Gallery 2

Francesca Donnoli

Red Aces

11 - 22 Feb 2026

Opening night

13 February | 6 - 8 pm

Gallery Hours:
Wednesday – Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm

Artist Statement

Through black and white portraiture, Francesca Donnoli photographs the faces of the Thornbury Espresso Bar, the men who have gathered to play cards there since the 1950s, capturing their charisma, individuality, and shared histories.

Francesca’s photographs aim to tell their stories while honouring a living legacy and an enduring sense of community, shaped by decades of shared ritual, conversation, and presence.

The men sit for their portraits with quiet pride, representing a generation slowly fading, whose bonds were formed through time spent together. In documenting them, the work preserves not only faces, but stands as an ode to a social ritual increasingly lost: the simple act of being present with friends.

Artist Biography

Francesca Donnoli is a Melbourne-born, self-taught photographer with a deep connection to stories of community and heritage. The daughter of Italian immigrants who arrived in Australia after World War II, she grew up immersed in stories of resilience, displacement, and belonging—narratives that continue to shape her work.

She gravitates toward culture-rich communities, drawn to people whose faces and gestures hint at untold stories.

Her photography is influenced by the composition and solitude of Edward Hopper, the atmospheric colour of Saul Leiter, and the way writers like Maya Angelou and Paul Auster explore the depth of human experience.

Francesca believes that our greatest blessing is the ability to notice.