About Pamela

Pamela Conder grew up pursuing a consuming interest in animals and science, becoming heavily involved in wildlife conservation early in her life. In 1978, she began travelling extensively, wandering to Europe, China, Africa, India and the Galapagos Islands, to study wildlife in the field as well as to learn more about conservation and zoo management. More recently, Pamela has spent time in Singapore, Bali, and the surrounding southeast Asian region researching explorers and naturalists.

Pamela has received no formal art training, but as the daughter of artist Lorrie Conder she was exposed to drawing and painting as a part of everyday life. After studying for two years at the St. Martins Theatre School in Melbourne, Pamela moved to London for a brief flirtation with an acting career before moving to Bavaria to study taxidermy.

In 1977, Pamela held her first solo exhibition at the Emerald Gallery in Melbourne. Since then, she has had more than 25 solo exhibitions of her artwork, including painting, line drawing, ceramics and gold and silver smithing, at galleries throughout Australia, Europe and Asia. She is now considered to be one of Australia's foremost wildlife artists.

Apart from her obvious talents with pen and brush, Pamela is also a writer of some note and a respected researcher. In 1991, after seven years of extensive research into the social behaviour of flying foxes, she was awarded the Sir Thomas Ramsay Science And Humanities Fellowship of the Museum of Victoria, which assisted her in publishing the results of her research in the book With Wings On Their Fingers.

Her other work with books includes illustrating The Incomplete Book of Australian Mammals, which was awarded a Whitley Award by the Zoological Society of New South Wales, and Gorillas In The Garden, a collaboration with respected zoologist Angus Martin about the role of zoos in conservation.