"Falling: behind" Painting

Sharon Monagle is a contemporary Australian painter, whose work explores the emotional architecture of human relationships.

Sharon's highly recognisable style oscillates between figuration and abstraction. Decades listening to people's stories as a medical practitioner have sharpened her interest in the human experience, and this is evident in her paintings. Characterised by the use of narrative, a flattened perspective and the bold use of colour, her work has a deeply emotional quality.

Sharon's paintings draw on ordinary stories, giving them authenticity and relatability. The work invites thoughtful contemplation of what it is to love, to grieve, to care, to forgive. She is particularly interested in the experiences of women, their strengths and vulnerabilities, the way society continues to seek to control them.

Words are leveraged as a tertiary layer of engagement to position the viewer through titles that give people a way into the artwork while not defining it completely. Sometimes, too, to bring humour - used to gently leaven the work whilst engaging with sometimes confronting themes.


Sharon is represented by Kelli Lundberg Art. She has exhibited widely and her paintings are held in private collections across Australia, the UK, France, Canada, Singapore and USA. Three remain in the permanent collection at Chateau d’Orquevaux, France.