An Australian-born artist living in Naarm/Melbourne, Melissa Kenihan’s landscapes explore connection through nature, blending visual storytelling with a strong sense of place.
With a background in sound design, storytelling and narrative have always been central to her work. Moving between auditory and visual mediums has expanded the way she thinks about how stories are constructed and experienced.
Her landscapes explore the patterns, structures and interrelationships of the natural world. She is drawn to the beauty of nature, to the meaning of place, and to what connects us to the landscape.
“My recent work draws primarily from the landscapes of Victoria and Tasmania, areas where I’ve spent much of my life. Spending time in these places has made me think about how familiarity changes perception, and how memory, experience and time become part of the way we see them. These ideas have become the basis for this recent work, using oil and charcoal to explore the space between the landscape itself and our experience of it”.
Melissa’s work has been exhibited widely and recognised through a number of Australian art prizes, including the Hadley’s Art Prize, the Glover Prize and the John Leslie Art Prize.
Awards
2026
The Hadley’s Art Prize - Finalist
2025
The Hadley’s Art Prize - Finalist
The Adelaide Perry Prize for Drawing - Finalist
2023
The Hadley’s Art Prize - Winner of the Residency Prize
The Collie Prize - Finalist
2022
The National Emerging Art Prize - Finalist
The John Leslie Art Prize - Finalist
The Glover Prize - Finalist
2021
SBS Landscape Prize - Shortlisted finalist
Bluethumb Art Prize - Finalist
The Glover Prize - Finalist
2020
Bluethumb Art Prize - Finalist
Exhibitions and Shows
2026
The Hadley’s Art Prize, Hadley’s Orient, Hobart
2025
The Hadley’s Art Prize, Hadley’s Orient, Hobart
The Perry Prize, Adelaide Perry Gallery, Sydney
2024
Solo exhibition - Hadley’s Orient, Hobart
2023
The Hadley’s Art Prize, Hadley’s Orient, Hobart
The Collie Prize, Collie Art Gallery, WA
2022
The National Emerging Art Prize, Michael Reid Art Bar, Sydney
The John Leslie Art Prize, Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale, VIC
The John Glover Prize Exhibition, Evandale, Tasmania
2021
Southern Buoy Studio, Mornington Peninsula, VIC
The John Glover Prize Exhibition, Evandale, Tasmania
2019
The Linden Postcard Show, Linden New Art Gallery, Melbourne
The Mount View Art Show, Melbourne
The Bayside Art Show, Melbourne
The Victor Harbor Art Show, Victor Harbor SA