Dean Greeno is an artist and researcher who was born on Flinders Island following a long succession of ancestral generations in the Furneaux Islands in Bass Strait. Dean relocated to Launceston with his parents (Lola Greeno and Rex Greeno) in the 1970s. Dean’s practice responds to his cultural origins, family legacy and connections with Country. Known for his practice with driftwood sculptures, Dean has also become active in research and advocacy projects focused on the effects of climate change, in particular, the management of oceans, coasts and waterways. Through his work, he advocates for solutions which draw upon Traditional Knowledge working closely with Aboriginal Elders.
I am a proud Trawlwoolway, Pakana man from Lutruwita. My presentation will take you on a journey which was started when my mother, an award-winning traditional shell necklace maker, initiated a discussion some twenty years ago regarding her observation of the noticeable and appreciable changes in the physical structure and colour of the traditional Marineer shell. That conversation created the momentum for my ongoing research into climate effects on traditional cultural materials. The presentation covers growing up on Flinders island in a fishing family with houses built from shipwreck salvage to me becoming an aircraft maintenance engineer and qualified builder to representing Lutruwita Indigenous first peoples at a world ocean climate change conference in Hobart to a pilot Elders oral history project there are many connections to marine heritage. Muttonbirding, sealing and shell harvesting are some of the oldest marine based practices in the world with over 14000 years of ongoing activity.
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Awards & Achievements
Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honours 2020
Diploma of Building and Construction 2015
Diploma of Aerospace Engineering Maintenance Airframes/Engines 2004
5 peer reviewed papers 2019-2022.