BIOGRAPHY
Rhonda Diakomichalis was born in Tallangatta, Victoria, Australia in 1947. Spending much of her youth in rural Victoria, Rhonda grew up on the family property in Katunga before moving with her mother and father, sister and two brothers into nearby Numurkah in time to complete secondary schooling. It was at this level of education and maturity that Rhonda discovered a passion for art, although her endeavours in this field were seldom encouraged.
Upon completion of high school in her late teens, Rhonda commenced training to become a registered nurse/midwife, while also undertaking a commercial art course by correspondence. Subsequently, whilst working as a midwife in Alice Springs for 3 months, Rhonda also spent a great deal of her spare time in the hospital, drawing portraits of the beautiful Aboriginal children admitted to the hospital. It was this practice that initially led Rhonda to develop an interest in portraiture and notions of the individual.
After years of casually developing her passion for art, 1988 presented Rhonda with her first solo exhibition, providing a new confidence and encouraging her to practice and study with a more professional attitude. After five years of combining work, intensive study and thorough experimentation, Rhonda emerged in 2002 from the Adelaide Central School of Art, having graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts, majoring in painting and printmaking.
For years Rhonda has mingled artistic output with family commitments and occupation as a nurse and midwife. Additionally, throughout the 1990s Rhonda (with husband Emmanuel) operated a highly successful leadlight design practice, and they now together operate a successful printmaking equipment manufacturing business.
Personal life and experience have always played an important role in influencing Rhonda's art. Her work is about people, about the stories they tell, about herself and about life today, with implied collisions of the past and present. The majority of Rhonda's work explores interpretations of the individual, in an abstracted yet portrait oriented manner.
"...I enjoy exploring, and constantly push myself to discover new ideas and themes, which often evolve out of old ideas. As an artist I am continually trying to develop a so-called personal style, a self confidence to redefine shapes, forms, ideas and feelings common to many, but injected with new depth and meaning. As well as representing this struggle, I hope that the collection of images presented here reflect and communicate the joy I experience while creating my work..."
Rhonda Diakomichalis, 2003
"...So much in the making of art is energy. Not just the manipulation of the arm or fingers, but the physical insistence of the mind to keep on making decisions - in spite of continuous physical and mental disruption..."
Larry Rivers, 1984
RESUMÉ
EDUCATION
2002 Bachelor of Visual Arts, Adelaide Central School of Art, South Australia
2001 The New York Studio School Drawing and Painting Marathon
AWARDS
2005 Merit Award, Adelaide Art Cathedral Show
2001 AQ Wine Art Print Prize
2001 Adelaide Central School of Art 2001 Scholarship
2000 Adelaide Central School of Art 2000 Scholarship
1999 AQ Wine Art Print Prize
SELECT SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2012 Recent works, National Wine Centre, Adelaide, South Australia
2011 Dogs, Cats and Others, Dragonfly Restaurant/Bar, Adelaide, South Australia
2010 Disappearing Dragonfly, Dragonfly Restaurant/Bar, Adelaide, South Australia
2009 Elusive Dragonfly, Hindmarsh Library, Adelaide, South Australia
2009 Recent Works Exhibition, National Wine Centre, Adelaide, South Australia
2008 La Femme, Dragonfly Bar, Adelaide, South Australia
2008 An Observation, Sala FESTIVAL Exhihition, Adelaide, South Australia
2007 From Life, Dragonfly Bar, Adelaide, South Australia
2006 The Colour of Life, Sala FESTIVAL Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2003 Works on paper, Main Street Gallery, Hahndorf, South Australia
1999 Views of the Greek Islands, Lombard Art Gallery, Adelaide , South Australia
1998 Charms of the Greek Islands, Glendi Greek Festival, Adelaide, South Australia
SELECT GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2015 Hughes Gallery, Adelaide, South Australia
2014 Swan Hill Print & Drawing Awards (Finalist), Swan Hill, Victoria
2014 Monday’s World, Pepper Street Gallery, Adelaide
2013 St Ignatius Art Show, Adelaide, South Australia
2013 Fleurieu Art Prize, (Finalist), South Australia
2012 Cats and Dogs, ACSA, Adelaide, South Australia
2011 Flourish, ACSA, Adelaide, South Australia
2009 Nathalie Leader Print Prize, Barossa Regional Gallery, South Australia
2008 South Australian Printmakers, Barossa Regional Gallery, South Australia
2008 Loreto College Art Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2007 Loreto College Art Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2007 Vibrant, Alive and Burnt Wood, Sala Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2006 St Peters Cathedral Art Exhibition, (Merit award) Adelaide, South Australia
2006 Loreto College Art Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2005 Adelaide Art Cathedral Show, (Merit Award), Adelaide, South Australia
2005 Past Graduates, Central Gallery, Adelaide, South Australia
2004 Graduate Exhibition, Central Gallery, Adelaide, South Australia
2004 Swan Hill National Print & Drawing Awards (Finalist), Swan Hill, Victoria
2003 Stocking Delights, Artistic License Gallery, Adelaide, South Australia
2003 Uncovered, ARTdomain, Adelaide, South Australia
2003 Window Space, Arts SA, Adelaide, South Australia
2002 Caterpillar Confidence, Central Gallery, Adelaide, South Australia
2002 Silk Cut Award (Finalist), Melbourne, Victoria
2002 Helpmann Academy Graduate Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
2001 Prescriptions for Pleasure, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, South Australia
2000 Swan Hill National Print & Drawing Awards (Finalist), Victoria
2000 Nocturnal Workings, State Library of SA, Adelaide, South Australia
1999 Escape, ACSA Student Exhibition, Myer Centre, Adelaide, South Australia
1995-2001 Adelaide Central School of Art Student Exhibitions, Adelaide, South Australia
1995-2001 Victor Harbour Rotary Art Show, Victor Harbour, South Australia
1991 Regional Exhibition, Adelaide, South Australia
1990-1993 Gasworks Gallery, Strathalbyn, South Australia
1990-1993 Art of the State, State of the Art Exhibition, Festival Centre, Adelaide, South Australia
OTHER ACTIVITIES
1989-95 - Glass Elegance, Stained Glass/Leadlight Design/Production