A YOUNG Indigenous man who has overcome major hurdles to become a well-respected local artist has just done it again, being nominated for two categories in the Victorian Young Achiever Awards.
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Josh Muir, 24, from Napoleons, is a contender for both the Saward Dawson Community Service and Social Impact Award and the Coffee Club Arts and Fashion Award, with winners to be announced in May.
Mr Muir overcame drug addiction and mental health issues in his teens largely through his love and talent for art, as well as support from loved ones.
Since then, he has gone strength-to-strength, winning a number of local, state and national awards and being commissioned to create art from Melbourne White Night to the offices of Ballarat’s CAFS and Sharon Knight MP.
Mr Muir said he had needed to step back from his initial success to help him find the right path.
“I’m young and ambitious but at the same time I’ve had to find myself again. In the beginning when it was happening with the media and the PR and the hype, I had to learn to not get too caught up in it all and just focus on what really mattered,” he said.
“At the moment I’ve got a strong support around me, which allows me to focus on what I need to do. I’m taking a huge step back from everything and allowing myself to absorb and grow...and get into the rhythm of experimenting and ideas and not being afraid to make mistakes along the way.”
Mr Muir said the message behind his art was to help instill self-belief in young people.