Nic Steenhout

Quilter, bird photographer, digital accessibility consultant

About Nic

A middle aged white man with short brown hair. He wears glasses with a thing oval black rim. He is wearing a black t-shirt with a tan sports coat.
Nic Steenhout is the host and creator of The Work Between. A quilter, bird photographer, and sketcher, he brings his own creative practice to every conversation on the show. He has spent more than 25 years working in digital accessibility as a speaker, trainer, and consultant. He has worked with disabled people, non-profits, government organizations, and corporations across three continents. He also hosts A11y Rules, a podcast dedicated to web accessibility. Nic lives and works in British Columbia.

Quotes

For me, art is about the process, not about the outcome. I am much more satisfied with spending an hour sketching a bridge than I am with the finished bridge sketch.

There’s growth in discomfort.

A quilt is not something you put on a wall or put in a box and forget about. A quilt, you use it. When it wears out, well, you make another one.

Key themes

Nic Steenhout uses this solo episode to push back on standard urban sketching advice: draw from life, use ink, skip photos. He argues that advice assumes a non-disabled body and a brain that can tune out a busy street. Speaking from his own experience as a disabled sketcher, he separates scaffolding (photos, pencils, things you use while learning and can drop later) from accommodation (wheelchair access, noise control, things that don’t go away once you’ve improved).

Nic Steenhout on learning urban sketching — September 14, 2026 — 15:03

Mark Miller turns the tables and interviews Nic about his own creative practice. They talk about sketching, quilting and bird photography, why making things helps quiet Nic’s mind, and why the process matters more to him than the finished work. The conversation also touches on martial arts, self-criticism, vulnerability, and wanting to be seen as more than the disabled accessibility guy.

Nic Steenhout on quilting, sketching, and photography — August 13, 2026 — 54:33

The Work Between is an interview podcast with disabled artists and creators. We will be discussing their creative processes and explore the intersection of creativity and disability, and asking how that intersection shapes identity.

Introduction to The Work Between — May 06, 2026 — 6:25