Frances Cannon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Frances Cannon
The author in their studio, October 2018
Nationality	Australian

Frances Cannon is a talented artist and author from Melbourne, Australia. They create art using watercolour, gouache, and ink. Frances is well-known for starting the "Self Love Club," a movement that encourages everyone to accept themselves and feel good about who they are. Important ideas in Frances's art include self-love, identity, and mental well-being.

Frances describes their art as being like a diary. It explores what it means to be a person today through their own experiences. Besides painting, Frances has also written a poetry book called "I Hope You're Having Trouble Sleeping." They even have their own line of T-shirts featuring their artwork! Some artists who have inspired Frances include Louise Bourgeois, David Shrigley, and Frida Kahlo.

About Frances Cannon

Frances Cannon was born on September 15, 1992, in rural Melbourne, Australia. When they were very young, their family moved to Thailand in 1993. Frances spent many of their growing-up years there, learning through home-schooling and at international schools.

In 2012, Frances moved back to Melbourne, Australia, to study art. They graduated from RMIT University with a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art in 2015. Soon after finishing their studies, Frances began showing their art in solo and group exhibitions. They also started creating custom artwork for different magazines and online publications.

Frances's Art Style

Frances Cannon is mostly known for their drawings. These are often simple, black and white line drawings. Frances says that when they really want to share something important, they focus their mind on that idea. This helps them create their best drawings and paintings. They don't usually plan their artwork much, preferring to work right away and let the ideas flow.

For bigger paintings, Frances uses watercolour, gouache, and ink on thick paper. These larger ink paintings often look soft and watery, with big splashes and flowing colours. These colours go well with their black line drawings. Just like their other works, Frances's paintings often focus on the body and how we see ourselves. Frances feels their art is most complete when it combines both drawing and painting.

Books by Frances

Frances Cannon has worked on several books:

• In 2017, Frances illustrated Girlish, a book about feminism by Alana Wulff. Feminism is about everyone having the same fair chances in life.
• Frances has published two colouring books. One is called Ladies Lost in the Wilderness, and another from 2017 is named Body Positive. This book helps people feel good about their bodies.
• In 2018, Frances published their own poetry book titled I Hope You’re Having Trouble Sleeping.
• In 2017, Frances also created a special magazine called a "zine" called "Self Love Club." This zine was inspired by their social media movement. It includes 72 stories and artworks from their followers who have gotten a "Self Love Club" tattoo.

The Self Love Club

The "Self Love Club" is a special movement that Frances Cannon started. It was inspired by a tattoo Frances has on their own arm. The main goal of the club is to encourage people to have a positive body image and to love themselves from the inside out. It reminds everyone how important it is to value themselves.

Frances shared the simple idea of this tattoo on their Instagram page. They invited others to "join the club" by getting a similar tattoo. These tattoos act as a small reminder of a person's self-worth. Frances has said that sharing their own journey of self-love has not only helped them but has also inspired many other people to feel better about themselves.

Art Exhibitions

Frances Cannon has shown their artwork in many exhibitions, both by themselves (solo shows) and with other artists (group shows).

Solo Exhibitions

• 2019 – Brunswick Street Gallery
• 2018 – I Hope You’re Having Trouble Sleeping, Courthouse Youth Arts Centre, Geelong
• 2017 – Niceties, Tinning Street Gallery, Brunswick
• 2017 – Self Love Club Zine Launch and Exhibition, Enough Space Gallery, Prahran
• 2017 – Fluttering in Her Mind’s Eye, Junior Space Gallery, Fitzroy
• 2016 – Small but Not Insignificant, Yonder Art Space, Yarraville
• 2016 – Feeling Blue, Enough Space Gallery, Prahran
• 2015 – Paper Queens, First Site Gallery, Melbourne
• 2015 – Window Drawings, PS50 Gallery, Melbourne
• 2015 – Colour Culture, PS50 Gallery, Melbourne

Group Exhibitions

• 2018 – Nature As She, Off The Kerb Gallery, Collingwood
• 2017 – Feeling Into, Brunswick Street Gallery, Fitzroy
• 2017 – Comfort Zone, Toast Workroom, Brunswick
• 2017 – Valid, Neon Parlour Gallery and Studios, Melbourne
• 2017 – Summer ‘40 Exhibition, Rubicon ARI, Melbourne
• 2016 – Mine, Fort Delta, Melbourne
• 2016 – Think Pink, Enough Space, Prahran
• 2016 – A Confident Girl, Columbus Hotel, Monaco
• 2016 – Eat Me, Junior High Gallery, Los Angeles, California
• 2016 – The Gentle Void, The Gentle Void Gallery, Hobart
• 2016 – Accidental Discharge Presents: ALL, Neon Parlour Gallery and Studios, Melbourne
• 2016 – Shark Week, Enough Space Gallery, Prahran
• 2015 – RMIT Graduate Show, RMIT University, Melbourne
• 2015 – Feck, Melbourne
• 2015 – R U OK Exhibition, Melbourne
• 2015 – Achromatopsia, The Good Copy, Collingwood
• 2014 – Floor’d, RMIT Building 2 Level 4 Tutorial Room, Melbourne
• 2012 – Refresh, Chiang Mai International School, Chiang Mai, Thailand
• 2011 – Untitled Exhibition at Chiang Mai Café, Chiang Mai, Thailand
• 2011 – Grace International School Art Show, Chiang Mai, Thailand