Australian Ocean Artist Creating Large Original Ocean Paintings

Life & Studio Beside the Great Barrier Reef

Based in Holloways Beach, a quiet coastal village in Tropical North Queensland located just 15 nautical miles—about 30 minutes by boat—from where the Great Barrier Reef begins, Australian mixed-media artist Petra Meikle creates large-scale, three-dimensional ocean paintings shaped by a lifetime of wild immersion in the natural world. Working on solid panel from her coastal studio with rich pigments, fluid movement, and textured sands, her art captures the shifting turquoise shallows, golden sandbars, and deep sapphire currents of the Coral Sea—bringing the calm, restorative energy of the ocean into contemporary Australian homes.

Inspired From Above: Petra lives and works 30 Minutes From the Great Barrier Reef

Inside the Holloways Beach Coastal Studio

Crowded with tools, natural textures, and works in progress, Petra’s coastal studio in Holloways Beach is alive with motion and experimentation. With an intense creative drive, she builds every piece layer by layer—thriving on breaking rules, perfecting new techniques, and crafting statement ocean artworks designed to make collectors feel something lasting.

ARTIST CV — PETRA MEIKLE

AWARDS, PRIZES & INTERNATIONAL EXPOS

Winner — Art Lovers Australia People’s Choice Award (2020) | Top 10 Artist — Art Lovers Australia (2024) | Finalist / Nominee — Art Lovers Prize Australia (2019, 2021, 2022) | Miami Art Expo (2024) | Swiss Art Expo (2023)

FEATURED IN MEDIA & TELEVISION

Television: The Block (2019 — Jessie & Mel's Winning Dining/Living Room Reveal via The Block Shop Insider Style), House Rules (2020), Love It or List It (2021)

Publications: Chicago Weekly ("Ten Visionary Artists", 2025), Home Design Magazine, Home Beautiful Magazine, Ocean Magazine, Grand Designs Magazine, My Modern Met, Art People

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2023: Land Sea Sky (ALA, Gold Coast) • Color Spectrum (ALA, Gold Coast) • Collector's Edition (ALA, Gold Coast & Melbourne)

2022: BOLD (Art Lovers Australia, Southport) • Collector's Edition (ALA, Melbourne)

2021: Summer Exhibition (Art Lovers Australia, Southport) • Honour Her Online Auction (Australia) • University of New South Wales IGEM (Sydney) • Home (ALA Gallery, Gold Coast) • Stockroom Exhibition (Art Lovers Australia Gallery, Southport)

2019: Revealed (TBC Gallery, Gold Coast)

ARTIST RESIDENCIES

Bremer Island, East Arnhem Land, NT (2021) • Ha'apai, Foa Island, Kingdom of Tonga (2019) • Fitzroy Island, FNQ, Australia (2019) • Nala Nala Game Reserve, Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (1996)

PERMANENT & PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

Crystalbrook Group (Cairns) • Dundees at the Cairns Aquarium (FNQ) • Fitzroy Island Resort (FNQ) • Estia on Arlington (Clifton Beach, FNQ) • BanuBanu Beach Retreat (Bremer Island, East Arnhem Land, NT)