkin (2025) - Acrylic on plaster - This was a fun Halloween activity. I wanted to use classic pumpkin and witch colours.
Patrick Harrison - Sunset (2026) - Acrylic on canvas - I wanted to do an art activity, and this was my first time painting at an easel. It was really fun, but the paintbrush on the canvas sounded awful.
Benjamin Harrison - Witchirate the Halloween Pirate Pumpkin (2025) - Acrylic on plaster
Benjamin Harrison - Background (2026) - Acrylic on canvas
Benjamin Harrison - Peaceful Garden (2025) - Acrylic on plaster - I wanted to make the garden and clouds, as well as the bits of dandelions that catch the wind.
Bec Wylde - Expectations (2026) - Collage
Bec Wylde - Reflections (2026) - Watercolour
Nova Myles - Dysphoria: A Self Portrait (2026) - Pen and ink on paper
Nova Myles - Fairy Wren (2025) - Watercolour on paper
Nova Myles - Three's Company (2026) - Thrifted scrap fabrics and thread - These three Pogos (Pocket Goblins) represent myself, my partner and our best friend. Each Pogo is carefully crafted to encapsulate how I see them, and hand stitched with love.
Nova Myles - Make Your Mark (2026) - Mixed media collage
Nova Myles - Glimpses (2025) - Pencil and ink on paper
Maxwell - Untitled (2026) - Photography - I am a trans male, and this photo I made is of me as a guy and me when I was little, showing how hard life is being trans, all the hate and name-calling, but me being transgender doesn't mean I don't deserve love. After all, I am just a human born in the wrong body.
Maxwell - Untitled (2026) - Photography - This photo is of my dog Lollie, who is a Serbian husky/cattle dog. She is my first dog, and recently we discovered she has breast cancer. Just last month, she had a massive surgery to remove some of the cancer, and next month, she goes for another surgery to be cancer-free. It breaks my heart knowing she doesn't know what is going on.
Maxwell - Untitled (2026) - Photography - This artwork tells a deeply personal story of child loss. I had a daughter who passed away before she was born, and I later learned that I am infertile and will not be able to have children. The image represents me holding Alex and gently guiding her towards the right path. It is about love, protection and connection, and wanting her to know that she is never alone. The work took me a long time to create because of the emotions and memories behind it.
Maxwell - Untitled (2026) - Photography - I chose this photo to see how beautiful the world can be. I cannot swim, so when I look at the water, I just imagine enjoying the waves as they go over.
The Exhibition
This exhibition celebrates creativity, self-expression, and the unique perspectives of emerging artists and photographers from across Sydney.
The artworks and photographs displayed here have been created through a series of creative workshops facilitated by Affirming Access throughout 2026. Using a range of artistic approaches, our artists explored identity, belonging, culture, connection, personal interests, imagination, and lived experience.
Each piece reflects an individual voice and way of seeing the world. Some works are deeply personal, while others are playful, experimental, joyful, reflective, or thought-provoking. Together, they create a vibrant collection of stories, ideas, and creative expression.
The title We Are Here speaks to visibility, presence, and the importance of having spaces where artists can share their creativity and embrace who they are. It celebrates the courage to create, the value of diverse perspectives, and the power of art to build connection and understanding.
Thank you for taking the time to engage with these works and the stories they represent.
The Project
This exhibition has been made possible through the support of the National Ethnic Disability Alliance (NEDA) and Pride Foundation Australia.
NEDA is Australia’s peak organisation representing people with disabilities from culturally and linguistically diverse and non-English speaking backgrounds. Through advocacy, education, and community engagement, NEDA works to ensure that people with disability from diverse communities are included, heard, and able to participate fully in society.
Pride Foundation Australia is a national philanthropic organisation that supports projects and initiatives that improve the well-being, inclusion, and opportunities of LGBTQIA+ communities across Australia. Through grants and community partnerships, the Foundation helps create safer, more connected, and more inclusive communities.
Affirming Access is a community-led not-for-profit organisation dedicated to supporting LGBTQIA+SB, autistic, and neurodivergent young people to connect, learn, express themselves, and participate in their communities. Through creative workshops, peer-led programs, training, community events, and advocacy, Affirming Access creates collaborative and affirming spaces where young people can discover their unique talents, explore identity and self-expression, and build meaningful relationships.
We thank all artists, photographers, supporters, volunteers, facilitators, family members, and community partners who have helped make We Are Here possible.