Watch the Heroes and Leaders event
Celebrate our Heroes and Leaders artists
Join us this Saturday, 15 April, from 2 to 4 pm to celebrate the young artists that took part in the Heroes and Leaders Art Exhibition.
The event is being live streamed so you can watch it at home via our website, on this very page. OR you can join us via our Facebook page @DeafChildrenAustralia from 1:45pm on Saturday you can click on the image below to tune in. You will see all the art and then when the event commences at 2, you will join us at the Heroes and Leaders Art Exhibition celebratory event.
On Saturday, 15 April, from 2 to 4pm we celebrated the young artists that took part in the Heroes and Leaders Art Exhibition.
The event was live streamed so you can watch it here on our website.
You will get to enjoy the exhibition experience, learn who won a youth grant, learn about our judges Irene Holub and Angie Goto, together with our MC David Grant, who all created great energy on the day.
You will also learn from each of the award winners what the exhibition means to them.
Skip to 22:50 to enjoy the event.
Event Highlights
Deaf actor, influencer and writer, David Grant is our MC. You will learn about his incredible career, together with that of our esteemed judges, Angie Goto, Irene Holub and Sue Jo Wright.
We are awarding grants to artists the judges have nominated, and learn who the public voted for with the People’s Choice award.
You will meet the artist at the event or via their video message, and of course see the incredible art submitted.
We hope you can join us. Any questions, email communications@deafchildren.org.au
Event Highlights
Heroes and Leaders Art Exhibition – 4 April to 7 May
Heroes and Leaders Art Catalogue
Our Judges
This year, our competition is being judged by artists from across the Deaf arts space - spanning various artistic disciplines, from sculpture to performance! These artists bring an array of lived experience and insights, and we're really excited to be able to work with these amazing artists for our Art Competition.
IRENE HOLUB
Irene Holub is a multidisciplinary artist working with different mediums – film, theatre, sculptures, and prints. Her works have been shown at St Heliers Gallery, Flow Festival, Women’s Gallery, Firestation Gallery, Invisible Skin, White Night, Melbourne’s Fringe Festivals – and at local contemporary events. She worked as a curator, presenter, language consultant, board director of Arts Access Victoria, and creative producer for FLOWfestival. Her other love is providing accessible holistic and wellbeing “ Auslansoul” programs for the Deaf community, where she works as a yoga teacher, art therapist, and counsellor. #auslansoul www.ireneholub.com.au
ANGIE GOTO
Angie loves showing how her mind works through her bright paintings. She continually has creative and visual thoughts and this is how her paintings start. "Being deaf, I have a completely different way of experiencing the world." Angie has explored her creativity through different mediums including screen printing t-shirts, ceramics, and painting. One career highlight includes being in a film about her preparation for her first solo exhibition in 2016, the film won an award at Tropfest. Today Angie works part-time as an Artist Educator with the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney and the rest of her time is spent painting. Angie sees our art competition as a great and safe space for young artists to be exposed to the competitive art space.
SUE JO WRIGHT
Sue Jo Wright is a Sydney-based artist working primarily with photography, video, and textiles to explore her identity as a Deaf person. Sue feels that using sign language saved and enriched her life - and is inspired to break barriers between the two ‘worlds’ and offer the wider community an insight into the identity of the Deaf community. Since 2019, Sue Jo has worked as a community arts advocate with a vision to reduce the barriers experienced by Deaf and hard of hearing people accessing artworks, exhibitions and performances.
Explore Your Creativity
Deaf Children Australia's annual art competition is dedicated to supporting, promoting, and nurturing deaf and hard-of-hearing young people in their pursuit of creativity.
The competition has three categories:
- Ages 8-11,
- Ages 12-17; and
- Ages 18-23.
A new theme will be announced May 2023 when applications open for the next exhibition.
Visual Art
Visual Art submissions consist of artworks that need to be mailed in or delivered, and may include the following:
- Sketches
- Paintings
- Photography
- Street Art
- Sculpture
- Pottery
Digital Art
Digital Art submissions consist of artworks that can be sent online or via email, and may include the following:- Video Art
- Graphic Novels
- Animation
- Digital Illustration
- Scanned Images
- Photos
- Digital art submissions must meet the following parameters:
- No submission can be greater than 300 MB in size.
- Video submissions can be a maximum of 5 minutes in length.
- Videos should be submitted as an MP4 file.
- Images must be constrained to a resolution of 3200 x 3200 at a maximum.
- Images should be submitted as either a JPG, JPEG, or PNG File.
- Vector submissions should be submitted as an SVG file.
- Graphic Novel Submissions can also be submitted as a PDF.
- All Physical Submissions should include an Submission Form, which can be downloaded here.
- Artworks including profanity or profane imagery will not be considered.
- Digital Artworks should be sent to the Communications team email, included in the Submission Form
- If your file is too large to be included in an email, please use https://wetransfer.com/ to submit your work. If you use WeTransfer, remember to send both the Submission Form and your Artwork together, so they do not get lost!
- When submitting, include the following details in the subject line: Heroes and Leaders, the Category (8-11 yrs, 12-17 yrs, or 18 to 23 yrs), your First Initial, and your Surname. An example would be: Subject: F. Rose – Heroes and Leaders, 12 – 17 yrs
- Artwork submissions must relate, in some way, to the theme of the competition – “Heroes and Leaders”. Artworks that do not relate to the theme will not be considered.
Submission Guidelines
NEWS THEME TO BE ANNOUCNED MAY 2023
In order to be considered, your work will also need to adhere to the following Submission Guidelines for each category. Make sure to read these conditions carefully!
- Physical Visual Art Submissions must be:
- No greater than 1m or 40 inches in either height, width, or depth.
- No greater than 40kg in mass, including packaging.
- All Physical Submissions should include a Submission Form, which can be downloaded here.
- Artworks including profanity or profane imagery will not be considered.
- Physical Artworks should be sent to Marketing and Communications at Deaf Children Australia at: PO Box 6466 St. Kilda Road, Victoria 8008
- When submitting, include a return address – in addition to the Contest (Heroes and Leaders), the Category (12-17 yrs or 18-23yrs), your First Initial, and your Surname. An example would be:
343 FJ Road, Melbourne VIC 3004
Heroes and Leaders – 12 – 17 yrs
F. Rose - Artwork submissions must relate, in some way, to the theme of the competition – “Heroes & Leaders”. Artworks that do not relate to the theme will not be considered.
Frequently Asked Questions
The competition launches on 12 May and submissions close at 11:59pm on 22 January 2023, so make sure you submit your artwork before then! The results of the competition will be announced at an event in April of 2023 at Deaf Children Australia.
If you are deaf or hard-of-hearing and aged from 8 to 23 years, you are eligible to enter the competition! Artists will be separated into three separate divisions:
- Ages 8 to 11,
- Ages 12 to 17, and
- Ages 18 to 23.
Your submission should include your Artwork and a completed Submission Form. The Submission Form can be downloaded by clicking here.
By including your email and phone number in your Submission Form, we will be able to notify you if you are selected as a finalist and/or winner. Therefore, it is important you send a Submission Form with your work. Without it, we will be unable to contact you.
You can download the Submission Form by clicking here.
For this competition, Artists must submit either a Digital or Visual artwork. This can include:
Visual Art: Painting, sculpture, drawing, pottery, photography, street art, collages
Digital Art: Video art, computer-generated imagery, graphic novels, digital or scanned images, computerised drawings, animated work.
If you are not sure about whether your artwork can be submitted, please email our Communications Team using the contact details included on the first page of our Submission Form.
You can only enter one submission into each competition.
There are a lot of different ways to submit artwork. Depending on the sort of artwork you will be submitting, you should read our Submissions Instruction Guide to make sure you have submitted your work correctly.
If you are struggling to identify how to send your artwork in the Submissions Instruction Guide, please contact our Communications Team using the contact information on the first page of our Submission Form, We will be able to support you with how to submit your artwork.
You need to create a new submission for this competition. Do not submit art you have exhibited or used to enter another competition.
Yes. Deaf Children Australia is an inclusive organisation, so submissions that include ableist, sexist, racist, homophobic, or hateful content will not be considered and will result in a ban from future competitions and promotions.
We will also not accept artworks that include promotional material. This includes logos, branding, or other forms of visual advertising. Works that contain promotional material will be disqualified.
Finally, works including profanity, profane items, or profane imagery will not be considered.
The decision of our judges is final. Any attempt made to contest or dispute the results of this competition with either Deaf Children Australia staff or our judges will result in instant disqualification and a ban from future competitions.
Also, any attempt to interfere in the judging process – including attempting to influence the judge’s decision in any way – will result in instant disqualification and a ban from future competitions. This is to ensure the competition remains impartial and fair for all participants.
Art Competition – Photo Gallery
As part of our 2021-22 Art Competition, we featured all entries in an exhibition event. It was amazing to see the community engaging with deaf art, and we are incredibly excited to share some of the amazing photos that were taken as part of the event.
Through this opportunity, we were able to share the talents of the deaf and hard of hearing community. Thank you to everyone who attended for helping to make the event possible!
