Hi @everyone - it's easy to lose track of putting ourselves front and centre so I thought I'd pop in and pose a question to help you stay centred: 'What is rising to the surface as important to or for you as you think about the wheels and what you want to achieve?' Share your answers here in the community chat and remember we'll be meeting next Thursday for our mid-month Zoom catch up call (Thursday 23 July, 7-8:30pm).

Hey all :) My name is Tash and I have finally caught up with the start of this program. I thought I should join in on the introductions. I am living in Brisbane, originally from Perth. I moved over here about a year ago to chase the dream of bringing accessible creative experiences to the community AND myself! It is a dream that is unfolding slowly every passing day. I've focused a lot on the community and am now ready to point the spotlight of intention on my own practice as an artist. Generally, I like to make art with all sorts of things, but my comfort zone/specialty is coloured pencil drawings. Specifically portrait drawings. I have been exploring portraiture more intentionally in recent weeks and am finding myself falling in love with drawing people in person during my meetup events. I'm hoping to get from this community some sense that I'm not alone in this dream of taking my art seriously, but also just a LOT of accountability. The sheer amount of structure here is making it impossible for me to back away from. I've got no excuses now! Also, extra reading if anyone is interested: I answered the questions from the Clarity module slides (I've just finished watching the catch-up zoom that I missed from last night) and thought I'd share... What do I value? Above all, I value connection. Art is the bridge that allows me to connect with others - not just through the finished piece, but through the act of creating it together. I also value authentic freedom: the freedom to be fully myself in both my creativity and my relationships, without compromising who I am. What’s important right now? Right now, it's important that my creative practice brings me closer to people rather than separating me from them. I don't want to create in isolation and present the finished result later—I want connection to be part of the process itself. When I draw people live, the artwork becomes something we create together. The lines on the page belong not only to me, but to the energy we shared in that moment.

I've just finished all four wheels (bar graphs in my case) and found it really interesting seeing the patterns across them. What surprised me most wasn't my lowest scores, but noticing that the same themes kept showing up in different ways. For me they were decision-making, creative confidence, and building a more sustainable business. It made me realise that improving one area can have a ripple effect across so many others. Did anyone else notice a recurring theme across their wheels? P.S. If you already use AI, I found it really helpful as a thinking partner for these reflections. Not to give me the answers, but to ask questions, challenge my thinking, and help me spot patterns across all four wheels. I started a dedicated AMC chat because it already knew me, my art and my goals, so the conversations become much richer over time. Sometimes I also found it easier to be completely honest with AI than I would with another person. It definitely doesn't replace a mentor or this community, but it's been a really useful reflection tool. I even gave mine a name... Rowan..also the main love interest in my favourite fantasy novel series 😆

I’m Clare, I have a home studio in Banyo, North Brisbane. I’m a fine art photographer currently transitioning from a portrait photography business, of over ten years, into creating original photographic artworks, inspired by flowers and botanical elements. I love exploring themes of movement, emotion, and the quiet beauty found in nature, and I’m exploring incorporating hand embroidery and paint into my pieces. I’m at an exciting stage of building my art practice and learning how to share my work with collectors in a meaningful way. I’m particularly interested in developing the storytelling behind my art, growing a sustainable creative business, and connecting with people who resonate with what I create. I’m really looking forward to learning from everyone in this group, sharing the journey, and cheering each other on. It’s lovely to be here! 😊❤️