About me

Hello, I'm Jane O'Hara. I'm a professional Australian artist, writer and former actress and have worked and exhibited in Australia and overseas. I am now Sydney based again after an odyssey which saw me living, working and exhibiting in Shanghai, PRC, Abu Dhabi, the UAE and Prague, Republic of Czechia.

I've been a finalist in the Sulman Prize, the Portia Geach Portrait Prize, the Mosman Art Prize, the Doug Moran Portrait Prize and have twice won The Southern Cross Art Prize and an International Painting Award, New York. 

I've also won painting awards from prominent Australian artists and critics including Lloyd Rees, Reinis Zusters, Anna Waldman, Terrance Maloon, Professor Virginia Spate, The Sydney Morning Herald and Macquarie University. 

Solo shows in Australia include:

The Steve Mori Gallery, Leichardt; Woollahra Galleries; Sydney University; The Independent Theatre, North Sydney and Cafe Pio, Willoughby (of a series of Australian actor portraits including Jacki Weaver); the Shoalhaven Regional Gallery, Nowra and The Ewart Gallery, Willoughby Workshop Arts Centre; "Hover" at M2 Gallery, Sydney city.

Overseas solo shows include:

Xintiandi Clubhouse 1, Shanghai (5 shows); The American Club, The Bund, Shanghai; Open Studio, Abu Dhabi; Montmartre Gallery, Prague.

Group shows include Woollahra Galleries and The Ivan Dougherty Gallery, UNSW. 

I have a:

BA. Dip. Ed, Macquarie University, Dip.Prof Art, Alexander Mackie, CAE; a Master of Art, College of Fine Arts, UNSW and and MFA, COFA, UNSW. 

I'm a former Art Director at Loreto, Normanhurst, appointed by the late Mother Evangeline Kendall when she retired. Loreto owns my portrait of her and a portrait of Mother Gonzaga Barry commissioned by the Ex-Students Association.

My work draws from my fascination with Australian and other cultures, their peoples and their often tumultuous histories and the ways in which these are expressed and symbolised through mythology, theatre, music, art, architecture, literature and film. My work has been described as

“consistently bold, imaginative, colourful, dramatic and haunting, Jane's work, in a variety of media, is typified by layered explorations of age-old themes of tribal story-telling: masks, appearances, subtext, love, betrayal and intrigue.” ( the late) Emeritus Professor, Peter Pinson.

My work is owned by the N.S.W State Government’s Artbank and by private and corporate collectors in Australia, UK, China, the European Union, the UAE, Oman, USA, Canada, Singapore and Vietnam. Otherwise my work is owned by ICI, Bovis Lend Lease, The Sydney Morning Herald, Leichardt Town Council, author Tess Johnston, Australian Consuls General and Ambassadors.

I've been profiled in such publications as The Shanghai Daily, China Pictorial, That's Shanghai; The Bridge Magazine, CZ; Czech Business Weekly; The North Shore Times (NSW), The Courier, Sutherland Shire, NSW; The South Coast Register; Australian Diplomatic Newsletters and two Chinese architectural books.