Kate Breakey (Australian, b.1957) is a Contemporary artist best known for her hand-colored photographs of birds, flowers, animals, and insects. Born in South Australia, Breakey moved to Austin, TX, in 1988, and received an MFA from the University of Texas in 1991, where she also served as a professor of photography until 1998. A year later, she relocated to Tuscon, AZ, where she currently lives and works.

Breakey begins with a photographic image, adding transparent layers of oil paint and pencil. She has also used photograms, placing an object onto a sheet of photosensitive paper and exposing it to light, creating bright, "shadow" images against black backgrounds. Her photographs have been featured in publications, including Small Deaths, Painted Light, and Slowlight.

Breakey’s work is held in many public collections, including the Australian National Gallery in Canberra, the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson, the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego, the Austin Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Wittliff Galley of Southwestern & Mexican Photography. In 2004, she received the Photographer of the Year Award from the Houston Center for Photography.