Biography Bradley, Jo (1980 - )

Jo Bradley began to make prints after organising street protests; weekly events featuring hand painted placards in fluorescent colours, inflatable suits and an array of jumbo-sized emoticons and emojis. Digital art made for social media can attract attention but it has no intrinsic value when people scroll past. Jo’s prints are less disposable and ask people to consider the worth of protest and the worth of a illustrated endangered animals, now given a dollar value under biodiversity trading schemes.

Raising two children alone and living in insecure housing below the Australian poverty line for 13 years, Jo has developed a passion to advocate for animals who lose their homes due to human greed. Australia holds the world record for mammal extinctions and land clearing. Politicians have pledged “no new extinctions” and these prints are designed to serve as a small reminder.
Jo has discovered that carved lines carry an appeal that makes a print hard to put down, Prints can be made with wide margins in which footnotes can be added to explain issues. Some prints also include a sheet of notes and a wrapper to add further context. The prints are intended to be given to politicians and other decision makers who may then choose to keep or display the print.
The prints are made collaboratively with Tom Kristensen, who contributes woodblock skills to complement the Lino carving by Jo.
Works include: Joey Koala; Regent Honeyeater; Purple Copper Butterfly; Horseshoe Crab; Greater Glider; Green and Golden Bell Frog; Powerful Owl. All prints are hand-made; hand-carved and printed using a traditional baren, printed on hand-made Japanese washi.
The collaboration is marked with a seal indicating a double dagger - a typographical footnote that also indicates extinction.



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