In her fourth .M Contemporary SYDNEY solo exhibition, Making Waves, Sydney based artist Sally McKay has built and photographed a series of meticulously engineered and illuminated large-scale installations, evoking a connection to our vast oceans and wild nature.
McKay is recognised as an award-winning photographer, whose work has been shown regularly at Sydney Contemporary Art Fair and in the core artistic program at the Ballarat International Foto Biennale. For this most recent exhibition, she has collaborated with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Centennial Parklands and Greenpeace deepening her knowledge of the natural world, and the value of her artistic practice within the realm of ocean advocacy.
Curriculum Vitae
| 1978 | Born in Melbourne; lives and works in Sydney |
Education
1996 -1999 Bachelor of Business Management & Bachelor of Marketing Monash University
1996 -1998 Diploma of Photography – Photography Imaging College – Melbourne
Group & Solo Exhibitions
- May 2021 Solo Exhibition: ‘Making Waves’ .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- October 2020 Fisher’s Ghost Art Award, Finalist, Sydney NSW
- May 2020 Online Virtual Exhibition .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- February 2020 Bushfire Relief Exhibition .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- October to December 2019 Solo Exhibition Shoalhaven Regional Gallery Nowra NSW
- October 2019 Solo Exhibition: Seed the Change .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- September 2019 Sydney Contemporary Art Fair Carriageworks NSW
- August-October 2019 Ballarat International Foto Biennale Solo Show VIC
- February 2019 The Meeting of Creative Minds. Group Exhibition Woollahra NSW
- November 2018 Guiding Stars Lane Cove Public Exhibition Sydney NSW
- October 2018 Culture Pop Group Exhibition .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- September 2018 Sydney Contemporary Art Fair Carriageworks NSW
- July 2018 The Blind Radius II .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
- August 2017 Ballarat International Foto Biennale Ballarat VIC
- October 2017 The Blind Radius I .M Contemporary Sydney NSW
Commissions & Public Exhibitions
- February 2020 Sydney Cancer Genetics Private Commission
- November 2018 Guiding Stars E-Waste Public Exhibition Lane Cove Council
Press & Online Media
- Art Money “Work in Situ Featured Artists” July 2020
- Capture Magazine “Seed the Change by Sally McKay” October 2019
- PhotoReview “Seed the Change – Exhibition by Sally McKay September 2019
- ArtsHub “Sally McKay: Seed the Change” September 2019
- The Cult Curated Edition Queens Court Woollahra NSW August 2019
- Bondi Wash Journal Series “A Natural Life with Sally McKay” Nov 2018
- Ocula Online Art Magazine “Australian Artworks” September 2018
- Wentworth Courier What’s On in Sydney “Circular Logic” August 2018
- Belle Magazine Top Things to See in Sydney Blind Radius II Exhibition July 2018
Public Programs, Panel Discussions & Teaching
- Public Workshops “Waste into Art” Shoalhaven Regional Gallery December 2019
- Lecture “Ephemeral Art” Wairoa Special Education School November 2019
- Panel Discussion “Seed the Change” with Dr Brett Summerell – Director of Research and Chief Botanist at the Royal Botanic Gardens and Curator Aaron Bradbrook September 2019
- Teaching “Subtext Art Program” for refugee students – Australia Numeracy & Literacy Foundation November 2018 to May 2019
Sally McKay was born in Melbourne and introduced to Photography at an early age by her father who was a Lithographer and Offset-Printing entrepreneur. She worked as a Portrait Photographer in Sydney for ten years before launching her career as a Photographic Artist. Her inspiration comes from her fascination with individual colour preferences, her introverted inclination towards creativity and mindfulness, and her love of learning. She largely creates works from artifacts found in her immediate environment.