Kilmeny Niland is a versatile artist in illustration and the fine arts, including portraiture.
After showing an aptitude for drawing chickens and giraffes at an early age, she was encouraged to develop those skills by studying at the Julian Ashton Art School for two years before travel and informal study in Britain and Europe.
Kilmeny achieved her first published book when still in her teens. She has wide experience in illustration, having been involved with over thirty books, and card design (including a 1995 Christmas card chosen for UNICEF and a boxed set of Christmas cards based on artwork from A Bellbird in a Flame Tree).
For over twenty-five years Kilmeny has been involved with all kinds of art, but illustration is one of her favourites. From humorous line work such as that in Clancy of the Overflow and A Bellbird in a Flame Tree to the realistically painted wildlife in Feathers, Fur and Frills,, she has tackled many subjects in a variety of styles and media.
Kilmeny says, ‘To me, creating picture books is an exciting art form that has to engage the imagination of the artist initially but is only really successful when it ignites the imagination of the reader as well. It is always a challenge to create images that complement the text so that words and pictures are interdependent.’
Kilmeny’s work has won first prizes in National and International Miniature Art. She has had three sell-out shows at the Barry Stern Gallery in Sydney and has had portraits hung in the Portia Geach Portrait exhibition and the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.
Learn more about Kilmeny Niland at www.kilmenyniland.com
