Melissa Bell is a proud Gunditjimara and Yorta Yorta woman making art deeply connected to her Country and culture. Since joining The Torch program every painting of Melissa’s has sold. Making art makes me feel connected to my land. To be an Aboriginal female artist, just to put down a beautiful picture from my Country

Daph is a Koko-bera artist and post-release participant who has produced 16 works since joining the program at the start of 2020 in his unique abstract style. I wasn’t making art before prison and didn’t consider myself artistic at all. But you do a lot of self-reflection in jail and I learnt that I had

ONLINE The Torch is excited to be presenting Confined 12 online on our website. We invite you to view Confined 12 through our Artwork Mosaic and Virtual Gallery, and to explore video stories featuring The Torch artists. The Confined 12 online exhibition opens at 8am this Thursday 13th May. IN PERSON Confined 12 can also be experienced in person at Glen

As a child, Robby (Wergaia/Wotjobaluk) painted with his grandmother who had a big influence on his artistic life. He wants his children to see his artworks as life lessons to learn from, drawing on personal experiences, cultural history and family to create his art. Robby paints bold artworks of his Country and maintains a strong

Trevor is a proud Barkindji man and has been a participant in The Torch program since he signed up in 2014. My people are river people who have traditionally lived and hunted fish, turtles, yabbies and clams along the Baarka (Darling River) for many thousands of years. We are the direct descendants of Mungo Man

Leroy is a Yorta Yorta artist from Echuca who first joined The Torch program in 2014. Leroy paints to share his story, and feel pride in having created art that others will enjoy. When I paint, all my problems go away, I lose myself in my art In 2017, Leroy exhibited at Museum Victoria in

Last week Torch staff Susannah (Martu), Tarsha (Kuku Yalanji) and Flick (Ngarrindjeri), along with artist Thelma Beeton (Palawa), connected to female participants currently incarcerated at DPFC prison via live video link, in celebration of International Women’s Day. The in-prison participants enjoyed a tour of The Torch gallery, offices and storeroom followed by everyone sharing their

We have been crunching our 2020 numbers and despite the global pandemic, our team have been able to support more participants, and sell more artworks, than ever before. In 2020, your support has allowed us to be active with 488 participants in and out of Victorian prisons, sell 990 artworks, license artists’ artworks 96 times,

This year marks the 13th anniversary of the National Apology to the Stolen Generations delivered by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on behalf of the Australian Parliament. Our thoughts are with the Stolen Generations, the men and women in our program and everyone affected by the past government policies of forced child removal and Indigenous assimilation.

We are delighted to announce Nova Peris OAM OLY MAICD as a new Director on The Torch board. Nova has accomplished so much in her life, and the experience she brings to our growing organisation is extraordinary. We are excited and humbled to welcome her to the team. Nova was Australia’s first Aboriginal woman elected