Karalyn Shaw

Karalyn Shaw is an interdisciplinary, intercultural and often conceptual contemporary artist from Brisbane, Australia whose work parallels, and endeavours to capture and reflect upon, her life’s multifaceted and interconnected intellectual and emotional experiences.

Evolving in an increasingly raw manner, she creates from her streams of consciousness, always seeking to meaning-make and better and more profoundly understand her thoughts and varied connections. She endeavours to utilise project-relevant materials and techniques and doesn’t confine herself to a sole means of expression. She enjoys experimenting with different media and methods.

Karalyn has a love of pattern and light and is strongly influenced by the visual: symmetry and geometry; words via word-play, philosophy, literature, poetry and vibrant, varied languages and cultures; her zeal for nature, science, engineering and technology; and her deep concern for humanity and our environment. She regularly sits at the nexus of science and art drawing upon both realms, historically and contemporaneously, to inspire her creations.

Her creativity is often informed by her work and study in engineering, physics, design and art presently; and previously, in international affairs, law, languages and psychology.

Karalyn’s principal commercial clients have included the Westfield Scentre Group and Orb Hair in Brisbane, together with numerous personal commissions. She has a permanent exhibit at the Queensland Museum featuring a sample of work from a large-scale, community-collaborative, human rights and peace-related installation she orchestrated in conjunction with the United Nations International Peace Day commemoration within St John’s Cathedral in Brisbane in 2014. Karalyn was runner-up in the University of Queensland’s Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology Faculty’s Art Competition, 2022 with her mixed media work, “The Kiss” and in 2023, was a shortlisted finalist in the Australian Research Council Centre for Excellence for Engineered Quantum System’s (EQUS) Emergence Art Competition for her sculptural work, “Bucky’s Indian Defence” which was exhibited in Sydney’s M2 Gallery, with other competition works, from 29 June until 3 July 2023. She was thrilled to be accepted as an Artist in Residence at the beautiful The Crayshack, Killiecrankie on Flinders Is, Tasmania in June/July 2023.

In late September 2023, Karalyn was named a finalist in the Australian Maritime Art Prize for her large 2D mixed media work, ‘Black Hole’ and was also very grateful to be accepted as an Artist in Residence at Atelier Austmarka, Finnskogen, Norge 11-12/23; in an アルバイト・part time job position・at the Tobichi Art Museum, Tatsuno Town, Nagano, Japan (辰野町のトビチ美術館) in 12-01/24; and most recently, in an Artist in Residency position at Arteles Creative Center, Hämeenkyrö, Finland themed “Silence Awareness Existence” for “artists, scientists and deep minds” in 02/24.

Currently, she is also very much enjoying Griffith University’s Queensland College of Art’s Master of Visual Arts program.