Karyn Sassella Bio

Karyn Sassella is an Australian, Italian, and British poet and International Humanitarian Aid Worker based in Melbourne, Australia

She has performed her poetry widely in Australia and the U.K

Karyn’s latest commission is with the Arafura Music Collective in Darwin Australia for a new work “The Bridge of Dreams”, a chamber music and poetry performance for the 2025 Darwin Festival.

Residencies and Awards

Writer in Residencies awarded at Tracks Dance Company, Darwin Theatre Company, Arafura Music Ensemble, Palmerston Secondary School, and the Northern Territory Writers Centre, all funded by the Australia Council of the Arts. On these residencies she wrote poetry, plays and cross-artform works as well as facilitated poetry workshops. She edited the first collection of poetry for the Katherine Writers Group, Northern Territory, Australia.

Karyn was awarded a writers’ residency with Marina Merli Arte Studio Ginestrelle and Writing Residency, Assisi, Italy, July 2024

Karyn was awarded a writers’ residency at 2026 Utopia Artists Residency Kavala Greece. 

Karyn hosted a poetry radio program on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC Radio) in Darwin, Australia.

Karyn has been awarded five Northern Territory of Australia Government Literary Awards (N.T) for her poetry and the Dunant Award from the British Red Cross for her Humanitarian work.

Karyn is a full member of the Royal Society of Literature and listed as an Australian Author in Auslit.

Karyn’s poetry appeared in PEACE CAMP, Online and installation on the White Cliffs of Dover, A coastal installation celebrating Love, Poetry and Landscape (produced by Artichoke, UK).

Pocket MFA completed with Frontier Poetry Los Angeles (online) June 2024.

Karyn’s poetry was exhibited at Darwin Contemporary Art Gallery Darwin Australia 1996, 1997 and 1998 and the Assisi International Contemporary Art Exhibition, Art Gallery Le Logge, Assisi, Italy, August 2024

In print:

Karyn’s poetry has appeared in various anthologies and poetry magazines including ‘La Mama Poetica’, Melbourne University of Australia Press; ‘a short story about getting lost’, Blurb Books; Northern Perspective, Northern Territory of Australia University Press; Children Australia, Cambridge University Press; ‘Textures 11’ Textures Publishing USA; ‘Landmark’ N.T Writers Centre and Northern Territory of Australia University Press and ‘Overland’ literary magazine, Sydney Australia.