Kalyanii Holden

Kalyanii Holden is a Meanjin based artist who hand-builds ceramic sculptural works decorating them with bright underglazes, slips, oxides, ash, and glass. She often works into the surface while the clay is leather-hard, adding texture, colour, and imagery after underglazes have been applied.


Kalyanii has worked with clay for over eleven years, leading to the development of her Blue Dog series. Her practice draws on nostalgia and childhood memory, reflecting both past and present. Familiar suburban spaces often appear alongside natural elements, reflecting her deep connection to and energy drawn from the natural world. Through this process, her work becomes a form of storytelling, embedding memory and experience into material form.

Kalyanii’s work is held in public and private collections locally and internationally, and she has received national recognition, including finalist positions in the National Photographic Portrait Prize the Olive Cotton Award, the Sunshine Coast National Art prize as well as the Siliceous Award for Best in Contemporary Ceramics.