Mahlia – a portfolio career
Mahlia Amatina – Designing employment that works for you
Six years ago, I was diagnosed with autism, and in the same year changed careers to become a visual artist. I now have a portfolio career, which is made up of my art, a communications role, and another job at my local university. The latter two roles are flexible in terms of when I work my hours, and together they give me fantastic variation of both employed and self-employed work.
I created an autism-friendly installation for people to learn about sensory sensitivities through my social art project ‘Around the World in 80 Washing Lines’. This exhibition was built on the premise of how the simple task of laundry connects us all, around the world. Other art projects relating to my diagnosis and autism awareness include ‘On a Spectrum’ and ‘Autismo 25’. The former was produced via a questionnaire on particular traits experienced within the adult autistic population, while the latter was based on my reflections of diagnosis. Both collections have been exhibited in traditional fine art venues and community settings, which for me is a great achievement in making my work accessible to wider audiences.
It’s enabled me to design a life that works for me and my needs. I appreciate that this isn’t always feasible straight off, but I believe it’s truly about striving towards a version that will work for you – even if it only marginally improves each time. It’s all progress that accumulates over time, after all. So, for instance, I know that I have strong concentration and work in a way that is very focused and intense. It means that in around four hours, I’ve completed a whole day’s worth of work (I don’t get easily distracted). But I’m also tired afterwards and I need to recuperate. Consequently, being self-employed and having command of my time works really well. I also have excellent organisational skills, so I can plan my work very