Unlike traditional art programs, VIA Studio provides a genuine artist studio environment where creativity, skill development, and individual goals come before disability.

The idea for VIA Studio was planted at the beginning of 2025, sparked by a chance encounter with ‘Big Bamm-Bamm’, an Archibald Prize finalist painting by Studio A artist Thom Roberts at the Art Gallery of NSW the year before. Standing in front of the work, founder Melisah May was struck not only by the quality of the painting, but by what it represented—a professional artist with disability whose work was being celebrated on one of Australia's biggest art stages.

As a practising artist, secondary visual arts teacher, and educator with almost two decades of experience supporting young people on the autism spectrum, Melisah had spent her career witnessing the transformative power of creativity. She had also seen a significant gap. While there were many wonderful community art programs, there were very few places where people living with disability could develop their artistic practice in a genuine studio environment—one that valued artistic ambition, professional mentorship, and creative identity just as highly as support.

She began asking herself a simple question:

"Is there more room in this space?"

In Newcastle, the answer was a resounding yes.

What followed was twelve months of planning, research, consultation, and learning. Melisah immersed herself in understanding the NDIS, completed the rigorous process of becoming a registered provider, visited and researched supported studios across Australia, connected with artists, families, support coordinators and disability organisations, and carefully designed a studio model that combined high-quality arts practice with person-centred support.