Biography

Rebecca Tunks is a conceptual artist whose primary medium is photography. She meticulously selects and photographs everyday inanimate objects that are ubiquitous across cultures – objects that are mundane but purposeful. Through repetitive placement and collage, Tunks creates visual explorations that highlight these seemingly ordinary items.

Her work is characterised by its precision, capturing each object as it exists in a specific moment. Tunks’s approach underscores how these objects, though often overlooked, form an integral part of our cultural landscape.

“I aim to capture what often goes unnoticed in our fast-paced world,” Tunks explains. “In an age where people are more engrossed in their phones than their surroundings, I seek to illuminate these overlooked elements. By focusing on the seemingly insignificant, I hope to reveal their importance and their role in our shared environment.”

Her education in Arts stems back to a Special Arts Acceptance program in High School, where extended art classes taught her a variety of artistic mediums, through to a Advanced Diploma in Photography and furthermore the completion of a Bachelor of Communications & Contemporary Arts degree at ECU (Major Photography).

It was during her university education era combined with her travels that she decided to progress away from commercial photography and only photograph artistic representations.

The Art of Travel series of works are inspired by her 2 years living in India and the process of cultural adaption to a foreign environment during this time. She works by selecting and photographing small inanimate objects that are common to most cultures and repetitively placing them in collages, which creates a visual exploration of these objects. Their unity from afar and their absolute variety up close, is the interactive play of travel that she is endeavoring to represent.

This passion for & style of photography has thus been continued through Switzerland, Australia, London, Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Russia, Helsinki, Portugal, America, China, and Austria.

EDUCATION

1997 – 2001 Special Arts program at Kalamunda Senior High School.
2002 – 2005 Central Institute of Technology. Advanced Diploma Applied Sciences (Photography)
2005 – 2009  Edith Cowan University. Bachelor of Communication & Multimedia (Major Photography)

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2003            Site Unseen, ‘A Student Photographic Exhibition & Publication’. The Perth Museum and touring around Australia.
2004            Site Unseen, ‘A Student Photographic Exhibition & Publication’. Woodside Plaza and touring Around Australia.
2004            Iris awards. Perth Centre Photography (PCP) Gallery.
2005            Electronic Exhibition.Perth,WA
2005            Iris Awards. Perth Centre Photography Gallery.
2005            City of Subiaco Photographic Awards. Highly Recommended Award. Subiaco Town Hall.
2006            Edith Cowan University 2nd year Exhibition. PCP Gallery.
2006            Perth Centre of Photography (PCP) Christmas Show.
2006            Site Unseen, ‘A Student Photographic Exhibition & Publication’. Fremantle Prison and touring around Australia.
2009            Artsiti ‘foreign eyes’ Exhibition. ‘Auto Study,’ ‘Shop Box Study,’ ‘Building Study’ HASTA Gallery India.
2009            South Perth Emerging Artist Exhibition. South Perth Town Hall.
2009/           Exhibition ‘Summer’ Little Creature Gallery. Fremantle.
2010            Photography 10a Exhibition. Brunswick Street Art Gallery. Melbourne.
2010            FotoFreo at ABC Center.. Exhibition ‘Art of Travel: Australia’
2010            Fremantle Headspace: Youth Week Exhibition. ‘Art of Travel: India.’
2010            Artist with Artitude art auction at Burswood Entertainment Centre. Astral Ballroom.
2010            South Perth Emerging Artist Exhibition. South Perth Town Hall.
2011            Exhibited at Artitude, an exhibition and sale of collectable art curated by Norah Ohrt of Perth Galleries and Sotheby’s. Perth W.A
2011            South Perth Emerging Artist Awards – Highly Commendation
2012            Exhibited at Artitude, an exhibition and sale of collectable art curated by Norah Ohrt of Perth Galleries and Sotheby’s. Perth W.A
2012            Exhibition at Linton & Kay Galleries – UrbanISE.
2013            Exhibited at Artitude, an exhibition and sale of collectable art curated by Norah Ohrt of Perth Galleries and Sotheby’s. Perth W.A
2013            Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital 2013 BIENNIAL ART AWARD.
2014            Exhibited at Artitude, an exhibition and sale of collectable art.
2014            Hale School Art Exhibition.
2024            Churchlands Community Art Exhibition. Churchlands SHS

SOLO EXHIBITION

2009            Exhibition. ‘Art of Travel, Part 1: India.’ Little Creatures Brewer, Fremantle W.A

AWARDS

2000            Totem Pole Sculpture Sold to Taylor Studio, Won the ‘Site Specific Award’
2000            Water colour butterfly study chosen for the education departments national wide Christmas cards.
2010            Winner Exhibition for YAWA (Young Artists of Western Australia) Burswood InterContinental Perth. Won Young Artist of Western Australia award.
2011            Semi Finalist for Moran Photographic Art Prize. Sydney.
2011            Winner of Vasse Art Award.
2014            State Winner of the Cliftons Are Prize.

REPRESENTATION

2013 – 2016 Gallery 360, Perth Western Australia.

TRAVEL

2007/9         Moved to India.
2010            Sourcing images. Macau, Hong Kong, London Sourcing Images
2013            Sourcing Images. Japan
2017            Sourcing images. Helsinki, St Petersburg, Portugal, Spain and America.
2024           Sourcing Images. Macau, China.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

2015     PeoplePerInch.com Launch for the Perth International Arts Festival Art Hack Weekend.