Olivia O’Connor

Carving

Olivia O'Connor, woodcarver and artist with sculpture art

THIS IS MY STORY

About

I specialise in handmade rocking horses and rocking horse restoration, I am living and working in South Gippsland, Victoria.

I grew up on a farm on Australia’s Mornington Peninsula. It was the perfect environment to develop a love for natural materials, such as wood and leather, and to appreciate the beauty of the countryside.

A love of working with timber led me to I study Furniture Design and Construction at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, for one year before being accepted into the competitive Prop Making course at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney. During this three-year specialised degree, I worked with wood, leather, foam-sculpting, model- and mould-making and puppet making.

WHAT I DO

My Work

Wood Carving

Sculpture

Prints / Engravings

Rocking Horses

KEEPING UP WITH O’CONNOR

News

I’ll be at the Heide Makers Market the 2nd Saturday of the month September – December!

www.heidemarket.com
I’ve finished carving a perpetual trophy for the Australian Library and Information Association, to presented at the State Library of Victoria later this month. I’ve carved a plump little Leadbeater Possum and some Common Pink Heath, the fauna and flora emblems of Victoria from a rather splendid and old piece of Huon Pine. It really has been a very special commission in so many ways 🥰If you want to see the front, you’ll have to wait until the winner is announced! @alia_vic @library_vic #woodcarving #trophy #leadbeaterpossum #leadbeater #possum #huonpine #woodcarver #emblems #statelibrary #statelibraryofvictoria ... See MoreSee Less
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Hot chips and messy workspaces for life. #woodcarving #sculpture #hotchips #chippies #seagull ... See MoreSee Less
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Delighted to share with you all that ‘Rising Tides’ is a finalist in the 2025 Toorak Sculpture Prize 🥰 ... See MoreSee Less
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2 months ago

Olivia O'Connor Carving
I took this lift selfie when I was delivering my work to the @sculptors_victoria annual exhibition…I was just happy to be involved and see some stunning work being installed! Little did I know that I would win prizes for both of my sculptures…I’m still in a happy state of shock! ‘Rising Tides’ received Andor Meszaros Memorial Sculpture Prize Highly Commended and ‘Little Frog. Big Climb’ won the Art Almanac Prize! I feel very lucky and honoured, thank you @sculptors_victoria ❤️ The exhibition closes on the 29th of June at the beautiful @victorianartistssociety in Melbourne - do treat yourself to a visit! #thankyou #lucky #sculpture #woodcarver #woodcarving #prize #exhibition #melbourne #seagull #frog ... See MoreSee Less
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I have the absolute pleasure of carving a trophy for the ALIA Victoria Library and Information Award, to be presented at the State Library of Victoria! I’ll try my best to share the process with you…as you can see it’s a lot of work before anything starts to take a recognisable shape. I’m carving a Leadbeater Possum and Common Pink Heath (fauna and flora emblems of Victoria) out of some beautiful Huon Pine. To work out the shape of the possum, I modelled it from plasticine before I commit to the reductive process of woodcarving and it is making my carving process so much easier. @alia_vic @alianational @library_vic #woodcarving #trophy #victoria ... See MoreSee Less
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LEARN THE CRAFT

Workshops

From 1 day classes where you’ll dip your toe into the world of woodcarving, through to 5 day workshops, making something decorative or learning technical skills. Join me in a workshop, let the creativity flow and the fun begin!