Ochre Fine Arts Gallery

Specialties

For Aboriginal cultures, visual & performing arts are central to identity, place and belonging. They are an expression of a unique and continuing tradition and have an important place in the continuing survival of Aboriginal cultures.

OFA gallery & studio will host a permanent display of key and major artist combined with a cultural program that strongly supports and promotes the work of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists through exhibitions, education and events for the wider public to join in, understand and enjoy contemporary art in all its forms.

History

Established in 1994.

Ochre Fine Arts Gallery started it’s early beginnings in The Rock’s in Sydney. Starting out as Didj Beat Didjeridoos in 1994, Melina Shirvanian (proprietor/​curator) catapulted the mainstream souvenir didjeridoo market to new heights with the inception of the first dedicated gallery to selling high end instrument quality didjeridoos. Didj Beat became an institute for players and collectors worldwide, known for it’s cultural integrity quality and volume sold.

Following this pursuit for excellence, Melina Shirvanian started production of aboriginal art by opening a studio in Alice Springs wholesaling works of Australia’s leading indigenous artist to major aboriginal galleries locally and abroad.

In 2010, Ochre Gallery & Studio opened on Manly’s northern beaches in NSW where Melina lives. It is situated on the land of the Guringai people, the traditional owners of this area. British Captain Arthur Phillip led the First Fleet to Botany Bay in NSW. During his exploration of the region, he

Meet the Business Owner

Melina S.

Business Owner

«After wholesaling works, I discovered the aboriginal art market was saturated with galleries carrying the work of mainstream artists, so I was looking for something new, fresh and different,» explained Melina Shirvanian, owner of Ochre Fine Arts Gallery”.

«I looked at about 110 aboriginal community art groups and selected 10 that I wanted to work with. These groups would add diversity to the portfolio of artist represented in my studio.»

«Many of the artists represented at Ochre Fine Arts Gallery could be said to be reshaping our ideas surrounding Aboriginal art. Like any culture, Aboriginal culture is continuously in a state of renewal.»

The collection tells stories of Aboriginal history, of personal experiences and of events and beliefs that shaped the lives of individuals and their societies. The power of such academic collections to inform our understanding of the lives and cultures of the artist and their communities is apparent. Take for example the stylistic diversity reveal