Dr. COURTNEY Coombs
Details
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College: School of Design
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Department: School of Design
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Campus: City Campus Australia
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courtney.coombs@rmit.edu.au
Open to
- Collaborative projects
- Industry Projects
- Masters Research or PhD student supervision
About
Courtney Coombs is an artist, maker, and educator specialising in socially engaged practice and practice-based research across object design, weaving, installation, and public art, with national and international exhibition experience. With a PhD in Visual Art (Practice-based Research) from QUT, a Masters in Fine Arts from the University of Bergen, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from QUT, they bring extensive academic experience in transforming complex concepts into cohesive projects. They have secured a range of local, state, and federal funding and received numerous awards, including the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Sessional Teaching. Courtney has co-founded multiple artist-run initiatives, including No Frills*, LEVEL, and served as Director of Outer Space, whilst maintaining an active exhibition practice and contributing to discourse on gender, sexuality, and inequity in contemporary art.
Research fields
- 360602 Fine arts
- 500302 Critical theory
- 440501 Feminist and queer theory
- 330304 Design history, theory and criticism
- 330306 Design practice and methods
- 340309 Theory and design of materials
Academic positions
- Lecturer
- RMIT University
- Industrial Design
- Melbourne, Australia
- 1 Jul 2025 – Present
- Teaching Associate
- RMIT University
- Industrial Design
- Melbourne, Australia
- 1 Feb 2024 – 30 Jun 2025
- Teaching Associate
- Monash University
- Fine Arts
- Melbourne, Australia
- 1 Feb 2024 – 28 Jun 2024
- Unit Coordinator, Lecturer, Tutor
- Griffith University
- Fine Arts
- Brisbane, Australia
- 1 Jul 2019 – 27 Jun 2021
- Unit Coordinator, Lecturer, Tutor
- Queensland University of Technology
- Fine Arts, Design, Creative Industries
- Brisbane, Australia
- 1 Jul 2008 – 28 Jun 2019
Non-academic positions
- Chair
- Bus Projects
- Melbourne, Australia
- 21 Apr 2025 – Present
- Founding Co-Director
- Kink Collective
- Australia
- 1 Feb 2021 – Present
- Director
- Outer Space Contemporary Art Organisation
- Brisbane, Australia
- 3 Jun 2019 – 25 Jun 2021
- Founding Co-Director
- LEVEL ARI
- Australia
- 1 Feb 2010 – 20 Dec 2019
- Founding Co-Director
- No Frills* ARI
- Brisbane, Australia
- 5 Nov 2007 – 29 Jan 2010
Teaching interests
Courtney creates collaborative, non-hierarchical learning environments that encourage students to push creative boundaries, offering flexible mentoring particularly suited to socially engaged and community-led design, practice-based research methodologies, queer and decolonial design approaches, and collaborative design processes. Since 2008, they have taught across Undergraduate, Honours, and Masters degrees as tutor, lecturer, and unit coordinator, working with students in Visual Arts, Design, and Creative Industries. Their teaching philosophy centres on education as both privilege and right, creating safe spaces where diverse voices are valued and heard.
Research interests
Courtney's research focuses on issues of inequity and 'otherness', employing queer feminist methodologies that involve abstraction and recontextualisation. Their current investigation explores how natural and industrial landscapes can act as connective tools for highlighting and celebrating difference. This work builds on previous research into gender and sexuality inequity, including their PhD project, which examined the relationship between gender politics and the legacies of Minimalist and Conceptual Art. As co-founder of Kink Collective, they research and formalise a history of queer Australian art through publishing, scholarship, advocacy, and public access initiatives. Their research also encompasses creative pedagogy and the relationship between technology and craft-based skills. Their practice-based research outputs take the form of dialogical art, sculptural works, and written articles, all aimed at contributing to positive change in the sector.
