Gria Shead: Illuminating the Overlooked in Australian Art

Gria Shead, born in 1972, is an acclaimed Australian artist renowned for her evocative and richly textured paintings. Living and working in Sydney, Shead's artistic vision is profoundly influenced by Australia's vibrant landscapes and cultural tapestries. Her work frequently explores themes of identity, place, and the human connection to the natural world, drawing on personal experiences and the unique Australian environment.

Shead's art is distinguished by its emotive use of color and intricate layering techniques. Her paintings are a testament to her skillful manipulation of light and shadow, creating depth and movement that draw viewers into her contemplative world. Each piece is a journey, inviting the audience to explore the nuances of emotion and story embedded within the layers of paint. Her technically astute paintings delve into core human concerns such as love, longing, displacement, and discovery, often referencing earlier periods and environments to address contemporary issues of social justice, harmony, and beauty.

Shead’s work reviews Australian historiography, which has traditionally celebrated its patriot sons and their conquests, often at the expense of marginalized groups. She shines a light on the contributions of women, political refugees from old world England and Ireland, deposed Indigenous people, and early Chinese immigrants, demonstrating that these forgotten individuals were often the catalyst or inspiration for the cherished stories of our past. Her oeuvre traces a trajectory marked by significant places and points of departure, transmuted through her jewel-like palette and technical verve.

Since her first solo exhibition in 1996 at Selborne Chambers, NSW, Shead has exhibited widely across Australia and internationally, earning critical acclaim and a dedicated following. Her work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions, and she has been the recipient of several prestigious awards and residencies. Shead has been a finalist in many prizes, including the Mosman Art Prize and the Tattersall’s Art Prize, and has won awards in both printmaking and drawing.

In addition to her painting, Shead is also an accomplished printmaker. Her prints, like her paintings, are marked by a keen attention to detail and a deep emotional resonance. Shead studied at the National Art School, majoring in both printmaking and painting, and was an apprentice to Printmaker Gaye Paterson-Lamb in Washington DC, USA, in 1992.

Shead is a second-generation artist, daughter of Australian artist Garry Shead. She has taught painting master classes and drawing for teenagers at the Art Gallery of NSW and has provided private tuition for many years. She is represented by Nanda\Hobbs Contemporary in Sydney and Singapore, and her work is held in collections in Australia, the UK, the USA, and Asia.

Shead’s art describes worlds-in-worlds and the thing-in-itself, whether capturing a moment in a well-known room or a fragment of a life-story that warrants her unique investigation. With a complex palette and consummate composition skills, she interrogates history to reveal the multivalent roles that women play in the formation of cultural identity. Her work continues to evolve, reflecting her ongoing exploration of new themes and techniques, and remains a powerful testament to the beauty and complexity of the human experience.