Shannan is a curator, researcher and advisor who has been collaborating with Aileen Sage since 2019. She brings expertise from her work with emerging, mid‑career and established Australian and international visual artists, academics, curators and other arts practitioners spanning the commercial, government and non-profit sectors, a practice that began in 2001. She has held roles in leading galleries, publishing houses and major art institutions across Australia and at the Venice Biennale. Her work is complemented by skills and knowledge developed in an early career as a solicitor at top‑tier firms and positions in arts funding, policy and strategy at the Arts Law Centre of Australia and the Australia Council for the Arts (now Creative Australia).

Shannan strives for thoughtful, collaborative and innovative approaches to public art commissioning. She embraces opportunities with openness and creativity, grounding each project in rigorous research and genuine consultation to understand and balance stakeholder interests within their broader context. By working constructively with others throughout the commissioning process, she helps articulate possibilities and navigate challenges. Her aim is to deliver outcomes that truly realise public art’s capacity to enrich culture and society.

Shannan’s direct engagement with current concerns and methods in contemporary creative practice is strengthened by her role as a sessional academic at UNSW School of Art & Design. Since 2022, she has taught many courses across the Master of Curating & Cultural Leadership, Bachelor of Design and Master of Design programs. These include Curatorial Studio: Social Space (Art in the Public Realm) and Cultural Heritage, Ethics & Law, which she teaches alongside leaders and experts in these fields.