Olana Janfa and Abbey Rich

Description

Artist Bios

Abbey Rich

Abbey Rich is a public and exhibiting artist based on the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation in Naarm, Melbourne. Abbey’s work predominantly looks at gender and environment, with a particular interest in accessible and community co-designed public art making. Abbey has created over 40 mural works across the country and has spent the past year developing sculptural works and concepts ready for public space. 

Olana Janfa

Olana Janfa was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and emigrated to Norway as a teenager. He arrived in Australia for a holiday in 2015 and has called Melbourne home ever since. Olana is a proudly self-taught artist, picking up his first brush in 2018 finding his own way.

At first, he wanted to recreate the traditional Ethiopian Orthodox church art he remembered from his childhood. As Olana continued his journey, he found that art connected him strongly with his culture and allowed him to communicate his experiences. Art allowed him to express his identity and what’s important, giving him a sense of home.

Olana mostly works with recycled timber and found materials, using acrylic, oil and pastel from his small studio in Thornbury, Melbourne. His practice also involves illustration and large-scale mural works as well as teaching art to children in schools and from CALD backgrounds.

Big Picture Fest 2023
Park Row, Frankston.
You can see this piece on a Street Art Walking Tour: Street Art Walking Tours (discoverfrankston.com)

Photography by Steve Brown.