Sharyn Egan is a Wadjuk Nyoongar woman, born in the Perth area, who began her practice in 1994 at the age of 37 under the tutelage of Nyoongar artist Sandra Hill.
For Sharyn, weaving is a labour of love and a means of weaving connection amongst people; her art making is approached as a transfer of knowledge and culture.
In 2000, Sharyn’s practice expanded into the realm of public art – as both large-scale painted murals and sculptures. She has since been awarded numerous public commissions and has exhibited frequently in Sculpture by the Sea.
This lead her to enrol in a Diploma of Fine Arts at the Claremont School of Art in Perth and, soon afterwards, she completed an Associate Degree in Contemporary Aboriginal Art at Curtin University, Sharyn works with oil, natural ochres, resins and acrylic paint on canvas, as well as natural fibre woven sculptures.
As a child of the Stolen Generation, Sharyn’s work is informed by this experience and comments upon the associated trauma, emotions and deep sense of loss and displacement amongst Aboriginal people.
In 1999 Sharyn shared first prize with Peter Farmer in the ‘Town of Vincent Bibbulmen Traditional Art Award’ and in 2007 and 2008 she won first prize in the City of Bunbury’s Wolsely Art Award. Her work is housed in a number of public collections.