Grace Dlabik

Grace Dlabik is a Naarm (Melbourne)-based interdisciplinary artist and cultural leader whose work bridges sculpture, curation, creative direction, and community engagement. With Austrian/Hungarian and Papua New Guinean heritage—belonging to the Lavaipia clan of Lese Oalai and the Motuan clan Botai of Hanuabada—Dlabik’s Melanesian roots inform a practice deeply grounded in ancestral knowledge, identity, and place.

Over a 25-year career, Dlabik has emerged as a trailblazer in cultural and community-focused initiatives. She is the founder and creative director of BE. Collective and BE. ONE., global platforms that champion underrepresented creatives and foster cross-cultural collaboration. Her roles as Mama, carer, and aunty shape an artistic philosophy centered on care, reciprocity, and collective empowerment.

Currently working from her art haus on Wurundjeri Country, Dlabik focuses on sculpture using clay, limestone, and bronze. These works, which blend intuition with ancestral memory, serve as tactile research into identity and belonging. Her recent accolades include being a finalist in several major national art prizes and receiving the Highly Commended Award at the 2023 STILL National Art Prize. Her solo exhibition Kose Karu Kin (2023) and her community-based project Karu Kin, supported by the Blak C.O.R.E Mordant Fellowship, further underscore her impacts and her work continues to foster cultural exchange and inspire through community-rooted, cross-disciplinary art.