Jade Boylan is a Council Mmeber and Chair of the Visual/Literature Panel. Jade is also a working professional in the creative industry as an illustrator and graphic designer. Here Jade speaks about her experiences as an Autistic artist for Autism Awareness Month.

I’m Jade Boylan, i’m 29 and I work full time as an artist and designer. I run my online brand the ‘Candy Doll Club’ from my home in Maughold, selling products featuring my designs to customers all over the world. I also take private commissions for all sorts of things including custom designed enamel pins for the IOM Creamery, the Gelatory and Peggy’s. And of course most importantly, i’m a member of the Isle of Man Arts Council and the board of Culture Vannin.

Tell us about Autism Awareness Month 

April is Autism Awareness Month (in recent years it has also been referred to as Autistic Acceptance Month and Autistic Pride Month) an internationally recognised and celebrated monthlong event where people work to raise awareness and acceptance of autism. It was started years ago by a US charity that is unfortunately linked to some very negative practices, actively working to find a ‘cure’ for autism (newsflash, there is no cure, because it’s not a disease). Nowadays the autistic community has sort of hijacked the event to promote actually autistic voices and to share autistic experiences to a wider audience. It’s become more of a celebration, hence why some call it Autistic Pride Month.

What are the characteristics of autism? How may we recognise it?

It varies from person to person, there’s a great adage to remember when it comes to autism, ‘when you’ve met one autistic person… you’ve met ONE autistic person.’ Common traits can include difficulties with social interaction and communication as well as issues with cognitive skills and hypersensitivity to sights, sounds, smells etc. Eye contact and touching are things that many autistic people struggle with, so things like hand shaking can be horrible for many autistic people.

How does engaging with art help an autistic person?  

Obviously I can’t speak for all autistic people but I know that for me art is a great way to get some of the ‘noise’ out of my brain. It’s not quite as cathartic for me as writing, but drawing or painting are a great emotional release. I often joke that my workspace is so cluttered and colourful because it’s what the inside of my head looks like, so for me, creating art can help to lessen some of that internal mental clutter.

In what ways can public arts spaces such as galleries, theatres, workshop spaces etc improve accessibility for autistic people? 

A lot of places are already starting to offer Autistic friendly events, over here I know the Gaiety have held autistic friendly matinees of shows and both the Broadway and Palace cinemas sometimes do autistic friendly matinees of animated films. It’s great to see places making these small accommodations for autistic people, even little things like lowering the sound or keeping the house lights up can help make things less overwhelming for autistic kids and adults. Personally I love the theatre and the cinema but i’ll admit that i’ve been to a few films where the volume has been so loud that my hypersensitivity has kicked in and i’ve left with a migraine! (but that is rare).

In what ways have you used your art to raise awareness about neurodivergence and autism? 

I had already spent years working within the arts before I got my autism diagnosis. From the start it explained a LOT about the way I work as an artist. I’m lucky that through my art i’ve built a fairly decent online following, I already used my platform to talk openly about mental health so as soon as I got my diagnosis I started talking about autism as well. I regularly post about autism and ADHD on my instagram. Until recently i’d never really created any autism specific designs or art but I think it’s definitely something i’d like to do more of going forward. I’d also like to design some autism themed pins for my shop as well.

What should neurotypical people be aware of when working and engaging with autistic artists?

That they might have very different ways of thinking and working, and that just because ‘you’ think a certain way, doesn’t mean they will. An example of this is how I was repeatedly told to draw out dozens of rough ideas for designs on paper first when I was at art college, the only thing was… I did all of that in my head. I still do, it turns out I always have done since I was a child. When I tried to explain this to tutors they told me to stop lying and called me lazy. It was incredibly frustrating going through the motions and doing as I was told, to then inevitably use the design i’d already whittled down in my head. I would say, always be open to the possibility that someone else’s mind may work differently to yours even if their creative methods may seem surprising or unusual.

You were recently chosen as the artist to design the packaging for chocolate for the UK company No No Cocoa. How did this work about?  

I saw an open call from the company for an autistic woman artist to design a wrapper for a ‘diversity’ bar they wanted to launch in April. I got in touch and sent over my portfolio and to my delight, they picked me. They were keen to keep it feminine to highlight autistic women within the arts so we used some of my ‘candy doll’ drawings for the design. So each bar has a sort of mini girl gang on the wrapper showing a bunch of colourful ladies, a perfect match for the rainbow chocolate inside. The inner sleeve of the wrapper also features some of my artwork + info about women on the spectrum. The project aims to work with 50 autistic creators so i’m thrilled to be a part of it.

What’s next for you?  

I’m not sure! Recently i’ve been doing a few charity things including co-running the Post Millish postcard project. I have a few local projects lined up in coming months which is really lovely as normally most of my work comes from international clients. I’ve never lived anywhere but here so although the pandemic has been very limiting, I’ve seen a big increase in commissions and orders from local clients and customers which is nice because normally most people ask me when I moved over as they’ve never heard of me.

Where can we follow? 

I mainly post on Instagram @jade_boylan and you can also visit my online shop candydollclub.com or my art at jadeboylan.com – I will be running a little giveaway soon with the rainbow chocolate bars as prizes, so be sure to follow if you fancy a chance at winning a bar. The vegan chocolate bars from the not-for-proft project can also be ordered via nono-cocoa.com 

Glossary for some of the terms used: 

Neurodivergent – basically anyone who isn’t ‘normal’ in a neurological sense. Neurodivergence can include Autism, ADHD, ADD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia, Personality Disorders and Schizophrenia. 

Neurotypical – someone who doesn’t have any outstanding neurological peculiarities, so a nice normal regular person really. 

Neurodiversity – the growing movement highlighting and often celebrating neurological differences instead of hiding or being ashamed of them. Some neurotypical people might expect autistic people to hide their differences but the neurodiversity movement is all about being proud of who you are regardless of neurological differences. 

Allistic – this is another term for neurotypical, it’s essentially just the opposite of autistic. 

List of notable autistic individuals or those with suspected autism/neurodivergence in the arts:

  • Literature: Jane Austen, Virginia Woolf, Hans Christian Andersen, Lewis Carrol, Arthur Conan-Doyle, Emily Dickinson, James Joyce, W. B. Yeats, Franz Kafka, George Orwell, Mark Twain, H. G. Wells, H. P. Lovecraft, Emily Bronte, Isaac Asimov, Friedrich Nietzsche, George Bernard Shaw, Sylvia Plath, Shirley Jackson. 
  • Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Gary Numan, Aphex Twin, David Byrne, Glenn Gould, Ladyhawke, Keith Moon, Bob Dylan, Courtney Love, Michael Jackson, Susan Boyle, James Taylor, Eminem, Robbie Williams. 
  • Film/TV: Dan Aykroyd, Tim Burton, Daryl Hannah, Steven Spielberg, Stanley Kubrick, Paddy Considine, Anthony Hopkins, Jerry Seinfeld, Woody Allen, Alfred Hitchcock, Dan Harmon, Jim Henson, Hannah Gadsby, Michael Palin. 
  • Art: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Andy Warhol, Willem van Genk, Stephen Wiltshire, Vincent van Gogh.

Jade Boylan is a Manx artist and illustrator, she works full time from home as a freelance designer as well as running her online shop www.candydollclub.com she is also a member of the Isle of Man Arts Council and the board of Culture Vannin. 

IG @jade_boylanart www.jadeboylan.com