Recipients of grants totalling more than $200,000 through the 2025-26 Richard Llewellyn Deaf and Disability Grants have been announced.
Named for South Australian disability advocate Richard Llewellyn, these annual grants support development and project outcomes for professional practicing d/Deaf and disabled artists.
Four categories were offered in the 2025-26 round, with applications assessed by a multi-art form panel of disabled artists and arts workers.
Funded highlights include:
- First Step grant of $29,997 for theatre maker Nate Karagiannis-Troisi to work with early-career creative Zachary Bowdon to explore the development of a dyslexia-accessible script format called a ‘mood script’.
- Project grant of $10,000 for producer and performer Bonnie Williams to present their show DOWNPOUR: Surrender, at the Queen’s Theatre in August 2025. The show is an access-driven inclusive production featuring a fusion of artforms and diverse ensemble of artists.
- Project grant of $10,000 for ceramic artist Edwin Harris-Faull to undertake a residency in world heritage rainforests in southwest Tasmania. Following the residency, Edwin will work with a professional mentor to learn new applied decoration and glazing techniques.
- Project grant of $8,420 for non-verbal visual artist Boris Dann to present his debut solo exhibition Sensory Echoes during the 2026 Adelaide Fringe. The exhibition will feature sensory-friendly soft sculpture works alongside two-dimensional paintings.
- Project grant of $25,000 for all-female learning-disabled singing group The Sisters of Invention to write and record their third album. Michael Ross of Electric Fields, a previous collaborator, will continue to mentor the group.
The funded activities are expected to support employment for more than 160 artists and arts workers and more than 5,000 employment hours.
| Project | Artform | Applicant | Project title | Amount approved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professional Development (First Step) | Performing Arts | Nathan Troisi | mood. Rewriting the rules for dyslexic artists (without the rules). | $2,997 |
| Professional Development (Individual) | Performing Arts | Cinzia Schincariol | Body Mind Centering course in Germany | $6,067 |
| Professional Development (Individual) | Visual Art, Craft and Design | Oliver Mills | Making My Mark | $10,000 |
| Projects: Individual | Performing Arts | Katherine Sortini | Beneath The Mountain | $6,133 |
| Bonnie Williams | DOWNPOUR Surrender... | $10,000 | ||
| Projects: Individual | Visual Arts, Craft and Design | Tom Phillips | Suburbia’s Quiet Crisis | $9,993 |
| Chloe Noble | Solo Art Exhibition - ‘the way they move through air’ | $6,408 | ||
| Edwin Harris Faull | Sensing the Huon Pine through ceramic sculpture: a southwest Tasmanian forest residency and mentorship. | $10,000 | ||
| Jeffery Brown | Heart Work - by Jeffrey | $8,240 | ||
| Boris Dann | Sensory Echoes by Boris Dann | $8,240 | ||
| Projects: Organisations and Groups | Visual Art, Craft and Design | Tutti Arts Inc | Create Labs: New Perspectives and Ideas | $25,000 |
| Access2Arts | Exquisite Familiar Regional - Yorke Peninsula and South East | $24,607 | ||
| Projects: Organisations and Groups | Performing Arts | Restless Dance Theatre | Enough | $25,000 |
| The Sisters of Invention | The Sisters of Invention - Third Album - Stage 1 | $25,000 | ||
| No Strings Attached Theatre of Disability | The Construct | $25,000 |
Thumbnail picture: Fig Kershaw in No Strings Attached Theatre of Disability production, The Construct. Image: Alex Frayne.
