The Story of Kelly Flanagan “ArtworkByAalayah”
Teenage Years: The Roots of Resilience
As a teenager, Kelly Flanagan, a proud Wiradjuri woman from New South Wales, learned early what resilience truly meant. Her teenage years were marked by instability, searching, and survival — yet within that, a spark of creativity burned quietly. She sketched, she dreamed, she imagined life beyond hardship.
Those early years shaped her strength and empathy. They taught her that even in struggle, there is beauty — and that imagination can be a way out, a way forward, and a way home.
Family: The Foundation of Unconditional Love
At the heart of Kelly’s story is her family — the unwavering love of her parents, Maria and Clinton, and the deep connection she shares with her three brothers, their partners, and their children.
Her parents have been her greatest example of persistence and unconditional love. Through every chapter of her life — the challenges, the setbacks, and the triumphs — Maria and Clinton have stood by her without hesitation. Their strength and compassion have been her foundation. They taught her that no matter what happens, love endures.T
And central to it all is her beautiful, courageous daughter, Mystique — her greatest pride and her truest inspiration. Mystique embodies everything Kelly has fought for: strength, grace, independence, and heart. Their bond is unbreakable — built on love, resilience, and the understanding that healing one generation creates hope for the next. Mystique’s courage and spirit mirror her mother’s journey — proof that love and legacy continue through her.
Adulthood and the System: Finding Her Voice
In adulthood, Kelly’s journey led her through the justice system — a chapter that could have broken her, but instead, revealed her voice. Within confinement, she began to paint.
Art became her lifeline — a form of truth-telling when silence was expected. Through colour, pattern, and storytelling, she transformed trauma into beauty and despair into creation.
It was in this period that “ArtworkByAalayah” was born — a name symbolizing rebirth, light, and womanhood. Aalayah represented the spirit within her that refused to give up — the creative force that turned struggle into something sacred. Through painting, she reclaimed her story and began to see herself not as what she had been through, but as who she truly was: an artist, a mother, a survivor, and a woman of deep cultural and spiritual strength.
Rebirth Through Connection: FIGJAM, Sisterhood & Flat Out
When Kelly returned to community, she found another kind of family — the Sisterhood at Flat Out.
These women became her home beyond home. Real, raw, and resilient, they love her fiercely and unconditionally. They have walked beside her with laughter, honesty, and compassion. Together, they lift each other, celebrate each win, and hold each other through pain.
Among them, FIGJAM shines as a symbol of their bond — a reflection of women who have faced hardship and still choose to love, create, and rise. Through Flat Out, Kelly rediscovered connection — a reminder that healing is not done alone, but in the company of courageous women who see you, hear you, and stand beside you.
Art as Healing and Power
With every brushstroke, Kelly began to rebuild her life through art. Her acrylic paintings — vibrant, layered, and full of movement — became visual representations of strength, womanhood, and cultural reconnection.
Her exhibitions across Naarm (Melbourne) have become spaces for storytelling, where each piece carries her truth and emotion. Through her art, Kelly weaves the past into the present, creating something both personal and universal — the power of healing through creation. A proud Wiradjuri woman from New South Wales, now living and creating on Wurundjeri Country in Naarm (Melbourne).
Her creative practice is deeply shaped by lived experience as a First Nations woman, survivor, and someone who has journeyed through the justice system. Art has become her truth-telling, healing, and reclamation — a way to transform her pain into resilience and create connections through story and culture.
Kelly is working primarily with acrylic on canvas. She is also experimenting with photography, exploring new ways of storytelling beyond paint and canvas. Alongside her visual art, she is currently writing her autobiography, giving voice to the full arc of her lived experiences.
Her works is being exhibited across Naarm and is available in local shops, galleries, her website, and social media pages. She welcomes commissions, and opportunities to create works that speak personally to others while honouring her journey and culture.
Through her art, she carries forward the strength of the Wiradjuri peoples, share the voice of survival, and continue to carve pathways of transformation and connection.
As an artist, she has a passion for creating unique and captivating visual art pieces. She has honed her skills through various mediums, including painting, drawing, and digital art. Kelly is always eager to explore new techniques and styles, and enjoys collaborating with other artists to bring their visions to life.
Writing for “About Time”: Truth, Support, and Courage
Alongside her painting, Kelly’s writing became another form of truth-telling. Through her work with About Time, the national newspaper for people in prisons and detention centres, she found a platform of integrity, compassion, and truth.
Her words reach those who are still inside — offering understanding, hope, and connection. Through writing, she gives voice to those whose stories deserve to be heard.
Kelly holds deep gratitude for the About Time team — for their honesty, loyalty, and genuine support. They have walked beside her not just as colleagues, but as community — believing in her voice and giving her a space to speak freely. About Time represents truth without shame, storytelling without fear, and love through understanding. For Kelly, it is not just a publication — it’s family.
Storytelling and Advocacy
Kelly’s creative practice naturally evolved into advocacy — using her lived experience to create change. Her memoir, currently in progress, captures her life’s full arc: from teenage struggle to artistic emergence, from incarceration to empowerment, from silence to strength.
Her art and her words now stand for something larger — the right to be seen, to heal, and to rise. She continues to advocate for community voices, for women rebuilding their lives, and for the next generation — including her daughter — to know that no story is beyond redemption.
Today: ArtworkByAalayah — The Woman, The Artist, The Mother, The Voice
Today, Kelly Flanagan — known as ArtworkByAalayah — stands as a multidisciplinary artist, writer, and storyteller whose work embodies transformation, culture, and love.
Her practice brings together painting, writing, and advocacy, rooted in truth-telling and healing. She continues to exhibit across Naarm, collaborate with community programs, write for About Time, and develop new creative projects that amplify the voices of women and survivors.
She walks through life surrounded by love — from her parents Maria and Clinton, her brothers and their families, her daughter Mystique, and her sisters at FlGJAM. Each of them is woven into her story, her art, and her purpose.
Kelly paints for them. She writes for them. She lives for them. Because her story — their story — is proof that love, courage, and creativity can transform anything.
That even in the hardest places, beauty can grow. And that through family, sisterhood, art, and truth — she has become whole.