Judy Oakenfull

JUDY OAKENFULL

EDUCATION

2001 Bachelor of Fine Art, Painting Victorian College of the Arts
1994 Associate Diploma of Fine Art (1st year) Boxhill Tafe

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2024 Subtropic Utopic, Anthea Polson Art (August)
2022 Wild Coast, Anthea Polson Art
2020 Floral Appreciation Tweed Regional Gallery and Margaret Olley Art Centre, Murwillumbah
2017 Nature Portraits Northern Rivers Community Gallery, Ballina
2009 Human Natures CPM Gallery, Murwillumbah
2006 Unrennovation Red Gallery, Contemporary Art Space, Melbourne

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2019 Facade, Tweed Regional Gallery Downtown, Murwillumbah
2019 In situ, M-arts downstairs gallery, Murwillumbah
2019 Metamorphosis M-arts downstairs gallery, Murwillumbah
2018 An exhibition of four local Artists, M-Arts upstairs gallery – Murwillumbah
2018 Regenerate | Murwillumbah Art Trail – Murwillumbah
2017 The Flower Show M-Arts – Murwillumbah
2016 Botanicus |Murwillumbah Art Trail – Murwillumbah
2015 Arts Northern Rivers Pop-up |Tweed – Murwillumbah
2015 Prospero Street Pop-up|Murwillumbah Art Trail
2008 The Door Snake Project Platform Artist Group @ Degraves St Subway – Melbourne
2006 Nicholas: The life of a Building, Blindside Artist Run Space – Melbourne
2005 Inaugral exhibition Pigment Gallery – Melbourne
2001 Graduate Exhibition, Victorian College of the Arts – Southbank
2001 Wallara Travelling Scholarship, Finalist exhibition. V.C.A. Gallery – Southbank
1999 City Consumptions Pty Ltd Fringe Festival Architecture Launch – North Melbourne

AWARDS

2024 Finalist Wollumbin Art Prize
2022 Finalist BAM Art Prize, Byron Bay
2019 Finalist Lethbridge 20000 Art Award, Brisbane
2018 Finalist BAM art Prize, Byron Bay
2018 Finalist Gallery 7 Art Prize, Byron Bay
2017 Finalist 30 x 30 Art Prize. Art Piece Gallery
2013 Highly Commended, Border Art Prize, Gold Coast Art Gallery
2001 Stella Dilger Award. V.C.A.
2001 Finalist Wallara Travelling Scholarship
2000 Special Mention, “Victorian Campus Art Prize”

OTHER

2020 Artist Curator Ordinary Love Group Exhibition at The Field, Murwillumbah
2018 Studio Artist at M-arts Murwillumbah
2018. Artist Curator Contemporary Botanica Exhibition at Botanical Bazaar, Nerang 2013-18 Facilitator Disability Art/Craft group at Lifebridge Pty Ltd.
2017 Artist Participant in ‘1000 words’ Art and literacy program NRCG

Artist Statement

Judy Oakenfull makes contemporary landscape and botanical paintings inspired by experiences in her local environment.  Recently her focus has been on coastal landscapes with an emphasis on coastal bushland and flora.  After spending time in these places, she uses observation, intuition and imagination to interpret her experiences into painterly form.  In doing so she also processes ideas and concerns about our wider cultural relationship to natural places.  This results in dreamlike imaginative landscapes, evocative seascapes and emphatic botanical works.
Plants are important elements in her landscapes, highlighting their importance in the ecosystem, and referencing an increasing awareness of their sentient qualities by scientists and theorists. Compositionally, they sometimes act more like figures in the landscape.  Inspired by Post Impressionist and more minimal contemporary painting styles, the work aims to represent a feeling of being in natural places, more than a visually accurate representation.  Colours may be subdued or exaggerated.  Compositions may shift and elements may be added or subtracted in the studio.  A sense of overall harmony is sought within the work, as she tries to capture some of the sense of calm and grounding that can be found in the bush or by the ocean.

Judy Oakenfull is an artist based in Murwillumbah, Northern NSW.  She has a Bachelor of Fine Art (Painting) from the Victorian College of Arts, and has had many solo and group exhibitions in Melbourne, the Northern Rivers and Queensland.  Solo exhibitions include “Floral Appreciation” at the Tweed Regional Gallery in 2020 and Wild Coast at Anthea Polson Art in 2022.  Oakenfull’s work can also be seen in street art projects in Murwillumbah and is in collections throughout the country and overseas.