I would like to acknowledge and pay my respects to the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I live and work, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region. I pay respect to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Ellamay Khongroj Fitzgerald b. 1992, is an artist based on Yugambeh Country. Her lens-based practice spans across photography, video and new media with an ongoing exploration into her dual Australian and Thai heritage. Ellamay's work is largely influenced by her lived experiences growing up bi-racial on the Gold Coast and perceptions of culture, identity and place as a second generation Asian Australian.
Ellamay’s work gives prominence to the stories and voices of people within the Asian diaspora and navigates diasporic cultural experiences and identity, by examining the potential for meaning, memory and connection to one's ancestry. Her work reveals individual stories as defined by growing up Asian in Australia. These stories include memories of childhood, cultural traditions and familial connections of the subject and of second generation Asian Australians.
Ellamay graduated with a Bachelor of Photography from Queensland College of Art, Brisbane in 2014. She has recently presented works both solo and collaboratively for Outer Space ARI (Oblique Heuristics, 2022), Placemakers* GC (Mixed Emotions Part II, 2022) Metro Arts (womAn Artist, 2022) and THE WALLS Art Space (Mixed Emotions Part I, 2021).
GRANTS AND ARTIST RESIDENCIES
2024-2025 Artist in Residence, Kickstart Program by Next Wave, Naarm
2022 - 2023 Recipient of the Regional Arts Development Fund: Activate Arts, Gold Coast
2021 - 2022 Artist in Residence, GENERATE GC Program by City of Gold Coast, in partnership with Situate Art in Festivals
2020 sART Grant Program, Placemakers Gold Coast
EXHIBITIONS
2024 Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Photography Award Exhibition, HOTA Gallery
2024 Here and Now: Gold Coast Triennial, HOTA Gallery
2022 Oblique Heuristics, Window Gallery at Outer Space ARI, Brisbane
2022 Mixed Emotions II (Portrait of Lisa and Ruby), Big City Lights Festival, Placemakers
2022 Brewing Local Artists Exhibition, Burleigh Brewing Company
2021 Mixed Emotion Part I: THE WALLS ART SPACE: MEDIUM RARE, Gold Coast
2020 A Pleasant Place: Development and production of site-specific art installation at Chevron Island, Gold Coast. Sponsored by BLEACH Festival 2020.
2020 Behind The Golden Doors: Showcase of the short documentary film featuring Indigenous artist Glenn Barry, commissioned by Placemakers, Gold Coast
2020 ACID Test Vol. II, Group Exhibition, Level One/Seventeen Gallery, Gold Coast
2020 Regenerate Group Show and charity fundraiser for the Australian bushfires Relief at Mint Art House, Gold Coast
2018 In Bloom Art Exhibition, Hotel Miami, Gold Coast
2014 SUNSTUDIOS Assistant & Emerging Photographer Awards Exhibition, Sydney
2013 Graduating Photography Student Exhibition It’s Not You, It’s Me Queensland
College of Art, Brisbane
AWARDS & QUALIFICATIONS
2024 Finalist of the Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Photography Award, HOTA Gallery
2022 Judges Choice Award, Brewing Local Artists Exhibition, Burleigh Brewing Company
2014 Finalist of the 2014 Assistant & Emerging Photographers Award, presented by SUNSTUDIOS, Sydney
2014 Sun Studios Best Image Award: Graduating student demonstrating technical and conceptual clarity within the politic of the practiced stream - Graduating Photography Student Exhibition ‘It’s Not You,
It’s Me’ at Queensland College of Art, Brisbane
2014 Bachelor of Photography, Queensland College of Art, Brisbane
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
2023 Artist Workshop Facilitator, Archie 100 Up Late, HOTA Gallery, Gold Coast
2022 Artistic Photographer, WomAn Artist, in collaboration with Belloo Creative & Metro Arts Brisbane
2022 Artistic Photographer, BETWIXT by Pink Matter, Metro Arts Brisbane
2020 Featured artist in Solid Gold artists in conversation podcast presented by HOTA Gallery, Gold Coast
2020 - 2022 Youth Advisory Group, HOTA Gallery, Gold Coast
2018 - 2020 Photography Lab Assistant, Shibui Film Gold Coast
2020 Photography Workshop Facilitator, Level Up Gallery Gold Coast