John Abbate (b. 1970, Melbourne, Australia) completed a fine arts Bachelor degree (with Honors) in drawing at the Victorian College of the Arts, University of Melbourne, in 1999, before going on to complete the first PhD awarded by the University of Melbourne in a creative field (2004). Dr John Abbate has taught students at the Victorian College of the Arts and the Centre for Adult Education in Melbourne. He has written catalogue essays for numerous colleagues, and was an active member of the independent art collective, Ocular Lab Inc. He has exhibited work in Australia, New Zealand and Germany. He currently lives and works in Melbourne.