Marina Finlay began her creative life as an actor. Marina was all over Australian television, film and theatre in the 1980s. Her TV acting credits include Prisoner, Young Doctors, Sons and Daughters, and Taurus Rising.
Marina studied acting at the prestigious National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). Marina was awarded a Diploma in Acting in 1981. She then worked as an actress in Television, Film and Theatre before travelling to Europe in 1990-91.
This portrait was made in 1985 during an Australian Film, Television & Radio School (AFTRS) student production, a television piece called Circumbendibus by director Cathy Campbell, while I was photographer-in-residence there.
Disillusioned with the thespian world, Marina left acting in 1990 to pursue her painting career.
Where is Marina Finlay now? Based in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, she is a six-time finalist in the Portia Geach Memorial Award, an annual art prize for portraiture by women artists.
Marina has had numerous solo exhibitions at the Holdsworth Galleries in Paddington and at Barry Stern Gallery.
In 1998 she was awarded the North Sydney Noella Byrne Art Prize for landscape.and in 2018 she reached the Archibald Prize finals, both as an artist with her portrait of Peter & Susan O’Doherty, and as the subject of Karyn Zamel’s painting.
Marina was model for two-time Archibald Prize winner, Judy Cassab, for over thirty years. Judy Cassab mentored Marina in the art of painting. In 1984, Judy Cassab compiled a portfolio of lithographs of eminent Australian cultural figures for the Art Gallery of NSW, including portraits of artists Donald Friend, Sidney Nolan and Lloyd Rees.
Marina Finlay is a very talented Australian artist, as her website shows. Marina regularly exhibits at Flinders Street Gallery in Sydney.
In 2006 Marina’s portrait of Hugo Weaving, one of her NIDA acting classmates, was hung in the S.H. Ervin Gallery’s Salon des Refusés, an alternate selection of Archibald Prize entrants.
In 2018 Marina Finlay scored a first – reaching the Archibald Prize finals with two separate paintings – both as a painter and as a subject …
Left: Marina Finlay, Peter, Coco and Susan O’Doherty, oil on canvas, 64 x 79 cm
Right: Karyn Zamel’s portrait of fellow artist, Marina Finlay, oil on canvas, 44 x 33.5 cm
Marina Finlay ‘Peter, Coco and Susan O’Doherty’
Peter O’Doherty is an accomplished painter and musician. Peter was bass player for Mental As Anything from 1977 to 2000 and is now singer-songwriter with the band ‘Dog Trumpet’ (performing with his brother, Reg Mombassa) while his wife Susan O’Doherty is a contemporary Australian artist known for assemblage, painting, collage, sculpture, and installation.
Marina Finaly said: “I have known Peter and Susan for many years. They are fellow artists and dear friends. I seated them to show their closeness but also their strong individuality. Their cat Coco links them yet creates a space between them. The painting in the background is inspired by one of Susan’s. I really loved the patterns so I painted a variation of her theme to suit the picture”
Karyn Zamel ‘Marina Finlay’
“I have been painting Marina for many years,” says Zamel. A portrait by Zamel of Marina Finlay was a finalist in the 2016 Portia Geach Memorial Award. “I always enjoy my sessions with Marina as we connect on many levels. We share a mutual love of classical music and philosophy, and our sittings are full of trust and humour. In this portrait, I wanted to convey Marina’s integrity, directness and strength,” said Katryn Zamel.
One of Judy Cassab’s portraits of Marina Finlay
Judy Cassab’s ‘Portrait of the Artist Marina Finlay’ Oil on Canvas on Board, 33×29.5cm
Marina Finlay art for sale
Marina FINLAY Bondi – Playground by the Sea – Original Signed Etching + LOP on eBay
34 x 46 cm – Signed, Limited Edition, Numbered, etching on paper, 1998
Talking Prisoner, 2021, Podcast series, 1 episode
Marina Finlay’s Feature Films, with links to Wikipedia
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1985 | An Indecent Obsession | Sue Peddar | Feature film |
| 1988 | Afraid To Dance | Checkout Girl | Feature film |
| 1990 | A Woman’s Tale | Prostitute | Feature film |
| 2000 | After The Rain | Tracey | Feature film |
Marina Finlay’s Television Roles, with links to Wikipedia
| Year | Title | Role | Type |
| 1981 | The Young Doctors | Guest role: Lucy Dunlop | TV series |
| 1981 | The Added Dimension | Woman | Video |
| 1982 | Taurus Rising | Regular lead role: Elizabeth Drysdale | TV series, 26 episodes |
| 1983 | Cop Shop | Guest role | TV series, 2 episodes |
| 1983 | Prisoner | Recurring role: Lainie Dobson | TV series, 13 episodes |
| 1984 | Special Squad | Guest role: Suzie | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1986 | The Flying Doctors | Guest role: Debbie Wilson | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1986 | Sons And Daughters | Recurring role: Laura Banning | TV series, 8 episodes |
| 1987 | Rafferty’s Rules | Guest role: Emma | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1996 | Water Rats | Guest role: Gretchen Hart | TV series, 1 episode |
| 1998 | Home And Away | Guest role: Christina | TV series, 1 episode |
| 2011 | Crownies | Guest role: Trudie | ABC TV series, 1 episode |
| 2021 | Talking Prisoner | Herself | Podcast series, 1 episode |
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