visual artist & actor
Daphne was awarded a doctorate in visual arts in 2009 at Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia. Her research culminated in exhibitions at the Northern Territories Library at Parliament House, Darwin and at Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, Townsville, Queensland. Daphne has since moved to Southern Italy where she now lives and paints on the Salento Penisula in Puglia.
Daphne completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts degree with 1st class honours (supervision by NQ artist, Assoc. Prof. Anneke Silver) at James Cook University in 2002. In 2001 she was awarded the JCU Harry Hopkins Art Award. Her large canvases and drawings have already been acquired by the JCU art collection as well as by private collections in Victoria, Queensland, UK., Switzerland and Holland.
In October 2002, she held her first solo exhibition of paintings, 'And the Earth is Her ...' at Umbrella Studio, Townsville, for the completion of her BVA with honours at JCU. In March 2003, she held her first professional solo exhibition, 'Nude Not Naked' at Artours Gallery, Brisbane (paintings featured on ABC TV Sunday Arts Program 2nd March 2003)
Born in India, Daphne was educated in the UK. She trained in theatre in London in the 60s and taught in Bristol and acted with various theatre companies including Bristol Street Theatre, Bristol Arts Centre and Barn Theatre, Dartington Devon. In 1981, she migrated to Australia.
Daphne has an extensive history of working professionally with communities through theatre and other art forms, in particular in Sydney's Western Suburbs where she was the first multicultural artsworker supported by the Australia Council for the Arts.
she initiated many successful projects and created training tools that are still in use.
On arriving in Townsville in 1992, Daphne pursued a career in visual arts (click here to visit her gallery) while continuing her work in theatre, writing and storytelling with migrant and disadvantaged communities. She also performed with Tropic Sun Theatre, the professional regional theatre company of North Queensland.
Full Curriculum Vitae
| Place of birth | India: emigrated to UK with family immigrated to Australia as a permanent resident 1981 Australian citizenship 1985 |
| Education | Secondary: Dartford Grammar School, Kent: distinction in Advanced Level Certificate in Art |
| 1964 | Trent Park College of Music Art & Drama, London. U.K. 3 year Diploma in Drama and Education; Teaching Diploma |
| 1999-2002 | 4 Yr. degree course; Bachelor of Visual Arts in painting; drawing; sculpture, printmaking. Majoring in painting James Cook University, Townsville, North Queensland. Received Harry Hopkins Art Award |
| 2002 | BVA with 1st Class Honours awarded - James Cook University |
| 2009 | PhD awarded Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT, Australia |
| Exhibitions | |
| 2014 | In planning - solo exhibition, Southfields Gallery, London, & groups exhibitions in Punjab and Dehli, India January, special project 'Fragmented Ripples', Setup Arte Fiera, Bologna, Italy (auspiced and curated by Renata Summo-O'Connell of Artegiro Contemporary Arts) |
| 2013 |
March-April, installation 'Cultural Infinity' Museo Luigi Pigorini, EUR, Rome, Italy (project 'Idee Migrante') |
| 2012 |
March - solo exhibition 'Movimenti Commuoventi' Castello de Gaultieriis' Castrignano De' Greci, Lecce, Italy. May - solo exhibition 'Fragmented Ripples', Artegiro Gallery, Montefiascone, Prov. Lazio, Italy. (Director Renata Summo-O'Connell) June - installation for Biennale Del Salento (with John du Feu). Exhibition curated by Gruppo Tracce. August - presented painting workshop, with North Queensland artist Anneke Silver, at Carnarvon Gorge, Central Queensland, Australia. September - group exhibition, EpiCentre Gallery, New Delhi, India November - works presented at the art fair, Arte Padova, by Artegiro Gallery November - solo exhibition 'Marks of Transit', Southfields Gallery, London, UK (director Kuldip Rihal) |
| 2011 | August - September. Major solo exhibition. 'RaccontiDellaPelle' Castello Carlo V, Lecce, Italy. |
| 2010 | Moved to Salento, Southern Italy |
| 2009 | solo exhibition - DVAA Gallery, Darwin, NT, Australia |
| 2008 | solo exhibition - Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, Townsville, Queensland, Australia |
| 2007 | solo exhibition - NT Library, Parliament house, Darwin, Australia |
| 2004 (Nov) | Joint Exhibition with textile artist, Kerry Robertson Umbrella Studio |
| 2004 (Oct) | Solo exhibition - 'Nude Not Naked' Mt Isa Cultural Centre |
| 2004 (July) | Solo exhibition - 'Subjective Objects' Umbrella Studio, Townsville, NQ |
| 2004 (March) | Solo exhibition - 'Heat and Light' Bulimba Gallery, Brisbane |
| 2003 (March) | Solo exhibition - 'Nude not Naked' Artours Gallery, Brisbane |
| 2002 (Oct) | Solo exhibition - 'And the Earth Was Her ... ' Umbrella Studio, Townsville NQ |
| 2001 (Oct) | Silent Echoes (Group exhibition with 2 other artists) Pinnacles Gallery, Thuringowa NQ |
| Media | |
| 2004 | South-East Advertiser (Brisbane) 'Vibe' entertainment section feature 'Igniting the Art Scene' (31 March) |
| 2004 | Brochure from studio artists exhibition Umbrella Studio publication |
| 2004 | Brochure from 'Subjective Objects' exhibition - Umbrella Studio publication |
| 2004 | Work featured on Channel 7 TV 'The Great South-East' |
| 2003 | Work featured on ABC TV Sunday Afternoon Arts Program |
| 2002 | work selected by JCU for publication: Art and Design Education Resource Guide 2002 |
| Special projects | |
| 2005 | invited to take up artist-in-residence role at Tropic Sun Theatre |
| 2004 | invited to sketch dancers at Dance North, NQ professional contemporary dance company |
| 2004 | Commission for Tropic Sun Theatre Company: five large canvasses for the production 'The House of Bernarda Alba' |
| 1999 | Commission for Tropic Line Theatre Company: portrait paintings (life-size), on canvas, of characters from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Outdoor production |
| Work history | Freelance artist and artsworker in NQ. |
| 2005 | playing First Voice and several small roles in Tropic Sun Theatre's production of Dylan Thomas' 'Under Milk Wood' |
| 2005 | Visual arts workshops for young people - Perc Tucker Regional Gallery; multi-arts workshops for Barrier Reef TAFE |
| 2004 | Life-drawing workshops for Umbrella Studio Contemporary Art; Kelso Art Group and Mount Isa Art Group |
| 2004 | Freelance Artsworker: arts project with young people for La Luna Youth Arts |
| 2003 | performed as Madame Arcati in the Tropic Sun Theatre production of Noel Coward's 'Blithe Spirit', touring to veunues throughout regional Qld. |
| 2003 | STILL (e)MOTION - eight interlinked installations created with two other artists and with contributions from the community (Pinnacles Gallery, Thuringowa NQ - with funding from Arts Queensland and |
| 2003 | 'Riverscape' - arts in the community project with Riverside Gardens Community Centre (Delphin Lendlease & Townsville City Council with funding from New Media Arts Board of the Australia Council) |
| 2000 | Arts project with young people for La Luna Youth Arts |
| 2000 | Initiated arts project with women and mental health issues Development of playscript, Brightside, based on stories and experiences of women in the community involved in issues of mental illness (with playwright Suzy Gilmour). (funded CCDF Australia Council) |
| Artsworker for workshops and programming of material with young people on Radio 4TTT, ethnic community radio. La Luna Youth Arts Project with Federation funding | |
| Chairperson: La Luna Youth Arts Management Committee | |
| Publication of paper with Mary Lane (senior lecturer in social work. social policy and sociology; Sydney Uni.) WOMEN, COMMUNITY ARTSWORK AND VIOLENCE - The power of collectivity. (Journal : Women Against Violence, editors: Jude Irwin, Prof. Ros Thorpe, Casa Melbourne, Dec.2000 Issue 9) |
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| 1999 | Initiated and facilitated workshops for migrant women in project New Country, resulting in solo performance script ‘The Spider Witch’ performed by Meme Thorne at the Queensland Biennial, Townsville (funded by CCDF Australia Council) |
| 1998 | Artsworker and project co-ordinator for Playing Away, a project to document stories and create theatre plays with migrant residents of the Townsville area. (Project sponsored by the Ethnic Communities Council of Qld. and funded by the CCDU Australia Council) |
| 1996 | La Luna Youth Arts radio project Directed NESB storytelling group working in cultural development with local Radio 4TTT (CCDU funding) |
| Devised a storytelling kit with women from Townsville’s Multicultural Women's Support Group (Funding CCDF Australia Council and Arts Queensland) |
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| 1996-1997 | Australia Council steering committee member for DARE National Cultural Development Conference Brisbane 17 - 19 Nov. 1997 |
| 1995-1997 | Actor with Tropic Line Theatre Company, Townsville:- Tituba in Arthur Miller's THE CRUCIBLE Paulina in Ariel Dorfman's DEATH AND THE MAIDEN Lady Macduff in Shakespeare's MACBETH Madame in Jean Genet's THE MAIDS Solo performance in Dario Fo and Franca Rame's FEMALE PARTS |
| As writer-in-community, devised and facilitated a cross-cultural development project, WOMENS STORIES FOR RADIO with Aboriginal radio station 4K1G (funded: Literature Board, Australia Council) | |
| Conducted research project for Qld Ethnic Communities Council, Brisbane NESB CULTURAL MAPPING - FNQ and west to Mt. Isa |
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| Invited to sit on reference group (Darwin) AUSTRALIA COUNCIL INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL EXCHANGE POLICY | |
| 1995 | FORUM FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY Initiated and coordinated public forum with NESB artists and speakers with training component (RADF funding). Produced report: 'North Queensland - a Public Forum for Diversity' |
| Chairperson for Queensland Community Arts Network, Brisbane (95 - 97) | |
| 1994 | Theatre and cultural development project Directed MOVING FRAMES, a devised performance with young women in Townsville (funded :Performing Arts Board, Australia Council) |
| Tutor for INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS Townsville | |
| 1993-1994 | Elected to Queensland Community Arts Executive Committee (Brisbane) as regional representative and on Qld. Steering Committee of Coalition for Cultural Diversity: various articles published on Community Cultural Development practice |
| Regional Arts Development Fund Committee member, Townsville City Council | |
| Trainer on FNQ TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (devised by QCAN) - training in cross-cultural work with communities in conjunction with Aboriginal cultural worker Phil Toby : see QCAN Training Officer's report CHANGE FROM THE INSIDE | |
| 1993 | Co-ordinator and consultant for Australia Council Conference: Rural and Remote Regions Policy Review; Townsville |
| 1988-1992 Sydney |
MULTICULTURAL ARTS OFFICER Fairfield Community Resource Centre First cultural development and community artsworker position in SW Sydney, working with NESB communities in cross-cultural arts development (position funded: CCDU and NSW Govt.) |
| Several projects initiated for migrant women at Villawood Public Housing Estate. Fairfield. Projects funded by CCDB Australia Council: Womens Textile Banner; Women’s Screen Printing with Garage Graphix; Villawood Multicultural Festivals for Carnivale. Work included making of CCD. training video with University of Sydney MEMORY and IMAGINATION, COMMUNITY ARTS/ COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT |
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| Received 12 month grant from CCDB AUSTRALIA COUNCIL for training of Chinese-speaking community artsworker | |
| Pacific Rim Tour (6 weeks) with SHOPFRONT THEATRE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE as drama tutor; touring with young people’s group shows to THAILAND, KOREA, JAPAN, HAWAII, CANADA & U.S.A | |
| 1989-1991 | NSW Community Arts Association management committee: executive member; published various articles on CCD practice in newsletter |
| 1982-1986 | Directed community theatre projects in Canberra, Victoria, S.A; awarded $267,000 state and federal government grant to co-direct YOUNG MOBILE THEATRE as a touring outback theatre company for S.A. based in Port Pirie |
| 1975-1978 UK |
Actor: Barn Theatre Co. Dartington, Devon;1973 - 75 Bristol Street Theatre and Bristol Arts Centre;1978 - 81 Administrator at Vandyck Theatre, Bristol University |
| Travelled widely in Europe | |
| 1964-1972 | Taught drama in England |