My name is Oliver Mills. I am a South Australian artist and poet. I live with epilepsy, vision impairment, and cerebral palsy - a physical condition that affects muscle movement and verbal communication. Using specially designed equipment, and in collaboration with my poetry and art teachers, my works offers a written and visual expression of how I see the world.  

 

To help with my communication, I use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) which is a speech generating device with digital voice, using audio scanning. 

 

I also use a Pragmatic Organisational Dynamic Display Communication Book (PODD) for every day communication and to write poetry. I have a poetry mentor and teacher, Sharon Kernot, who assists me with my writing. My speech pathologist, Janelle Sampson, designed a special communication book to make writing poetry easier for me. 

 

I have published five books. My latest book, 'Demolishing the Oats', is a chapbook published by Ginninderra Press. I am grateful to Stephen and Brenda at Ginninderra for publishing my poems and also to the Richard Llewellyn Deaf and Disability Arts Trust for the literature grant that funded the project. This is the third grant I have received from Arts SA.  

 

My poems have been commended in writing competitions and have appeared in national publications including the Australian Poetry Journal, The Crow, InDaily, and Growing Up Disabled in Australia. 

 

My art is also very important to me. Working with my art mentor Henry Jock Walker, I use purpose built equipment and modified methods to assist with brush strokes. I love working with acrylics, charcoal, crayons and textures.  

 

My artworks have been commissioned and sold, have appeared on magazine covers, and in 2020 and 2021 my artwork, Mapping My World, featured on the International Day of People with Disability lapel pin. 

 

Have a look at Oliver’s website to find out more about Oliver, view his artworks and poetry and how you can purchase his books and artwork. You can find Oliver on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube at @Olivers_Choice .