Monash Art & Design Alumni

Wendy Ellerton graduated in 2002 with a Bachelor of Visual Communication (Honours) from Monash University. During her honours year she designed a large text typeface called Ferrara.

In 2005 she completed a Masters In Type Media at the Royal Academy of Art (KABK) in The Netherlands. Since returning to Australia, Wendy works as a graphic designer and type designer. She is also a sessional lecturer at Monash University and has lectured on type design for the Australian Graphic Design Association.

Wendy is currently a Designer at leading studio Hofstede Design in Melbourne.

See www.hofstede.com.au for more info.

Robert Dumaresq
Bachelor of Design (Industrial Design), 2008

Melbourne's overcrowded trains created the spark that led Monash graduate and emerging Victorian designer Robert Dumaresq to create an award-winning folding commuter bike. Robert won the James Dyson Award in the 2009 Australian International Design Awards for his Switch commuter bike, a high-performance bike specifically designed for easy handling on crowded public transport that can be folded to the footprint of just one wheel.

Visit Student Design Awards

Stelarc
Honorary Doctor of Laws, 2001

Stelarc is a performance artist who has visually probed and acoustically amplified his body. He has made 3 films of the inside of his body. Between 1976-1988 he completed 25 body suspension performances with hooks into the skin. He has used medical instruments, prosthetics, robotics, Virtual Reality systems, the Internet and biotechnology to explore alternate, intimate and involuntary interfaces with the body.

In 1995, Stelarc received a three year Fellowship from The Visual Arts/ Craft Board, The Australia Council and in 2004 was awarded a two year New Media Arts Fellowship. In 1997 he was appointed Honorary Professor of Art and Robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh. He was Artist-In-Residence for Hamburg City in 1997. In 2000 he was awarded an Honorary Degree of Laws by Monash University. He has completed Visiting Artist positions in Art and Technology, at the Faculty of Art and Design at Ohio State University in Columbus in 2002, 2003 & 2004. He has been Principal Research Fellow in the Performance Arts Digital Research Unit and a Visiting Professor at The Nottingham Trent University, UK. He is currently Chair in Performance Art, School of Arts, Brunel University, Uxbridge, UK. He is also Senior Research Fellow and Visiting Artist at the MARCS Lab at the University of Western Sydney, Australia. Stelarcs artwork is represented by the Scott Livesey Galleries in Melbourne.

Visit http://www.stelarc.va.com.au/

Ben Wundersitz & Laura Cornhill - Studio Binocular
Bachelor of Design (Visual Communication), 1999

Ben and Laura make up Studio Binocular, a multi-disciplinary graphic design studio whose clients include STA Travel, Shibui, City of Port Phillip, the Salvation Army, Smack Undies, LaTrobe University, City of Stonnington, ThinkFresh and PBS 106.7.

Studio Binocular is an award winning creative team with ambitious ideas and a penchant for the lighter side of life. We bring the combined skills of writer and designer to every project, building brand personalities in a range of disciplines – from visual identities and advertising campaigns, to websites and wayfinding signage.

Visit http://www.studiobinocular.com

Max Wolff
Bachelor of Technology (Industrial Design), 1997  

Industrial Design Graduate Max Wolff is Director of Design at Lincoln, the luxury brand of Ford. He was previously with General Motors, where he worked variously as Exterior Design Director at Cadillac in the USA, Deputy Director of Advanced Design at GM Daewoo in South Korea, and as a graduate at Holden in Melbourne.

Max was recently profiled on the highly acclaimed SBS documentary series Designer People, along with the likes of international designers Marc Newson, Jakob Trollback, Young Baek Min and Ole Scheeren, which aired in late 2009 / early 2010.

Mary Tonkin
BA (Fine Art) honours, 1995
MA (Fine Art), 2002

Mary is a practising artist who formerly lectured in drawing in the Department of Fine Arts at Monash. She graduated from Monash with Honours in Fine Art (Painting), travelled in Europe and studied in New York, returning to complete her Master of Fine Art (by Research) in 2002. In that same year Mary was awarded the prestigious Dobell Prize for Drawing and received a $10,000 grant.

She commends Monash for its variety of excellent fine art studios, run by a broad variety of "passionate" and "generous" staff. In recent years she has been "thrilled to see Monash recognise drawing as an essential component in all art and design studies and employ staff with a strong understanding of, and involvement in, contemporary art practice."

Nick Cave
Honorary Doctor of Laws, 2008

Musician, novelist, actor, film score composer and screenwriter Nick Cave studied for a Diploma of Art and Design (Fine Art) at the Caulfield Institute of Technology in 1977 and '78, in what is now the Faculty of Art and Design on the Caulfield campus of Monash University. He left his studies, which were primarily in painting, to successfully pursue a music career.

In the 1980s, Nick Cave was one of the first Australian musicians to achieve considerable international prominence. As the front man for bands including The Birthday Party and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, he has released more than 20 albums. His unique musical style has been attributed with influencing countless other bands throughout the world.

Former Monash Vice-Chancellor Professor Richard Larkins said Nick Cave was "one of Australia's most successful and prominent artists with a near 30 year career spanning music, novel-writing, acting and screenwriting which has had a major impact on contemporary 'alternative' culture."

Visit http://www.nick-cave.com/

Tania Aldous
Bachelor of Technology (Design) / Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours)

Tania Aldous is Global Director, Industrial Design at World Kitchen. She was previously US Design Director at Whirlpool Corporation, where she led a multi-disciplinary Global Consumer Design team for the worldís leading manufacturer and marketer of home appliances. Originally from Melbourne, she has applied a global perspective to a diversity of leading brands throughout her career including KitchenAid, Whirlpool, Jennair, Maytag, Swatch, Mars Confectionery and the Sydney Olympics as a designer and design leader. She has been a speaker at regional and international conferences with a focus on linking brand design and business results. Tania has 20+ design patents, and is a member of the Industrial Designers Society of America. She is passionate about using design and design thinking as a core business tool.

Visit http://www.worldkitchen.com/index.asp?pageId=45

Polixeni Papapetrou
Ph.D (Fine Art), 2007

Polixeni Papapetrou is a Melbourne based artist. Her work, she explores the relationship between history, contemporary culture and identity. Papapetrou has photographed Elvis Presley fans, Marilyn Monroe impersonators, drag queens and body builders. In recent years, she has focused her attention to the subject matter of childhood. Papapetrou exhibits widely in Australia and overseas, has received a number of grants and her work is held in numerous public collections. She holds a BA/LLB (Melbourne University), MA (RMIT University) and a PhD (Monash University). Papapetrou is represented by Nellie Castan Gallery, Melbourne; Johnston Gallery, Perth, Stills Gallery, Sydney and Foley Gallery, New York.

Awards include: Arts Victoria International touring grant, 2007; Australia Council New Work Grant 2007; Australia Council New Work Grant 2005; Arts Victoria Professional Development Grant 2003; Albury Regional Art Gallery National Photographic Purchase Award; Australian Post-Graduate Award 2002; Australia Council New Work Grant 2000.

Visit http://polixenipapapetrou.net

Jonathan Wallace- Alter Design Studio
Bachelor of Arts (Visual Communication), 1999

Alter is a Melbourne based design studio founded by Monash Visual Communication Graduates Jonathan Wallace and Dan Whitford. Wallace is a designer who continues to guest lecture at Monash, while Whitford is frontman of internationally acclaimed music act Cut Copy. 

Alter's range of clients include MTV Australia, ISM Objects, Mimco Books, The Portable Film Festival and Modular Recordings.

William Eicholtz
BA (Fine Art), 1993

William Eicholtz is a contemporary sculptor, taking figurative art from its traditional lineage then performing and placing its firmly in current artistic dialogue. Evoking classic themes, his sensual sculptures rejoice in metaphor and the physical, with a particular focus on the male nude.

In 2005 William was awarded Australia's richest sculpture prize- the $80,000 Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award for his work "The Comrade's Reward".

Visit http://www.dishboydreaming.com/

Charles Green
Master of Arts (Visual Arts), 1993

Charles Green is an artist, art critic and art historian specializing in the history of international and Australian art after 1960, with a particular focus on photography, post-object and post-studio art. He was adjunct Senior Curator, 20th-21st Century Art at the National Gallery of Victoria between 2001 - 2006. He supervises theses on international and Australian contemporary art, and on art after the 1960s. He teaches courses on international and Australian art since the 1970s, and has taught cinema subjects on vampires and on artists in film. He is specifically interested in helping students to develop research on art history (international and Australian art made after 1960) that is both theoretically-informed and involves close primary research.

Stephen Cornwell - Cornwell Design
Bachelor of Arts (Graphic Design), 1991

As founder and CEO of Cornwell Design, Steven Cornwell provides the creative and strategic insight that frames the successful implementation of Cornwell’s brand identity solutions. Shortly after graduating from Monash University in 1991, Steve and his partner Jane Sinclair formed Cornwell Design. Under Steve’s leadership, Cornwell has developed its brand identity and design expertise to earn a reputation for solving a wide range of strategic brand and communication issues. Steve is creatively prolific – never short of ideas.

Steve is often invited to present or lecture on brand strategy, brand communication and design around Australia. He is a member of AGDA, the DIA and MADC, and founded the Issues and Images annual exhibition to raise money for the Victorian Cancer Council. designs or words!

Visit http://www.cornwell.com.au

Jon Cattapan
Master of Arts, 1975

Jon's research interests are centred on urban themes and representations of the city. His paintings, drawings and prints have been exhibited very widely in museum and commercial shows throughout Australia and overseas over the last twenty years. His work is held in numerous public, state, regional and private collections including the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of New South Wales, The National Gallery of Victoria, the Queensland Art Gallery and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney.

Visit http://www.joncattapan.com.au

Richard Henderson
Diploma of Art (Graphic Design), 1973

Managing Director of R-Co., a specialist brand identity and image business, Richard Henderson has won a large number of industry design awards during his 25+ years in the business. In 2000 he was awarded the title of "Apple Master" by Apple Computers, and he is co-founder of the Australian Graphic Design Association (AGDA). In 2005 Richard was appointed project leader and creative director of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games visual identity.

Visit http://www.r-co.com.au/

Rick Amor
Certificate of Art, 1965

Rick has been the recipient of several Australia Council studio residencies which have allowed him to work in London, New York and Barcelona. In 1999 he was appointed as the official war artist to East Timor by the Australian War Memorial. Rick has held over 35 solo exhibitions of his work since first exhibiting at Joseph Brown Gallery in 1974.

A major survey exhibition of his paintings was curated by McClelland Gallery in 1990 and toured various regional galleries in Victoria and South Australia throughout 1990 and 1991. In 1993 an exhibition mounted by Bendigo Art Gallery celebrating his work as a printmaker and graphic artist toured Victoria and Tasmania. An important exhibition of Rick’s bronze sculpture was undertaken by Benalla Art Gallery in 2002, including many maquettes never previously exhibited. In 2001 The Miegunyah Press published Gary Catalano’s biography The Solitary Watcher: Rick Amor and his Art. A comprehensive survey show of of Rick's paintings, Standing in the Shadows, was mounted by McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park in 2005.

In 2007 Rick won the prestigious McClelland Award for Sculpture, the largest cash prize for sculpture in Australia. 2008 brought the launch of The Beagle Press monograph Rick Amor by Gavin Fry, and A Single Mind, a survey show of Rick's paintings and drawings dating from 1966, at Heide Museum of Modern Art. Rick Amor lives and works in Melbourne.

Visit http://www.niagara-galleries.com.au/artists/artistpages/theartists/amor/rick_amor.html