Angela Abbott

Angela paints a wide variety of subjects in oils onsite at Montsalvat, both outdoors or in the studio she shares with artists Don James and Adam Frith.

Angela studied drawing at the National Gallery Victoria School with Ian Armstrong and painting under Shirley Bourne OAM, at the Victorian Artists Society. In the 1970's, Angela was one of the Eltham-based group: "7 Painters", exhibiting in Melbourne and Adelaide. Angela was awarded the Alice Bale Art Travelling Scholarship in 1983, engaged in tours studying Fine Art history in France, Germany, Italy and Russia, during her scholarship year based in London.

Angela is a Fellow of the Victorian Artists Society; former member of the Twenty Melbourne Painters Society; member of the Melbourne Society of Women Painters and Sculptors and of Chelsea Arts Club, London. She has taught extensively, including at the Victorian Artists Society and Malvern Art Society.

Angela has had 16 solo exhibitions in Melbourne and Sydney, including a Retrospective Exhibition at the Barn Gallery, Montsalvat, in 2021. Angela's work is held in private, civic and corporate collections in Australia and overseas. Her artworks are available directly from the artist's home studio.

As a studio artist since 1992, in the inspired setting of Montsalvat, she enjoys its vast array of subject-matter. Teaching informally in the lofty Art School Studio, Angela works alongside her students who select from the unique props available for still life and enjoy the captivating outdoor subjects on offer! 

Angela may be contacted at ianagraham@optusnet.com.au
Mobile: 0407 887596

Dr Jo Griggs (Canning)

Dr Jo Canning is the daughter of Australian artist John Canning and is currently a visual Artist in Residence at Montsalvat, Eltham.

Jo paints in her glorious studio daily, and takes in many students from Home Education to Easel Access where she is engaged in creating better career pathways for artists with disabilities. Unusually for an artist Jo has a PhD in research, genetics and behavioural neuroscience with extensive work in disability advocacy, including within UniMelb at the Royal Children’s Hospital.  Jo is a published researcher and her book "Miracle in Potential" - arts as early intervention, was launched by disability Minister – the Hon. Bill Shorten.  Jo’s professional background spans 45 years in all arts including as a dancer - Australian Ballet Co., an actor - MTC., Playbox and ABC and as a teacher Vic Arts Centre, Victoria State Ballet and National Theatre.

Jo is a consummate artist, and her visual art has been exhibited solo at Span Gallery Melb, Manyung, and and alongside her father at Canning Arts Yarrawonga. Most recently Jo has sold at Camberwell and been represented in the Omnia Art Prize. Jo created public works for Jellis Craig, The ANZ, Alfred Nuttal Kindy, and The Melbourne Aquarium (80sqm) - “The Sea and Me” incorporating 120 children’s expressions, and her murals, landscapes and portraits are in many private and public collections. 

Carmen Tuke

Multidisciplinary artist Carmen Tuke is a talented, creative soul. Tuke regularly travels to various locations across Victoria to paint en plein air landscapes. Tuke is also an innovative musician and maker of musical instruments including a wooden harp and a gong.

Contact
ectuke.com.au/
ectuke@gmail.com
@carmen.tuke

Ryo Yamauchi

Ryo Yamauchi is a photographer and printmaker. She works with photogravure, a technique that combines photography and etching. Her practice evolves through the gesture of collecting and pressing - a primitive act of contemplating time, experience and knowledge.

Always returning to her original passion in semiotics and love for the natural world, she explores communication using images as a language to examine alternative perspectives, achieve further understanding of the whole and restore intuition through connecting with nature.

Having had extensive travel and photography experience in cold climates including Iceland, Norway and Alaska, she currently focuses on documenting landscapes in the High Country of Tasmania and Victoria; two of the most unique and diverse ecosystems in the world.

Ryo is also a student of building design and drafting with her future path set on earthwall and mudbrick building systems. She takes part in a state-supported building project as well as assists maintenance of buildings in Montsalvat.

Contact
www.ryoyamauchi.com
info@ryoyamauchi.com
@ryoyamauchi_

Rochelle Van Der Merwe

Eltham (Melbourne)-based artist, Rochelle van der Merwe, has been a fine art, intimate events and portrait photographer since 2013 and a contemporary collage artist since 2020.

Born and raised in a small Zululand town in South Africa in the mid-70’s, she found solace and beauty in books, and the surrounding wild beaches and bushveld, a constant whilst growing up in a political landscape she could really never make sense of.

Rochelle’s work creates a portal to a wondrous, fantastical world that celebrates the powerful healing nature of simple, mostly every-day pleasures, transcending external societal values, such as status, race and gender.

Apart from national South African newspaper, The Rapport, Rochelle’s portraiture photography has also recently been featuring in Australian media, such as The Age, The Weekend Australian Review and The Big Issue.

Rochelle’s been a two-time winner of Montsalvat’s Art Festival Photography competition (2015 & 2017).

ABOUT ME:

Rochelle Van Der Merwe is a multidisciplinary artist with a special interest in storytelling through the Written Word, Contemporary Collage and Fine Art Photography.

She creates original contemporary collage art pieces for exhibitions and sell limited- edition archival fine art prints

Rochelle believes that working with her hands is essential to connecting her back to a centre of calm. She offers workshops, term classes, private bookings and collaborations with learning institutions and other projects:

How Rochelle creates each contemporary collage piece - in her own words:

"For my contemporary collage pieces, I use my fine art photos in the middle, then cut pieces from vintage children’s storybooks, encyclopaedias, National Geographics, art magazines & books, almanacs, old greeting cards and all sorts of unique paper paraphernalia that resonate with a sense of otherworldly nostalgia and dreamscaping, resulting in a rich, visual story.

Contact
storyholding.com.au
rochellevdmerwe@gmail.com
@storyholding

Amanda Grant (Ixia)

Known predominantly for her work on the Blacksmiths' Tree in Strathewen and the Homefront Sculptures in Greensborough War Memorial Park, Amanda has worked for the past decade as a public sculpture designer and Creative Director managing complex art projects. She leads a team of highly skilled artisans including blacksmiths, wood carvers, glass artists, ceramicists and filmmakers in order to realise her designs. Placemaking and celebrating local stories are central to her design process.

Amanda has spoken at the IACD International Community Conference in Glasgow and the International Conference on the Arts in Society in London about her work and her unusual approach to creative collaboration.

Magic, symbols and folklore are subjects she returns to in her personal work, (created under the name of Ixia,) her paintings and sculptures, feature strange animals and furniture, Elizabethan collars and Tarot cards. Amanda's skills encompass sculpture design, placemaking, branding, book design, illustration, art strategy consultancy, creative recovery facilitation, metal fabrication and cheiromancy.

"The work of Ixia takes on a whimsical surrealism. She uses primeval dream material, literature and the natural world as subjects in her compositions. The familiar and modern are subverted by classical antiquity. Exotic birds, both real and imaginary and strange plant life feature prominently. Her sculptural creations also take on a playful and sometimes disquieting feel, drawing the viewer in to her enchanted world with its strange spectacle. She plays with humour, fairy tale and the macabre in equal measure." —Sven Sandrasagra Artist/Designer, Prague

You can visit Amanda's public artwork nearby in Greensborough, St Andrews and Strathewen:-

The Blacksmiths Tree

Peter Avola Pavilion, 160 Chadds Creek Road, Strathewen

The Blacksmiths' Tree stands as a memorial to the events of the 2009 Victorian Bushfires and as a symbol of courage and life beyond the fires. At 10m high and weighing 3 tonne, it is believed to be the largest and most intricate fully forged sculpture in the world, and is regarded as an artwork of State Significance.

The Blacksmiths' Tree is forged predominantly from stainless steel and copper, and carries over 3500 hand-forged metal leaves in its canopy, as well as bronze gumnuts and stainless steel bugs and dragonflies. It was created over five years by hundreds of blacksmiths across 28 countries, including heavy industrial blacksmiths working in Australia. Amanda, as Project Manager, worked closely with Blacksmiths Associations around the world on this project, most significantly with the Australian Blacksmiths Association (Victoria) of which she is a Lifetime Member.

The surrounding reflective space around the Blacksmiths' Tree is defined by indigenous planting and a series of forged sculptures and seating, the design of which is based on grass blades. The sculptural directional signage around the memorial precinct are inspired by drawings by students at Strathewen Primary School.

The best time to visit the Blacksmiths' Tree is on dusk; as night falls the Blacksmiths' Tree is lit from beneath, creating an ethereal aspect in the darkness of the bush.

The documentary film by local filmmaker Andrew Garton: Forged From Fire: The Making of the Blacksmiths' Tree follows the creation of the Blacksmiths' Tree and its impact on the local community. It was a finalist for Best Melbourne Documentary in the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival in 2019

Homefront Sculptures

Greensborough War Memorial Park, Henry Street, Greensborough

Homefront is a series of war memorial figures carved from cypress with forged steel detailing. The designs for these sculptures were based on stories gathered from writing workshops and conversations with local war veterans. Of significance is the Lighthorse sculpture which depicts an Aboriginal mounted soldier and illustrates a Wurundjeri legend of Waa the Crow. This piece was designed in consultation with Wurundjeri Elders.

These sculptures were designed to replace a previous series of sculptures by Leigh Conkie which had fallen into disrepair. Amanda worked closely with Leigh, chainsaw carver Hikaru Kodama and blacksmith Roland Dannenhauer to create this series.

Amanda also worked as Producer on the Mike Wilkins documentary Homefront: A New Kind of War Memorial which was a finalist in the 2019 Melbourne Documentary Film Festival and screened on SBS.

St Andrews Wayfinding Signs

St Andrews Market / St Andrews Church / Wadambuk Community Centre, Caledonia Street, St Andrews

The St Andrews Wayfinding signs are a celebration of the unique character of St Andrews. Using only St Andrews artists to create the signs, the design showcases their work in glass, ceramic and metal. The signs are designed as part of a larger series that will eventually create a walking trail through the township. Experimental techniques in metal surfacing and fusing images onto glass were explored in the creation of these sculptural signs. If you're in St Andrews, peek behind each of the signs to find a puzzle for children.

Adele O'Shea

Adele O’Shea is a couturier that specialises in bridal and special occasion wear for women. 

Adele practices intricate, labour intensive techniques to create artful, elegant, one of a kind gowns, custom made for those who want something just a little bit different. 

Born and raised in Hobart Tasmania, Adele found her love for sewing at the tender age of 3, making pocket pets from scraps of fabric she found in the kinder craft tub. 

After much encouragement and teaching from her Nan as a child, she studied fashion design and manufacture before working for numerous bridal designers and as a freelance costume maker. Adele has also worked as a florist, which continues to influence her work aesthetic. 

Adele finds inspiration in the history of dress construction, heritage architecture, textures in the natural world, and all things textile.

Now that her 3 children are all in school, she’s excited to be in the process of designing and making a sample range in her Montsalvat stable studio. 

Contact
@adeleoshea 

Adam Griggs

Adam spent many years in theatre firstly as a Tobias brothers and performing as one of the main Theatre Sports comedians. He has an Associate Diploma in Performing Arts and is Allied Health and Community Services qualified. Adam created the business; “Don’t Punch Judy” (Arty and Inclusive) to bring traditional fun back to communities This work included Puppets, Clowning and Musical Therapy.

His work with the Austin Health - Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre, Mary Guthrie House have included utilizing his 40 years as a professional musician bringing drum therapy to the aged, especially for people with dementia. Adam’s disability support services have included working with clients with quadriplegia and Acquired Brain Injuries (ABI), children with ASD and clients with complex global disabilities.

Adam is also known for his many years of bringing joy through workshops at Rare bears in Eltham. A main influence, friend and mentor of Adam’s is Dr. Patch Adams “PATCH”. Adam was one of the first Clown Doctors at the Royal Children’s Hospital. Adam continues to communicate with Patch and hopes to bring him out to Montsalvat.

Keiko Matsui

Keiko moved to Australia in 1999 and completed a Bachelor of Fine Art (Honours) degree in 2006 at the National Art School in Sydney. Her work begins in the potter’s wheel and is then manipulated, cut and reassembled to evoke a quiet and subtle abstraction. Making and reinterpreting objects is her focus. She pays particular attention to the form and proportion, the profile or outline of a vessel and the interconnectedness between the interior and exterior.

She had her first solo exhibition at Sturt Gallery in Mittagong in 2012 after exhibiting in many group shows since 2003. Her recent exhibitions include 1000 Vases Dubai Design District Dubai, Impart Manly Art Gallery, New Porcelain Beaver Gallery Canberra, Concave solo exhibition MAY space Sydney and the Australian Ceramics Triennial Hobart Australia. Awards include North Queensland Ceramics Award (Finalist, 2020, 2018, 2016,), Gosford Art Prize (Winner in Ceramics, 2018, 2014, 2012), Vitrify Alcorso Ceramic Award (Finalist, 2013), John Fries Memorial Award (Finalist, 2011) , Small Art Object Prize in Vallauris, France (Winner, 2009), and Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize (Viewer's Choice Award, 2008).

“Directly stemming from my Japanese heritage and familiarity with the mending and restoring technique known as Kintsugi, my current work explores the altering and reforming of fine porcelain forms through the cutting and rejoining of sections. Kintsugi itself celebrates the damage and subsequent visible mending that results from the use of important functional objects.

Handwoven fabrics are overtly repaired (with contrasting pieces covering tears and worn areas as patches) while broken ceramics are glued (with lacquer and gold powder used to make such repairs highly visible) a clear celebration of use, breakage and its mending. Such activities are in direct conflict to the rejection of wear and breakage so embedded in my adopted Western culture.

I enjoy working with fine porcelain. It is extremely sensitive and responsive to the human touch when it’s soft. When fired, it becomes translucent and very strong. The nature of clay is endlessly fascinating.

I make a symmetrical shape on the wheel, and then alter the form by cutting and re-joining the parts. When putting the parts together with liquid clay, excess clay pushes out of the joint and makes a line like a human scar. I am drawn to the idea of an organic detail juxtaposed with the consistent lines of the wheeled form. It is like finding imperfection in our everyday.

I seek simple beauty in my work.” - Keiko Matsui, Artist Statement

Contact
keikomatsui.com.au/
info@keikomatsui.com.au
@keiko_matsui_ceramics

Jean-Paul Zilliacus

Jean-Paul was carving totem figures in chalk early in his childhood. It was fostered by an Arts based Steiner Education and encouraged by his grandmother Nancy Paterson, the painter.

His love of sculptural portraiture was further focused at Montsalvat by Matcham Skipper, who also inspired his philosophical inquiry into the Arts and History.

His observations and translations into clay give a gentle rendition of the human face.

Contact
jeanpaulzilliacus.com/
info@jeanpaulzilliacus.com
@jeanpaulzilliacussculpture

Damien Skipper

Born in 1956, son of Matcham Skipper, Damien has lived at Montsalvat since he was very young. An artist and musician, he was offered a place at the Gallery School in Melbourne. Damien gained a Diploma of Fine Art from Preston Institute of Technology in 1981. 

Damien’s career highlights include being a formative member of the rock music band ‘H Bomb Generation’. Damien’s art has been exhibited as part of group shows in various Melbourne galleries.

He has also held solo shows at Montsalvat, and was selected for the 'Reinvention: Creativity and Self identity' 2009 exhibition at the Bundoora Homestead Art Centre and was a finalist in the Nillumbik Prize 2013 and the Rick Amor Self Portrait Prize 2019.

Adam Frith

Adam is a tonal oil painter, teacher and resident artist at Montsalvat. He is an avid follower of the works and methods of Max Meldrum and associates.

He studied with Don James at Montsalvat and at the studio of the late Alan Martin where he worked during the 1990’s.

He is also a Signatory Member of the Victorian Artists’ Society where he regularly exhibits.

Contact
0417 477 735
adamfrith@people.net.au
@adamfrith14

Don James

A tonal oil painter and teacher and resident artist at Montsalvat since 1992

Don has been practicing and teaching the principles of tonal realist painting for many years. Don learned his craft from Shirley Bourne O.A.M and Alan Martin.

A Fellow of the Victorian Artists’ Society, winning the Norman Kaye Medallion in 2003 and the Deputy Lord Mayor’s Award in 2000, he is also a member of the Australian Guild of Realist Artists. He has exhibited widely both in solo and group exhibitions, including group exhibitions ‘Soundings’ and ‘Breadth’ at Montsalvat.

Beginners and advanced students are welcome and the studio classes at Montsalvat are designed to give the student the technical skills necessary to paint in a tonal realist manner. There is an emphasis on the use of materials and the ability to see as a painter sees. All subject matter is three-dimensional and the teaching concentrates mainly on still life.

Contact
donjamesart.com
james143@ozemail.com.au
@donjames7258

Jeanette Dyke

An award winning Designer, Gold and Silversmith whose work is timeless and unique.

Born in London, Jeanette trained for 9 years as a Gold and Silversmith in England, Germany and Australia. She is an award-winning jeweller whose work can be found in public and private collections worldwide, including the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory Australia. She has won many awards for her work including The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths’ Precious Metals Bursary and The P&O Makower Precious Metals Award.

Her studies in the fine and applied arts began at South Devon Technical College, Torquay in 1987 with a one-year Art Foundation course in the visual and applied arts. The following year she enrolled at the West Surrey College of Art in Farnham, Surrey within the faculty of three-dimensional design, specialising in metalwork and jewellery (student of Prof. Ian Dumelow, Marianne Forrest and Peter Parker). 

In 1989 she spent one semester of her studies at the Fachhochschule (College of Art and Design) under Prof. Elizabeth Holder in Düsseldorf, Germany.  She graduated in 1990 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree with honors.

Jeanette continued her studies with a Crafts Council of Great Britain awarded training grant to train with renowned silversmith Richard Fox in London.  Here she worked on Richards’s designs for BVLGARI. 

In 1992 Jeanette continued her studies in art specialising in silversmithing at the Royal College of Art in London (student of Prof. David Watkins, Michael Rowe, Werner Bunck, Prof. Hans Stofer and Onno Boekhoudt).  In 1993 she graduated with a Master of Arts degree.

This was followed by a master class/residential course in low relief chasing with one of the UK’s leading silversmiths Rod Kelly at the Bishopsland Educational Trust. Still in 1993 Jeanette finally set up her first workshop at 401½ Workshops in Battersea, London. 

In 1996 Jeanette moved to Melbourne, Australia and settled on the edge of the Yarra Valley. Here she completed a 3-year artists residency at Clifton Pugh’s Dunmoochin in Cottles Bridge. In 2011 she moved her workshop to the renowned artists colony of Montsalvat, where she set up her studio and Jewellery Making School.

Jeanette currently works to commission and supplies leading galleries around Australia.  She also teaches jewellery-making classes from complete beginner to advanced students, from her Montsalvat studio.  She has been designing and making for 30 years, selling and exhibiting at leading venues and galleries throughout the world.

Jeanette welcomes commissions and you are invited to visit her in her Montsalvat studio, by appointment, to discuss your ideas. She works closely with her clients in order to ensure complete satisfaction and to include you in every aspect along the way.

“Creation is a journey we share together so that I can bring you what your heart desires.”

Jeanette’s jewellery is available online from her website, from galleries listed on her website and from the Made @ Montsalvat shop.

Enquiries are welcomed at any time.

Contact
www.jeanettedyke.com
0403 852 444
info@jeanettedyke.com
@jeanettedykejeweller
www.facebook.com/JeanetteDykeJewellery

Kevin White

Kevin White is an internationally renowned ceramic artist educated in England and Japan. His current research focuses on interpreting the porcelain traditions of Japan and the Japonisme seen in British ceramics of the 19th century. In 1978 he was awarded a prestigious Japanese Ministry of Education (Monbusho) scholarship for post-graduate research in Ceramics, in Japan, studying under the late Professor Yutaka Kondo at Kyoto City University of Fine Art. He then worked for three years in the Kyoto studio of Mr Satoshi Sato, a member of the ‘Sodeisha’ group of contemporary ceramic artists. In 1985 he completed his Master of Arts at the Royal College of Art, London. He is currently Adjunct Professor in the School of Art, RMIT University.

Contact
@kevin_white_ceramics

Mary Caia

Mary started practicing yoga with teachers who shared the deeper knowledge and wisdoms of yoga. Her interest in yoga was thus stimulated and continued, and she gravitated towards a yoga school where she started a regular practice. Here she found a place where she could ask the difficult questions and obtain answers on a spiritual level. She graduated as a yoga teacher in 2005.

At this point her art world turned from commercial work to images presented in quiet times of meditation and in her dreams.  As she was discovering herself through yoga, these images represented struggles in her personal development. These became her inspiration.

Now she moves straight to her canvas without preparation and transports those images, allowing them to evolve and take form. She enjoys illustration and would love to continue work in that field. She trusts that will manifest if need be. In the meantime she continues projecting onto canvas what her inner world wants to express. 

Contact
marycaia-artist.com/
marycaia.artist@gmail.com
@mary.caia

Shinobu Kobayashi

Shinobu Kobayashi was born in Japan but started his woodworking career in Australia in 2002. The first turning point in that career was an unfortunate slip with a sharp chisel that severed three tendons in his arm. While recovering, he received shocking news of a massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan that literally wiped his father’s hometown off the north-east coast. His inability to help made him question how he could in future help people through woodworking and craft.

Shinobu studied at the Melbourne Guild of Fine Furniture, Capellågaden in Sweden, the College of the Redwoods in the USA and later became an apprentice to a master Sashimono craftsman in Japan. In 2016 Shinobu received a silver medal from the King of Sweden for an almost perfect examination score. In 2017, as an invited member of the Danish Cabinetmakers Association in Copenhagen, he exhibited at Design Museum Denmark. Now in Melbourne, Shinobu has recently become a resident of Montsalvat, Australian’s oldest continuously active artists’ community. He plans to create more art pieces while inspiring others to learn traditional Scandinavian and Japanese woodworking skills in a beautiful heritage area...and all over the world.

Contact
0481 300 720
shinobunny.com@gmail.com
@shino_bunny

Image courtesy of: http://www.woodreview.com.au/photocompentry/atelier-sumikko

Simon Icarus Baigent

Simon is an established, highly regarded goldsmith who specialises in the creation of unique items of jewellery and other precious objects. Many of his most valuable and unusual pieces have been commissioned by connoisseurs and are held in notable private collections. 

Simon is the son of actor/director Harold Baigent and the grandson of a silversmith. Born in New Zealand in 1955, for as long as he remembers he has been "making things, always making things, small, magical, beautiful things". At eight years old he knew what he wanted to do in life.

At seventeen he began his nine year apprenticeship to the sculptor and master silversmith Matcham Skipper. In 1981 he worked with Hendrick Forster to create the official wedding gift from the Commonwealth of Australia to the Prince and Princess of Wales. 

He is passionate about the intrinsic nature of gold and works only in 18 or 22 carat. He combines gold with ruby, emerald, sapphire, diamond or pearl, citrine, tourmaline, spinel, ebony, lapis lazuli or black pearl. 

Since each of his creations is unique, Simon welcomes clients to visit him by appointment at Montsalvat, to discuss their particular requirements and ideas, however simple or extravagant. 

Contact
0418 567 693

Image Credit:
Simon Icarus Baigent
Caviar Spoon c.1995
gold, ebony, mother of pearl, diamond, ruby
0.5cm x 5.5cm x 2.0cm (variable)
Nillumbik Shire Visual Art Collection. Acquired 1997
© Simon Baigent. Photo: Silvi Glattauer

Sue Thomas

Sue is passionate about fabric. Working from her sewing studio in the glasshouse at Montsalvat, she fuses colour, texture, drape and form to inspire creation in the making ofclothing, cushions and soft furnishings. Her carefully selected collection of buttons and trims, combined with textiles from near and far, ensure that all her pieces are unique.  Making use of even the smallest remnants, Sue prides herself on her ability to enhance the beauty of her materials. Drawing inspiration from the Montsalvat environment, nature and a world of fabrics, Sue's designs are many and varied whilst still maintaining her own style. 

Sue also works in conjunction with interior designers and sells her work to many shops in Melbourne. 
With many years of experience designing and creating, anything is possible with the help of her trusty sewing machine. 

Contact
0425 767 155 
@sewingsuez

Susan Reddrop

Susan Reddrop is a sculptor and glass artist, trained in Sculpture at the Victorian College of the Arts and in Glass at Monash University.

Susan exhibits regularly and also runs occasional workshops. She has also been part of a number of collaborative art projects with various communities and is always open to commissions and new creative challenges.

Contact
susanreddrop.com/
@reddropsusan