photo credit: Aaron Chapman for Tweed Regional Gallery

Artist Bio: Since graduating with First Class Honours from Sydney College of the Arts in 2015, Sammy has exhibited several critically acclaimed solo-shows. Works from these shows have been acquired by the Canberra Museum & Gallery, the ACT Legislative Assembly, the Canberra Hospital, Goulburn Regional Art Gallery, Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre and sold widely to private national and international collections. Sammy’s work has been exhibited at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra Museum & Gallery, Canberra Contemporary Art Space and as part of the 2022 Canberra Art Biennial. 

Sammy was winner of the 2022 Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize and the winner of the 2023 Canberra Contemporary Photographic Prize. Over the years she has been a finalist in numerous prizes including (more recently) the 2024 National Photography Prize (MAMA), 2024 Mosman Art Prize (in collaboration with Uncle Owen Carriage) and 2023 Bowness Prize (Museum of Australian Photography). In 2021 Sammy was a recipient of the Canberra Critics Circle Award for photography for her exhibition Acts of Co-Creation.

In 2024 Sammy was artist-in-residence at both Woollahra Gallery and Goulburn Regional Art Gallery, exhibiting new solo shows at these galleries. Her show Conversations with bees at Goulburn Regional Art Gallery was nominated for a Museums & Galleries of NSW IMAGinE Award.

In 2025 she was the annual funded artist-in-residence at Tweed Regional Gallery with her solo show Worlds Around Us exhibiting at the gallery from June - November 2025. In September 2026 Sammy undertook a partnered residency between The Corridor Project (AUS) & Messums: Org (UK) (funded by The Ian Potter Cultural Trust and artsACT). Her first international solo-show Ghosts & Monsters exhibited at Messums West (Wiltshire, UK) from October - December 2025.

In 2026 Sammy will be exhibiting Sound-Forms: Whale Song at Hervey Bay Regional Gallery (August - October), contributing work to the opening of Messums East, UK (September) and presenting The Pressure of Darkness - a survey show of work created created between 2020 & 2026 - at Orange Regional Gallery (December). The Pressure of Darkness will also exhibit at Canberra Museum and Gallery in 2028.

Sammy is currently based in Canberra, Australia (Ngunnawal/Ngambri Country).  

For enquires:

email: samantha.v.hawker@gmail.com
instagram: @sammyhawker
phone: +61 422 436 087

photo credit: Lean Timms

Artist CV / Exhibition Archive:

Education

  • Bachelor of Visual Arts (First Class Honours) completed at Sydney College of the Arts [2015]

Solo Exhibitions


Awards & Acquisitions


Residencies

  • Artist in Residence | Messums ORG x The Corridor Project International Artist Exchange Program [2025] supported by Ian Potter Cultural Trust & artsACT  

  • Artist in Residence | Tweed Regional Art Gallery [2025] supported by artsACT

  • Artist in Residence | the CORRIDOR project [2022-2025]

  • Artist in Residence | Goulburn Regional Art Gallery [2024] supported by CAPO (Capital Arts Patron Organisation)

  • Artist in Residence | The Woollahra Gallery [2023/2024]
    supported by artsACT

  • Project Alchemy | funded by Rebus Theatre [2022-2023]

  • Dark Matter Residency | PhotoAccess [2021]

Public Works

Selected Group Shows

Boards & Committees


Press

photo credit: Anna Hutchcroft

photo credit: Anna Hutchcroft

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