Hazel

Bobby Shen

Hazel Dooney is an Aussie artist who has tested the limits of the art world. Her works combine a contemporary feel for feminism with ideas that are always bold, powerful and challenging in a way that breaks free from what people want to see - a pretty Monet never holds a wilted lily.


An admirable quality to her practice is the strength she possesses to make her art happen for her. Long since ditching the 'conventional' way of selling art, finding it meagre and not in the best interests of her individual art practice, she found a platform in which to do it herself. Without a middleman, she came to using the internet as her main voice. Through her (fantastic) blog, active Twittering, and website, there is one thing which shows through more than any other thing. She wants to connect with the people who are interested in her art – be it a buyer, collector, or merely a fan - it is hard to create that conversational relationship to all of those types of people. Yet she succeeds, and very well, as she does the work and puts herself out there on the lines of communication.

I went through 'organisations' that try to promote art/give you opportunities, but they never quite reached a peak of inspiring, which happens to be the reason I considered taking part in the first place. Now I have left them, but if I go solo, I always wondered about the price you would put on your art.

Art is a strange thing. It is literally your own creation and often you put a piece of your insides out there on the table. The difficulty is, who would see that value? The face value is a glance on the surface. The story behind a piece, or the ideas that generated the art, is what I would buy a piece of art for. No kidding, it’s great to have a piece of living room art that matches the decor, but I'd rather prefer a piece of art which matches the idea of your home, hearth and self.

@DooneyStudio When you were first starting out and when you started to sell art without the middle man, how did you price your art?

@BobbShen You simply have to posit a price for you work that you believe in – and then be ready to convince the buyer that it's worth it.

Wise words for someone who hadn't been beaten around the block a few times. Really, it’s still about standing up for yourself and what you believe in. In life as well as art.