Photo Credit: Enzo Tomasiello

In The Studio: Enter the hyper-pop painting world of Chris Duffy aka Ha Ho Art

Classic pop culture moments and figures get a makeover with Chris Duffy's displays.

If you’re from Bendigo, you’re well aware of Chris Duffy’s work. The artist behind creative studio Ha Ho Art brings pop culture to the forefront with his kaleidoscopic pop art paintings. With large-scale murals covering landscapes across the region, Duffy has developed a unique, attention grabbing practice.

In our new series, In The Studio, we take you into space of Victorian creators, unpacking their craft and getting comfortable in their creative zones. Join us as we enter the studio with Chris Duffy.

Keep up to date with all things arts, exhibitions and stage here.

In The Studio with Chris Duffy of Ha Ho Art

 

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A post shared by Chris Duffy (@ha_ho_art)

Please give us an overview of the work you create.

Pop art style acrylic paintings that mix old-school, hand-painted techniques with digital design, working on canvas, murals, walls, MDF board, and shaped cutouts that can give my work more depth and impact. I’m drawn to retro nostalgia, pop-culture icons and corporate critique, twisting the familiar with humour, irony, and a bit of bite. For me, pop art is just a tool — something instantly recognisable and easy to grab onto but I use it to smuggle in commentary and hidden layers that tell a bigger story.

How long have you been developing your arts practice?

Since going to Benalla TAFE in 1996

How did you discover your passion for art?

As a kid growing up in the East End of London, I used to ‘wag’ school by staying on the bus and spending the day wandering around the national galleries. I’m not sure why I felt the need to hang out in art museums, or even what art really was! But the sheer scale of the paintings — and even more, the smell of antique oil paint and varnish — had me hooked. I knew it must mean something, even if I didn’t quite know what. I’m still not entirely sure, to be honest, but it’s been a lifelong quest ever since.

What have been the biggest milestones in your arts career to date?

I’ve been really lucky these past few years, hitting a few milestones along the way. If I had to pick one, it would be a recent large paste-up mural for the City of Bendigo, celebrating the native flora and fauna of the area and spelling out the word LOVE. The fact they let me do it on a heritage-listed wall is just bonkersly cool! I feel incredibly privileged to have been the only artist allowed to do that in Bendigo — twice now.

 

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A post shared by Chris Duffy (@ha_ho_art)

What is your favourite artwork or series that you have created and why? Please describe the work!

My current work for sure! I am creating a Pop Art Supermarket & Glitchenstein series while diving into the chaos of consumer culture. I twist familiar logos, packaging, and pop-culture icons with bold colours, glitchy distortions, and graphic exaggeration — like digitally Frankenstein-ing Roy Lichtenstein with the everyday objects and pop culture iconography. They are playful, chaotic, and ironic, the work uses humour and tension to make people stop, look, and think about the mass-consumption world we live in. Sometimes, though, they are just random mash-ups for the sake of randomness — something I like to call randomnessnessism!

What has been the biggest challenge you face as an artist and how are you pushing through that barrier (if you can!)?

The biggest challenge has always been financial sustainability! Quality paints and canvas are so expensive, sometimes they have to replace food — which is also ridiculously pricey these days. I wish I knew how to be better at making money from my art, but I’m just not built that way… the business side has never been my strong suit and is probably best kept out of the studio. And, honestly, staying relevant as I get older is always at the back of my mind — the kids do it so much better! I feel like a dinosaur sometimes… lol.

 

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A post shared by Chris Duffy (@ha_ho_art)

Where has your work been, or is your work currently, displayed?

Right now, I’ve just embarked on a new gallery adventure as part of an artist-in-residence collective at Valentines Antiques in Bendigo. I’m also preparing for a solo show at CASPA Gallery in Castlemaine called Pop Art Supermarket, while hopefully painting plenty of murals to keep the bills paid. Through it all, I aim to keep making work that’s colourful, ironic, and energetic — a little bit cheeky, but always honest.

Tell us about your studio space!

I’m about to move into a new studio after the Bendigo Open Studios weekend! For me, a functional and inspiring studio always needs north-facing windows to my left and walls plastered with my own artworks — old and new — to influence the pieces I’m working on.

 

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A post shared by Chris Duffy (@ha_ho_art)

What does a typical day of creating art look like for you both in the studio and out of the studio?

My routine varies too much from day to day to be specific, but I do try to paint or draw in Procreate every day. Murals take precedence over everything else until they’re finished.

How would you characterise the arts ecosystem in regional Victoria? 

If you don’t have commercial gallery representation in Melbourne or another major city, or you’re not willing to play the art funding game, there’s a huge risk of being overlooked here in regional Victoria. Artists need financial support — it’s as simple as that. Despite these challenges, through community engagement and individual creativity, regional Victoria continues to cultivate a rich and diverse cultural landscape.

How has being based in regional Victoria elevated your arts practice?

I’ve been really lucky since moving back to Bendigo from the Bellarine Coast. The City of Greater Bendigo has thrown me a bone or three almost every year, which is great — not just for the financial support, but for getting my name out there. A major plus is I love living here in Bendigo!

 

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A post shared by Chris Duffy (@ha_ho_art)

What does the rest of 2025 look like for you as a creator? 

Very busy with so much going on and spilling into 2026 that I have started to look for a regular assistant to join Team Ha Ho!

Where can we find you?

I tend to share most on Instagram @Ha_Ho_Art

Sometimes being an artist rocks but then sometimes it sucks! The trick is to just keep making art and not worry about what others are doing or think.