Kimmy Hogan
Geelong-based artist Kimmy Hogan translates nature’s rhythms into warm, textural works that feel both refined and instinctive—her blend of digital and painted forms inviting a celebration of imperfection and joy.
Words HANDE RENSHAW Photos CRICKET SALEH & KIMMY HOGAN
Geelong-based artist, Kimmy Hogan. Photo: Cricket Saleh
‘I am drawn to both bold and soft palettes, but always something warm and homely,’ says Kimmy Hogan. Photo: Cricket Saleh. Styling: Bea Lambos
‘My unique set of digital skills enable me to transfer works to the screen, while retaining all the wobbles and imperfect goodness of the original sketch.’ Photo: Cricket Saleh
‘All ideas and inspiration start in my sketchbook—I fill the pages with loose organic drawings, sometimes without even looking at the page when I draw.’ Photo: Kimmy Hogan
‘Sometimes I hang an artwork in my home for a while to consider it a bit longer before deciding it’s finished, or tweaking it a little further.’ Photo: Cricket Saleh. Styling: Bea Lambos
“My children have taught me to create in a way that is wild, free and completely original—they can draw and paint without fear of perfection or judgement and I am always in awe of them.”
‘I find inspiration everywhere—layered, unexpected, and always feeding into my creative vision in different ways.’ Photo: Cricket Saleh
Kimmy Hogan has recently launched her first-ever ceramic collaboration with local Geelong ceramist, Elizabeth Bell—a collection of handmade and individually painted plates and platters. Photo: Cricket Saleh
Vaza I by Kimmy Hogan. Photo: Kimmy Hogan
‘I was completely immersed in nature as a child, and I am passing this love of nature down to my children also.’ Photo: Cricket Saleh. Styling: Bea Lambos
For Australian artist Kimmy Hogan, the natural world has always been both muse and grounding force. Raised in regional North Queensland, surrounded by rainforest, sugar cane fields and blooming wildflowers, Kimmy’s connection to botanicals began early.
‘My mum is a flower and nature lover, and she passed that love down to us,’ she recalls. Today, that influence ripples softly through her work, each piece a quiet celebration of nature’s imperfect rhythms.
Trained as a graphic designer, Kimmy first viewed art as something unattainable—a dream rather than a career. But after ten years in the design industry, her creative instincts took over. What began as digital experiments soon blossomed into a thriving practice, allowing her to step away from design and fully embrace life as an artist.
Kimmy’s creative process begins intuitively in her sketchbook, where she creates free-flowing, organic lines, sometimes without even looking at the page. These raw sketches become the blueprint for her digital artworks, carefully redrawn on screen while preserving their spontaneous spirit. ‘I make a point of leaving in the natural shapes and don’t fix or perfect them digitally,’ she explains. The result is work that feels deeply human—warm, textural, and undeniably alive.
More recently, painting on canvas has offered Kimmy a new way to explore her language of form and texture. While digital art draws on her graphic background, painting invites her to loosen further, trusting instinct over precision. ‘Painting has challenged me to let go of perfection,’ she shares. ‘There is no right or wrong, just the need to trust my own vision and intuition.’
Her studio days are a gentle ritual: lighting a candle, brewing herbal tea, and flicking through recent sketches. While her pieces often appear simple and serene, they’re built through slow layering—tones and textures gradually evolving until they feel right.
Motherhood has also reshaped Kimmy’s approach. Inspired by her children’s fearless mark-making, she now creates with more freedom and joy, unburdened by the need for technical perfection. ‘It’s really beautiful to create from a place of joy rather than losing an idea to fear,’ she shares.
Looking ahead, Kimmy is excited to deepen the conversation between her digital and painted works, allowing each to inform and enrich the other. With collaborations—including hand-painted ceramics—and new canvas explorations on the horizon, her practice continues to grow in unexpected and authentic ways.
To stay up to date with Kimmy’s work, visit her website or follow @kimmyhogan on Instagram.
