2022 Young Carers Digital Art Competition

This video is all about me and my favourite things to do. I also mention a little bit about how I help my sister out when she’s feeling overwhelmed. I love being me, and I loved making this video to share with everyone.

It shows what it feels like to be around my amazing brother. Sometimes it can be stressful but what matter is the blissful & happy moments that matter to me. Being able to make him happy as well as care for him matters a lot to me because he means a lot to me.

I myself when I was younger and got scared of the dark, my brother would talk to himself as he does and it would make me feel safe and protected. I’d eventually fall asleep listening to him, I still do. He’s such a joy to be around and I want to share that with the world.

My brother does art paintings and sells them as his micro business. So I thought I would use some of his materials and paint with him. I have always found drawing sketching calming and soothing.

The drawing I did shows a day in the life of a carer by drawing me and my best friend. I have been friends with her for 6 years now and we have always been there for each other and one another’s family’s. Caring for someone is hard at times. When I find it hard to deal with I always go to my best friend because she always cheers me up and cares for me. This drawing expresses the fact that I am free. I am free to do my own thing but I can always care for others when they need it.

It shows that you have sad feelings for the person you look after. All these feelings make you feel bad and creates a blue dot in your heart. All the other happy dots are the happy feelings you have for the other people in your life.

No matter how much is happening around me or happening in my life, I am me…and I am amazing!

I get dressed and get my bag ready for school. I help my family get ready.

It shows that even when struggles are tough for me and even if sometimes it feels like being torn apart I always find a way to bust through and make something beautiful out of a situation. I like to think this photo shows my inner beauty bursting out through the hard times.

Some days are good while others can be stressful and bad. It’s like having to keep a brave face to the world, looking okay and carrying on, like “invisible illnesses” (Not invisible to me!) but then you get those moments you just need to take it off and breathe.

This shows me when I have finished all my school work and have some free time. It shows my sketch surrounded by the work that I have completed from forensics to math to science, just some of my favourite subjects that I do every day at school.

My artwork shows the love I have for my family and friends (basketball and dance as well). I like to keep photographs of special moments and reflect back on these when I need to. Somewhere in between being a carer, a basketball player, a dancer and a friend, I manage to fit school in (that is why I included the notepaper behind the photos in the collage). The collage is a collection of just a few special moments in my life that make me feel happy.

It shows that when I have spare time I get to do things I love like playing footy at the park with my best friend Andrew.

A day in my life with my family.

I feel this artwork represents my life as a young carer that is still in school.

The character (Marvin the Martian, from loony tunes) in the artwork is often portrayed in the cartoon universe as very distant from the other characters. I relate to this as I often feel I am distant from my peers in extracurricular activities, due to my responsibilities with being a carer.
The background is an out of this world setting that displays my often feeling that I am in a whole other world to everyone else around me.

It shows how I feel and what it looks like mentally, to me, to be a young carer, in an abstract artwork.

A normal day for me is time spent with my sister (who has a disability). She is homeschooled so relies on me for friendship. My art shows the things I like to do with her.

Even when I’m training for basketball I sometimes need to stop and help my brother.

This artwork shows all things that calm me down and give me my own personal space. These things inspire me to keep trying and not to stop. They inspire me to care for others and myself.

My artwork is a poem. I created it to help reflect my life and what my likes and hobbies are. My poem describes my life as a career, how I help look after my older brother who has autism and how I care for a little girl who was born with a hole in her heart and a severe disability because she didn’t develop fully as a foetus. I included in my poem facts about me that are different from your average person such as how many brothers I have, the fact that my Mum is a single Mum and that I am very good at swimming.
My artwork included a picture of me and my four brothers. I shaded out my brother who has autism to highlight his uniqueness which also symbolises the way he interacts with the world. As he prefers to live in his own world, to stand apart and define himself differently. This is evident in my picture because he is standing apart from me and the rest of my brothers and is not showing himself to the rest of the world, instead relying on his family to interpret the world for him. I didn’t include a picture of the little girl I care for because I thought I should focus on my brother.

This artwork shows how busy and complicated the life of a carer can be. It also inspires me to care for anyone no matter what. It shows the things I love that make me feel calm, happy and safe.