MEGAN DAVIES

Megan Davies is an Australian interdisciplinary artist, filmmaker and writer based in Brisbane whose work explores aspects of identity, memory and embodiment.

While painting and drawing form the foundation of her artistic practice, she has also worked across photography, film and writing. Grounded in the feminist principle that the personal is political, she draws on her own stories and those of other women to explore broader questions of subjectivity, representation and the social construction of femininity. Across these disciplines, she has sought to move beyond stereotypes, challenging the ways women are labelled, seen and understood.

She moved to film when she became dissatisfied with the stillness and silence of the women in her paintings and drawings. To further explore questions of female subjectivity, she needed them to move, dance, run and, ultimately, speak. Her earlier films and video works, created during her studies at Griffith University, explore girlhood, coming of age through a female lens, and womanhood. Exploring themes of intimacy and fear, fragility and resilience, these works trace a movement from vulnerability towards empowerment. Her documentary on eating disorders examines the cultural expectations placed upon women's bodies and the social environments that can contribute to psychological distress. Throughout her practice, however, she has continued to return to painting and drawing as a base for new artistic investigations.

Her recent writing, including her artist book, memoir and fiction, has increasingly explored recognition, forgiveness, love and belonging. Her artist book, Before the Naming / After the Labelling, extends her earlier investigations into the relationship between individual experience and broader social conditions, examining psychiatric stigma, identity and the cultural expectations surrounding mental health. Yet she also recognises a tension within the feminist principle that the personal is political: stigma and social isolation can make it difficult for those experiencing psychological suffering to recognise themselves as part of a wider collective. Through personal testimony, she seeks to reach others who may share similar experiences, creating possibilities for recognition, understanding and connection.

Across these works, Davies considers the dignity that can emerge when people recognise one another beyond their histories and circumstances. At the heart of her practice is a belief in our inherent worth and our capacity for meaningful connection when we see one another beyond judgement and social status.

Davies holds a Master of Visual Arts (2005) and a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours (2000) from Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia. In 2026 she published her first artist book through her own imprint, MARED Press.

Films and video works: View Megan Davies' film portfolio on YouTube