Who is Fiona Omeenyo?

Fiona Omeenyo is a successful Australian Aboriginal artist. She is one of the founding artists from the Lockhart River Art Gang, who rose to international prominence with their contemporary based artworks from remote northern Queensland. Fiona Omeenyo was born at Lockhart River on Cape York in 1981 and began exhibiting her artwork in 1998.

Which language group is Fiona Omeenyo from?

Umpila

What is Fiona Omeenyo’s painting style?

Fiona Omeenyo embraces a semi-figurative style of painting to represent the mythic ancestral figures, almost as though carved into the background layers of paint. Her work has been widely exhibited in Australian galleries since winning her first art award in 2001. She is represented in private collections worldwide and public collections at the National Gallery of Victoria and QUT Art Museum.

Abaoriginal Art Status

Established Artist

Fiona Speaks About Connection To Country

How do people feel when they see your work?

“They’re really amazed and they feel a connection. They feel they’ve been to that place. They feel connected to that place. My family are very proud. They always tell me “Keep painting. Paint about our country so people can see”. Even though they’re not standing on the land, they can feel that they are through my painting. They can see the landscape and the colours of the land.”

Colour Palette

 

How do you decide and put together the colours?
“I just close my eyes and think of the beach, the sunset colours, and the landscape colours. I work in dark and light colours. I probably put down a light background with a dark top colour. It all blends with the colours of the landscape of my country.” 

View:
Fiona Omeenyo Colour Palettes

Art Themes

Fiona Omeenyo bases many of her paintings around the ancestral creation stories of her homelands, as told to her by her uncle.  Fiona defines these heritage stories in these words  –“This is a true story …this thing really happened, at Pathaco, before time.’

Birds

“In my story, Niko is a black-headed python who wants to marry Hinta, the parrot sisters. That’s why you’ll see a lot of birds in my painting because they represent my story – Niko.”

“Elders say that when we pass, our spirits leave us and fly into the sunset.”

Miiku

The story outlines the conflicts and events around the wedding of the local chief’s twin daughters, who the ancestor Miiku believed were to be betrothed to him. Miiku began to dance the corroboree mulkarri, causing great rains and floods. He then managed to paddle out to the wedding grounds and secretly abducted the twin sisters. The twin sisters were the parrot twins and their betrothed was the Sea Eagle Kuchuutu. So today you can still find the Sea Eagle hovering over the coast searching for the parrot twins.

Art Prizes

2021  KAAF Art Prize, Finalist, Sydney
2019  Montalto Sculpture Prize, Finalist
2001  Cape York Art Awards, 1st Prize
2000  Art of Place Awards, Work Selected
1999   Cape York Art Awards, 1st Prize

Solo Exhibitions

2019 Ancestor Spirits, FireWorks Gallery, Brisbane
2018. Welcome TWO, FireWorks Gallery, Brisbane
2017  Fiona Omeenyo – Ancestors and Spirits, Japingka Gallery, Fremantle
2016 Malu, FireWorks Gallery, Brisbane
2007  New Life, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
2005  Melpa Go Long Way, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane
2004  Niagara Galleries, Melbourne Journey On, Andrew Baker Art Dealer. Brisbane
2003  Wunnem Me For, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane
2002  Niagara Galleries, Melbourne Kukiya, Hogarth Galleries, Sydney
2001  Story: Miiku, Parrot Sisters and Kuchuutu, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane
2001  From Here to There, Short Street Gallery, Broome, WA
2001  Ngaachi Pathaco (My Home), Hogarth Galleries, Sydney

Selected Group Exhibitions

2021 Which Way? FireWorks Gallery, Brisbane
2021 Artspace, Mackay
2021  Kate Owen Gallery, Sydney
2021   Art Mob, Hobart
2019  On the Coast – The Art of Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok, Japingka Gallery, Fremantle
2018  Fiona Omeenyo & Rosella Namok, Japingka Gallery, Fremantle
2009  Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
2008  From Cape to Cove, Holmes a Court Gallery, Perth
2008  The Women’s Show, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne
2008   Bal Tashchit: Thou Shalt Not Destroy, The Jewish Museum of Australia, Melbourne
2007   Hogarth Galleries, Sydney
2007    Galleria Civica d’Arte Moderna, Palazzo Collicola, Spoleto, Italy
2006   Art for Science, Murdoch Research Institute, Melbourne
2004   Out of Country, Gallery 1601, Washington DC, USA and touring
2004   Hitting on and Kicking Off, Centre of Contemporary Arts, Cairns
2003   The Art Gang: Contemporary Aboriginal Painting, Columbus State University, Georgia, USA
2003   Ngaachi Ngampula (Our Country), Hogarth Galleries, Sydney
2003   Artworks from FNQ + Torres Strait Islands, Artworkers Alliance, Brisbane
2003   Moon: One Icon, Many Stories, Short Street Gallery, Broome, WA and Arthouse Gallery, Sydney
2003   Kulam Kannga (Beginning): New Works by the Lockhart River Art Gang, The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia, Virginia, USA
2003   Beneath the Monsoon: Visions North of Capricorn, Artspace Mackay, Cairns Regional Gallery, Perc Tucker Regional Gallery (Townsville)
2003   Water: Prints from Lockhart River and the Tiwi Islands, Queensland University of Technology Art Museum, Brisbane
2003   Lockhart River Gang, Gallery Gondwana, Alice Springs
2002  The Queensland/Berlin Indigenous Art Exhibition, Ludwig Erhard Haus, Berlin, Germany
2002  Message Stick: Journey’s End, Andrew Baker Art Dealer, Brisbane
2002  In Language (A Cathedrals Week Exhibition), Ann Street Church of Christ, Brisbane
2002   New Ground, Main Street Gallery, Adelaide International Women’s Day Event, Vivien Anderson Gallery, Melbourne
2002  Cape York Art Awards Exhibition, Laura Festival, Queensland
2002  Laura Award Winners Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland
2001  Federation Exhibition: Local Colour, Local Lives, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland
2001  Postcard Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland Gatherings, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane
2000  Pama Belong Sandbeach, Queensland
2000  Aboriginal Creations, Brisbane Fifth National Indigenous Art of Place Award, Old Parliament House, Canberra
2000  In my Eyes, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland
2000  Message Stick, Lockhart River Aboriginal Community Arts and Cultural Centre, Queensland and touring
1999  Brisbane Postcard Exhibition, Cairns Regional Gallery, Queensland International Works on Paper Fair, Sydney
1998  Message Stick, Queensland Aboriginal Creations, Brisbane

Read More:

Bold Colours of the Tropical Coast From Fiona Omeenyo and Rosella Namok

Fiona Omeenyo and Her Sand Beach People