Susan Fereday facts for kids

Susan Fereday (born 1959) is an Australian artist, writer, and educator. She is also a curator, which means she helps organize art shows. Susan Fereday was born in Adelaide, South Australia. She later earned a special degree called a doctorate from Monash University in Melbourne.

Susan Fereday's Journey in Art

Early Education and Training

Susan Fereday first learned how to be a photographic technician in Adelaide. This job involves working with cameras and developing photos. Later, she moved to Melbourne to study photographic art at Prahran College. She earned her first art degree in 1986 and a master's degree in fine art in 1992.

Advanced Studies and Teaching

In 1996 and 1997, Susan received a special scholarship that allowed her to do research in Paris, France. She continued her studies and earned her doctorate from Monash University in 2010. A doctorate is the highest degree you can get at a university.

Susan Fereday has also shared her knowledge by teaching art. She was a lecturer at several universities, including the Victorian College of the Arts, RMIT University, and Monash University. She taught students about art theory and how to create art in a studio.

Susan Fereday as an Artist

Since the 1980s, Susan Fereday has shown her art in many different ways. She uses various types of art, such as:

• Found objects: These are everyday items that an artist finds and uses in their artwork.
• Installation art: This type of art involves creating a special space or environment for people to experience.
• Photography: She uses cameras to create images.
• Video: She also uses moving pictures in her art.

Using Found Photographs

One interesting part of Susan Fereday's work is her use of old, found photographs. These are pictures taken by everyday people, often from the 1950s, that she collects. She then displays them in new ways.

For example, in her series Under a Steel Sky, she used old photos of people in cars or traveling through the countryside. She printed these small, old photos much larger than they originally were. Even though the pictures came from different places and people, when Susan puts them together, they seem to tell a story. It's like she's creating a new narrative from old memories.

Research on Photography's Beginnings

Susan Fereday's doctorate research was about the very first photographers. Her study, called Light Out of Darkness: the origin of photography in mystery and melancholy, looked at the work of pioneers like Nicéphore Niépce and William Henry Fox Talbot. These were some of the first people to invent photography.

Susan Fereday as a Curator

From 1992 to 1995, Susan Fereday was the Director of the Centre for Contemporary Photography in Melbourne. This means she was in charge of the art center, helping to decide what art to show.

She has also organized many art exhibitions herself. Here are some of the shows she curated:

• 1996: Ruins in Reverse at RMIT Gallery.
• 1995: Like-ness: 46 photographs from Waverley City Collection at the Centre for Contemporary Photography.
• 1994: Ipso-Photo, co-curated with Stuart Koop, at the Centre for Contemporary Photography.
• 1994: Don’t Stop, co-curated with Shiralee Saul, at Linden Gallery.
• 1993: Immortality, at the Centre for Contemporary Photography.
• 1992: After the Fact: Photographs from the Police Forensic Archive, at the Victorian Centre for Photography.

Exhibitions of Susan Fereday's Art

Susan Fereday's artwork has been shown in many galleries. These exhibitions are a chance for people to see her unique creations.

Solo Exhibitions

These are shows where only Susan Fereday's art is displayed:

• 2013: Infinite Image: Susan Fereday at the Centre for Contemporary Photography.
• 2013: All Seeing at Sarah Scout Presents in Melbourne.
• 2008: Under a Steel Sky at West Space.
• 2005: Susan Fereday : New Work at Sutton Gallery.

Group Exhibitions

These are shows where Susan Fereday's art is displayed alongside the work of other artists:

• 2014: Photographic Abstractions, selected by David Moore, a traveling exhibition from Monash Gallery of Art.
• 2011: A Way of Calling, curated by Melissa Keys, at Linden Centre for Contemporary Arts.
• 2009: Photographer Unknown at Monash University Museum of Art.

Where to Find Her Art

Susan Fereday's artwork is part of public art collections. This means her art is owned by museums and galleries, so many people can see it. For example, the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia, has five of her works in its collection.

See also

• List of contemporary artists
• List of Australian artists