Start 2021 with a different kind of innovation - creativity. Special guest Melony Smirniotis, Visual Artist & owner of Gallery11:11 Studio & Art space

Small Biz Matters

Small Biz Matters – #190 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 January 2021

Many would say 2020 may not have been the perfect time when it came to setting up an art gallery in suburban Sydney but it WAS the perfect time to bring together community, support local small businesses and offer a platform for creative minds to flourish in a difficult time.

So really, it WAS the perfect time to establish a suburban art gallery!

So what does it take to set up a creative space in the middle of a pandemic? And, to make it a success? With a background as teacher, artist and creative, Melony Smirniotis knows how creativity can both foster innovation and support the community. As she states, “The art making process nourishes, challenges, provokes, humbles and provides grounding and perspective”

Coupled with a desire to provide artists with a space to shine, Melony recognised the potential of the Epping community and the resilience of it’s artists to create a space in which the whole community could benefit, and prosper. Today, she hopes to help other businesses to learn from her experience, innovation and creative success.

• Why build an Art gallery in North Epping?
  • How did you recognise the potential for what is essentially quite a suburban landscape? How did you research the area to create an artistic space that would be welcomed into the local community?
  • What part do you think local, community based
• How do you choose Artist's to exhibit and also to teach workshops?
  • What does it take to recognise artistic talent in others, what background do you need?
• How do you sustain momentum in regard to innovation? How do you keep content fresh and constantly evolving?
• Describe a few of the upcoming exhibitions in regard to narrative and practice and the way they fit into the local community and the broader artistic community?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.gallery1111.net/

About our Guest:

Melony Kara Smirniotis, a textural expressionist, is the founder and owner of Gallery 11:11 Studio and Art space in the leafy suburb of North Epping. Completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Western Sydney, Nepean in 1998 marked the beginning of taking her artwork to a new level. Post University studies, teaching, exhibiting and curating have been Melony's key areas of focus in the past two decades.

“The art making process nourishes, challenges, provokes, humbles and provides grounding and perspective. My surroundings constantly influence her technique and choice of materials”.

Melony has a permanent body of work showcased in her gallery and in the Blue Mountains at Gallery One88 Fine Arts. She currently works from her gallery / studio in North Epping, Gallery 11:11 Studio & Art Space.

Texture and colour, light and movement remain a constant source of painting inspiration. Such elements are observed and recorded on a conscious and subconscious level daily. This collection of thoughts and experiences tend to build and then eventually pour out into the canvas. She remains open to the concept of change pushing herself to engage in the exploration of tools and mediums. Her constant is the tactility of her work and the subject matter that being nature. Melony aspires to create work that evokes emotion and warms the soul, celebrating natural surroundings.