I'm Me

Exploring identity, representation and voice with learning disabled and autistic artists.

Between 2023-25, I'm Me worked with over 100 learning disabled and autistic artists to explore questions of identity, representation and voice.

As an inclusive research project, I'm Me worked with people with learning disabilities and autism as researchers, artists, producers, writers, musicians and performers. It used the creative arts as a means of exploring and sharing lived experiences to make a difference in an accessible manner. This included explorations of:

• Identity: How do we see ourselves?
• Representation: How do others see us?
• Voice: What do we want to say to the world?

The project was based on the Creative Doodle Book. The Doodle Book uses open and playful tasks to encourage artists to think about a topic through creating art. Through this approach the thoughts, ideas and creative understandings of the artists with learning disability and autism were at the heart of the process.

The project concluded with the I'm Me Festival in June 2025. This shared performances, exhibitions and videos commissioned by the project and communicating the experiences and insights of the artists involved.

I'm Me was conducted by Matthew Reason and Kelsie Acton, working with an inclusive research team including Daniel Foulds, Zara Mallinson and Alison Colborne.

I'm Me was created with Mind the Gap and in partnership with a network of 6 disability arts companies:

• About Face
• Confidance
• Hijinx
• Lung Ha
• Open Theatre
• Under the Stars

The following pages document the work of the project.

I'm Me is funded by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Photographs, Doodle Book design and illustrations by Brian Hartley.
I'm Me comics by Aimee Shepherd.