BRIMSTONE
KYRA HANNAH
14 NOVEMBER–1 December
Kyra Hannah is a self-taught mixed-media artist, who utilises her artistic practice to channel a myriad of visceral anxieties. Brimstone explores the intersection of Kyra's fascination with three integral concepts: first, the cosmos and celestial bodies, our place in the universe, and the vastness of space and what that represents for human consciousness; second, her scepticism towards the merits of organised religion, and curiosity regarding genuine faith and concentrated human belief which is capable of wide-scale social change; and finally, native Australian birds, the fragility of our ecosystems, and the tensions between a desire for personal freedom and the social responsibility to create a better world than what she has been given.
Altogether, Kyra's colourful aviary denounces maintained ignorance and selfishness, and is meant to celebrate all the joys and successes society is capable of if we take decisive action to improve our collective futures.
exhibition collection
Kyra Hannah is a self-taught emerging artist, based on Wurundjeri Land, who specialises in pen, ink, and metal foil application, with new forays into watercolour and painting techniques. Her work focuses almost exclusively on the portrayal of native fauna and flora, rendered in her self-described ‘modern tribal’ style which combines precise geometric details with organic animal shapes. More recently, Kyra has expanded her skillset to include pointillism techniques, which are often used to capture the delicate structures of leaves and flowers.
Encouraged from a young age to pursue art, Kyra was raised in a deeply multicultural household and is of South Indian descent herself. The designs in her work - and her obsession with fine detail - are an amalgamation of her exposure to this cultural background, growing up in multiple states in Australia with its rich First Nations history, and her avid preoccupation with patterns that naturally occur in the world around her. Such patterns include rock and leaf formations, water channels, tree root systems and flower petals, feathers and fur, and bird’s eye views of Australian landscapes.
As a person functioning with high anxiety, Kyra’s art is often the means by which she expresses her worries, with a major focus on the climate crisis as it continues to unfold. A long-time advocate of habitat and wildlife conservation and protection, Kyra uses her art to focus on threatened, endangered and even recently extinct species, in an effort to celebrate the beauty and diversity of the natural world, whilst encouraging meaningful social dialogue to take place regarding how more positive action can be realised.
Kyra’s work has been part of numerous group exhibitions in Victoria and interstate, with collectors across Australia, the United States, the UAE and India. Her first solo show Horizon in 2022 was a resounding success, with twelve of the fourteen pieces finding forever homes during the exhibition. After two years of honing her craft and intentions, her second solo show Brimstone promises to continue to provoke and delight audiences, as they step into Kyra’s colourful and dire avian menagerie.
