Before Catherine Nguyen-Hoang was born, her father built the boat that would carry her family away from their homeland of Vietnam. Fleeing the aftermath of war, her parents reached a refugee camp in Malaysia, where Catherine was born. In 1989, they settled on Kaurna Country in Adelaide, beginning a new chapter shaped by sacrifice, resilience and hope.

Growing up surrounded by Vietnamese food, celebrations and extended family, Catherine learnt that home lives as much in people as in places. The Vietnamese-Australian artist explores the space between two cultures through contemporary realist oil paintings, often questioning where she truly belongs.

Once reluctant to open up about her life, Catherine now uses art to share deeply personal family histories. Her recent paintings explore her parents’ migration and the exploitation her family experienced in Australia. What surprised her most was discovering how deeply these experiences resonated with others.

At the heart of Catherine’s practice are letters to her children, painted through objects, motifs and memories she hopes they’ll carry forward. Each canvas offers a glimpse of the heritage that shaped her, and the stories that connect one generation to the next.