Honor Eastly is Australian artist, writer, podcaster, and professional feeler of feelings. Her creative work has been described as “darkly funny” (by The New York Times) “total magic” (by The Atlantic), and “something rare” (TIME).
In 2021 she was named the winner of the Australian Mental Heath Prize, Australia’s top mental health award, for her creative and advocacy work.
She has amassed over 1 million downloads and numerous awards for her podcasts and writing. She won the Third Coast Director’s Choice award for her podcast No Feeling Is Final, widely considered as the ‘Oscars of Podcasting’.
She is the co-founder of The Big Feels Club, a peer led mental health resource that has reached over one million people.
Eastly’s work has been shown at The National Gallery of Victoria, The Gallery of NSW, the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, MOD. Gallery, Science Gallery Melbourne and at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
Outside of her creative work she works in the mental health sector, where she has been part of shaping major once-in-a-generation reforms, including as part of the Expert Advisory Committee to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.
EDUCATION
2013 Diploma of Sound Production, North Melbourne Institute of TAFE
2010 Exchange to University of California Berkeley with University of Melbourne Global Mobility Sch0larship
2009-11 Bachelor of Fine Art majoring in Sculpture and Spatial Practice and finishing with H1 average, Victorian College of Art
2008 Certificate IV in Visual Art, University of Ballarat
MAJOR PROJECTS
2022 Created the sold-out No Feeling Is Final Live show as the finale event for The Big Anxiety Festival. The show was created through a six-month intensive creative development process and reimagined the critically-acclaimed No Feeling Is Final ABC podcast for The Capitol Theatre. It received rave reviews and was supported by the City of Melbourne Arts Grants, RMIT, The Big Anxiety and The Capitol Innovation Fund.
2018-present Co-founder of The Big Feels Club, an arts mental health initiative. Has amassed a significant audience, been short-listed for a VicHealth award, was selected for the ACMI x State Library of Victoria’s competitive Foundry658 arts accelerator program amongst other achievements.
2018 Chosen from over 1400 entries as winner of the ABC’s $1M podcasting fund and commissioned by ABC to produce the award-winning No Feeling Is Final podcast series. The series topped several international best of list and was named #3 podcast for 2018 by The Atlantic. The series also received the Director’s Choice award for at the internationally renowned Third Coast / Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Competition.
2017Starving Artistpodcast: debuted at #1 on iTunes Arts and #10 iTunes overall, with over 200,000 downloads. Finalist for the Australian Podcast Awards.
2015-2017Being Honest With My Ex podcast: garnered 180,000 downloads in 50 different countries and a fan base loyal enough to fly Eastly's co-host to Australia for a live version of the show in 2017.
2015#NoFeelingIsFinal campaign: online advocacy project aiming to encourage public submissions to a review of Medicare, with an aim to increase funding for mental health services. The campaign went viral, with over 3,000 shares on Facebook alone, garnering submissions from every corner of Australia, as well as Australian’s living in Europe, America, and New Zealand, and accounting for 8% of all submissions.
2015The Girlfriend Experience at Found Festival: an eight hour long performance work where Eastly tried to fall in love with members of the public
2014That Sexy Show at The Butterfly Club at Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF): sold out run at MICF
2013We Should Know Better at Hares & Hyenas at Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF)
SMALL PROJECTS
2019 Developed, released and sold out Kinder Mind program as part of the Foundry658 accelerator program.
2017 Successful Kickstarter campaign to bring my international podcast co-host to Australia for a live show in 2017.
2016Trying My Best webseries from The Birthday Loyalty Club: costume design.
2015 Released the YES/NO jewellery range in collaboration with Melbourne-jeweller Corin Adams.
2012 Producer and host of Your Life The Musical on SYN FM.
GRANTS, COMMISSIONS, AWARDS + RESIDENCIES
2022 Recipient of RMIT Capitol Innovation Fund for No Feeling Is Final Live 2022McCraith House residency for creative development of No Feeling Is Final Live 2021 Recipient of the Australian Mental Health Prize, Australia’s top mental health award 2021 Recipient of City of Melbourne Arts Grant for No Feeling Is Final Live 2021 Recipient of RMIT Capitol Innovation Fund for No Feeling Is Final Live 2020 Recipient of development funding through VicScreen for experimental documentary focussing on online addiction 2020 Recipient of City of Melbourne Quick Response Grant for The Tears Project 2020 Recipient of ABC Fresh Start creative development funding 2020 VicScreen development funding for documentary film development with Nikki Castle 2019 Finalist for VicHealth award for work through The Big Feels Club 2019 Double finalist for Australian Podcasting Awards for No Feeling Is Final podcast series 2019 Accepted in select-entry Foundry658 arts accelerator program and received seed funding to develop Big Feels Club program 2019Big Feels Club awarded a Community Workforce Development Grant to create Big Feels @ Work program 2019 Selected as ambassador for Big Anxiety Festival 2018 Named Marie Claire’s “50 Ones To Watch” 2017 Named as one of seven “young people fighting to make 2017 a brighter place” by i-D (VICE) 2017 Secured sponsorship deal for Season One of Starving Artist 2016 Selected for Next Wave Festival Writers in Residence program 2012 Runner up for the $35,000 Harold Schenberg Art Award 2012 Selected for the Hatched the national graduate exhibition as one of 36 of the best new artists in Australia at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art 2011 Selected as a finalist for the $50,001 Footlocker Art Prize 2011 Recipient of theVCA Womens' Art Award 2011 Commissioned for theVictoria Harbour Young Artist Initiative Grant from Lend Lease 2010 Commissioned for theVictoria Harbour Young Artist Initiative Grant from Lend Lease 2008 Recipient of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development Award as part of the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery Next Generation Exhibition 2008 Recipient of the Contemporary Sculptors Inc. Award for the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery Next Generation Art Exhibition 2007 Recipient of the Clarice Beckett Prize for Art
EXHIBITIONS & PERFORMANCES
2023 Big Feels Club event series at Science Gallery Melbourne 2022 No Feeling Is Final Live at RMIT The Capitol Theatre as finale event for The Big Anxiety Festival 2021 UP CLOSE, MOD. Gallery SA, exhibition of The Tears Project 2018No Feeling Is Final live performance excerpt at ABC’s OzPod conference 2017 Successful kickstarter for Being Honest With My Ex podcast to do a string of live shows 2017Stay Soft performance at Melbourne Writer’s Festival 2016ALL, Neon Parlour, curated by Accidental Discharge 2015The Girlfriend Experience, Found Festival, Testing Grounds, Melbourne 2014That Sexy Show sold out run at Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2013Melbourne Now, National Gallery of Victoria, Ian Potter Centre, Melbourne 2013We Should Know Better sold out run at Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2012Hatched the national graduate exhibition, Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, Perth 2011Footlocker Art Award, Gallery of NSW, Sydney 2011Is it Straight?, George Paton Gallery, Melbourne 2011Rising – Victoria Harbour Young Artist Initiative exhibition, Melbourne 2011Floor to Ceiling, VCA Student Gallery 2011I'll Show You Mine If You Show Me Yours, VCA Student Gallery 2010Victoria Harbour Young Artist Initiative exhibition, Melbourne 2010 Vitrine, Worth Ryder Gallery, University of California, Berkeley 2009Proud Exhibition, VCA Margaret Lawrence Gallery 2009Eleven Exhibition, VCA Student Gallery 2009The Invisible Generation, VCA Margaret Lawrence Gallery 2008Social Fabric: Past to Present, Maryborough Goldfield's Gallery 2008Next Generation Art Exhibition, Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat