Katie Alleva

Katie Alleva is a regional Australian visual artist with over twenty years of art practice and exhibition experience. She is a highly qualified visual art, photography and mixed media teacher. Katie is a dynamic, creative facilitator with extensive knowledge, in visual arts, printmaking, cyanotype, trauma, wellbeing, and is trained in Steiner education. She worked as Steiner art and photography teacher for ten years in Byron Bay. Katie also holds fourteen years teaching experience in numerous high schools across the Northern Rivers. She has completed a Bachelor of Arts Honours at Griffith University, (First Class 1A) in "creative research" specialising in intergenerational trauma, migrant and mobility studies, cultural heritage, creative heritage and psychology. Katie has a Bachelor of Sec. Education, specialising in photography, a Bachelor of Visual Arts specialising in Printmaking, Certificate IV in Training & Assessment, and a Certificate IV in Small business management. Katie recently exhibited at the peak body for printmaking and works on paper in Australia, the Print Council of Australia gallery, in Melbourne's Art Precinct at Southbank. She currently teachers specialist courses in printmaking and drawing at Diploma and Advanced Visual Arts levels at Murwillumbah TAFE.

"My art workshops are not just about teaching you an art technique. They are embedded with encouraging a deeper connection to self and community. They promote self-compassion through understanding how unique mark-making is. That simply being your authentic self, in a safe and supportive learning environment, can foster positive healing through self expression. My workshops are designed to ignite the creative spark within you and for you to feel inspired, uplifted, connected and leave with ideas buzzing around for further creative endeavours!!!"  Katie Alleva 

BIOGRAPHY:

Katie Alleva majored in printmaking at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga. Soon after graduation Katie travelled to Amsterdam, Italy, Switzerland, Scotland and England visiting art galleries and museums along the way. She relocated to Greenwich in London in 1999 and spent a year working in London, Covent Garden, at the London Graphic Centre. During that time Katie exhibited in Greenwich, Hull and at Covent Garden.

Upon returning to her home town she was successful in landing a solo show at the Wagga Wagga Regional Gallery named Light Source. She won a Crow Award from the Wagga Wagga City Council,  promoting young talent.  Katie was later nominated by the Friends of the Wagga Wagga Regional Art Gallery for Young Australian of the Year, (Arts Section) in 2001.

In 2002 she moved to the Northern Rivers and completed a Bachelor of Secondary Education at Southern Cross University in 2003. After becoming a fully qualified Secondary High School Teacher of Visual Art, Katie worked in many high schools in the Northern Rivers.

In 2009, she was a creative teacher at the Still@the-centre art school in Byron Bay and facilitated workshops for Primary school students.

One of Katie's career highlights was being a finalist in the Caldera Art Prize and winning the 'People's Choice Award' in 2009 where she won a short stay at O'Reilly's Resort. Katie spent her time bird watching at Lamington National Park.

From 2008 - 2010 she ran a professional market stall, called 'Casa Galleria' at the Byron, Bangalow and Channon Art & Craft Markets where she sold framed original water colours, digital prints, handmade cards, original intaglio unframed prints, screen printed bags and her signature work - machine stitched mixed media and intaglio work on paper. Katie had her first child in 2011 and has since been juggling motherhood, arts-practice and teaching.

In 2014 she created an art label, 'Alleva Printmaker' or AP which is a play on the current 'maker' movement and on a technical printmaking term called the 'artist's proof'.

Katie has been teaching Visual Art, Photography, Video and Digital Imaging to Senior students at an Independent School in Byron Bay for the last 6 years. She is currently developing a new body of work that investigates the theme: Who am I and Where do I come from? She met Australian artist Lindy Lee in 2018 and felt a strong connection to her work and a workshop with First Nation dancer and performance artist in mid 2019, ignited Katie’s interest in learning more about her ancestors.

As Katie began to question literally everything, in 2019, she decided she needed a new challenge and applied for a position to teach printmaking at TAFE Murwillumbah NSW. She got the job, spent the next year completing a Certificate 4 in Training and Assessment, (not for the light hearted!), and is now teaching printmaking and drawing at the Diploma level of Visual Arts.

After spending the last four years on intense personal healing work, (or what Katie calls confronting, ‘no-woman’s-land,’ she is ready to discover her self-identity through her past cultural ancestry and embrace who she is. In 2021 Katie enrolled in an Honours Degree in Bachelor of Arts at Griffith University and was successful in obtaining a grant from the Center for Social and Cultural Research, to support her creative project. She is investigating the ‘Alleva family’ archives, dating from 1895 - 1950s, detailing their migration arc, dislocation and subsequent assumptions of family trauma. The exegesis asks the question: What is the impact of intergenerational trauma on children of migrants? Katie will investigate three Visual Artists who are from migrant backgrounds and analyse how or whether they may have been impacted by intergenerational trauma and how this has been expressed in their artworks.

Katie will also reflect on the “Alleva Family” archive and create a significant contemporary solo exhibition utilising cyanotype, stitch and printmaking techniques. This exhibition has kindly been picked up by the supportive Northern Rivers Art Gallery in Ballina and will launch on March 8th - April 2023. She won a Regional Arts Grant in 2023 and was successful in winning a solo show for Tracing Threads, during October, 2023, at the brand new Print Council of Australian Gallery in Southbank, Melbourne. This is the first time one of her solo exhibitions has toured to a major Australian city.

“I am the stories of my ancestors, my parents, their grandparents, their great grand parents and so on…...after all, our ancestors shape us and walk along with us through this sometimes rocky, broken and uneven ground. The ground is this thing we call life.”

“Thank you to those wonderful humans who appreciate and respect what I create, how I create and collect my work. I am a survivor, (like most of us are), and have experienced many complex traumas in my lifetime. My art practice has always been about nurturing and uplifting others and self.

There is a great power within art. It has the potential to connect people to re-imagined spaces. It may heal, transform, and inspire others, in a way that may re-ignite their creative flame. Art may take people to mysterious imaginative spaces that offer solace, wonder, and rich contemplation about existence. Art can start conversations about “how it was made” and “what elements of the work represent to the viewer.” Art can mean many different things to many different people.

My entire being feels incredibly connected to the art I make. It is my way to express my existence in the universe. I am curious about who I am, where I come from and how I can heal from trauma and a lifetime of living as a neurodivergent person and not knowing until I was 45. I have grappled with my identity and self my entire life. I have felt different to everyone around me and longed for people to understand and truly see me and connect with me. I also have lived experience of constantly being miss-understood, isolated, criticised (for not living up to neurotypical expectations), and have endured bullying.

Art has been my best friend my entire life. In my isolation, my overwhelm, and feelings of being continually misunderstood by others, art has been my peace, much like a ritual and offering to the world, and an attempt to reveal my true self. It is my way to communicate to others.

Thank you sincerely to those beautiful humans who truly see me, are patient, understand, emotionally connect, and support me. As a newly diagnosed neurodivergent being I need humans like you. You enable me to thrive, you restore my faith in humanity, you offer me understanding and respect.

The learning continues as I am currently researching neurodiversity and aim to change the negative narrative of stigma and raise awareness of positive neuro affirming strengths . I am also connecting and making changes to the way I facilitate my art workshops and teaching pedagogy.

With love, respect and compassion,

Katie”