Meet your 2026 Garden of the Mind Art Competition winners!

Thank you to everyone who entered this year's art competition. We received an incredible range of creative works, and we were truly impressed by the talent across all categories. We're delighted to announce the winners for each category.

Painting - Beauty of Nature by Helen Saigal

Drawing or Sketch - My Mind Flowers by Shayne Williams

Mixed Media - The Seeds We Nurture by Kayla Clarke

Digital Artwork - Jacana by Amaya Gamage

Photography - Woody Point Storm by Robert Millen

Sculpture & 3D - Feed your mind wisely - Grow Flowers! by Connexions Group A

Under 18 - Moonlit Dive by Serena Rivera Gargan

Under 18 - Birds of Paradise *Name withheld for Artist's privacy

Under 18 - River Five *Name withheld for Artist's privacy

Voting Winner - Samantha Dennis

About our prize pool sponsor

Rose Kelly was part of the Challenge Community Services community for 60 years, living a full and happy life supported from school through to independent living.

The Rose Kelly Charitable Trust continues her legacy by helping people with disability and those in out-of-home care have the opportunity to express, celebrate and share their talents through our Art Competition.

We thank the Rose Kelly Charitable Trust for its generous contribution to this year's competition.

What is the Challenge Community Services Art Competition?

It’s an annual art competition run by Challenge Community Services and invites people with disabilities, those in care of a disability services provider, as well as children and young people in Out of Home Care, to unleash their creativity and express themselves through art.

What are the key dates to remember?

Monday 27 July to Sunday 2 August Theme voting
Monday 10 August Entries open
Sunday 20 September Entries close
Thursday 24 September Voting opens
Thursday 8 October Voting closes
Monday 12 October Winners announced.

What are the categories for entry?

Child or young person in out-of-home care (under 18)
Child or young person with a disability (under 18)
Painting by an adult with a disability
Drawing or sketch by an adult with a disability
Mixed media by an adult with a disability
Photography by an adult with a disability
Sculpture & 3D by an adult with a disability
Digital artwork by an adult with a disability

Who is eligible to enter?

The competition is open to Australian residents who are:

A person with disability in the care of a disability provider
A child or young person in Foster Care/Out of Home Care

How can I enter?

Eligible individuals can create a piece of artwork using the campaign theme for inspiration. The artwork can take any format that can be reasonably photographed or submitted digitally including a drawing, painting, photo or sculpture.

Next step is visiting the Challenge website www.challengecommunity.org.au/art-competition and following the prompts to the entry page, where you can submit the entry online.

Entrants under 18 must have parent/guardian/carer approval to enter.

Can I post my entry?

No, this is an online competition.

Are there any limits on how many times I can enter?

Yes, there’s a limit of one entry per eligible person.

I’m not a client of Challenge Community Services, can I still enter?

Yes, we welcome entries from people with disability or in out-of-home care with other service providers.

Can I enter AI generated artwork?

To ensure that we are providing a fair opportunity to all artists, we will not accept AI generated artworks.

We welcome artists to enter digital artworks created with using digital tools such as Photoshop, Procreate, Illustrator and InDesign