Chris Heaphy

Early life and education

Chris Heaphy was born in 1965 and is of Ngāi Tahu and European descent. He graduated from the Ilam school of Fine Arts in Canterbury, New Zealand in 1991 where he studied towards a BFA. In 1998, Heaphy completed a MFA in painting at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.

Over the years, Heaphy was granted several awards and fellowships, including: the Te Waka Toi Grant (1993), the Olivia Spencer Bower Residency (1995), the Research Grant Residency, the RMIT University (1998), the Creative New Zealand Grant (1999), and the Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin Residency, Champagne, France (2000–2001).

His career

Although Chris Heaphy remains concerned with cultural heritage and history, his style has changed over time. Whereas his earlier compositions are subdued in tones, his later work confronts the viewer to vibrant colours. Heaphy's compositions are complex. He introduces an array of motifs drawn from Maori and European iconography demonstrating his interest in cross-cultural exchanges as well as referring to his personal history.

His installation After the Big Bang (2003) formed the bridge between Heaphy's previous body of works and his more recent works included in his first solo exhibition Sea of Tranquility at Gow Langsford Gallery that demonstrated Heaphy's new collage-style of paintings which he had started exploring back in 2003. Heaphy stated that his work After the Big Bang: "... developed like an inventory of the symbols [he] had used earlier, and it was a continuation of the earlier wall paintings, however it was more about drawing with shadows. The new paintings are a continuation of those ideas."

Heaphy is interested in the "inevitable change or slippage of meaning of the symbol." According to Heaphy, these symbols represent his identity.

Heaphy's bicultural heritage continues to inform his work as seen with his recent exhibition Maukatere at Gow Langsford Gallery. The works in this exhibition presents the viewer with a mixture of Maori and Pakeha symbols brought together in colourful compositions.

In addition to his work as a visual artist, Heaphy is also a noted musician, collaborating with fellow guitarist Roy Montgomery on the album 'True'.

Selected exhibitions

Heaphy has gained national and international recognition through a variety of solo and group exhibitions across Australasia and Europe including:

Selected solo exhibitions

2009 Gallery Barry Keldoulis, Sydney, Australia Jonathan smart Gallery, Christchurch, New Zealand 2008 Daisy in my lazy eye, Plum Blossoms Gallery, Hong Kong Sea of Tranquility, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland, NZ 2007 The End of Nothing, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ 2005 Stereo, Michael Lett, Auckland, NZ After the Big Bang, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ 2004 Michael Lett, Auckland, NZ Stereo, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ 2003 Stereo, Michael Lett, Auckland, NZ 2002 Wonder works, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ 2001 New Works, Cite Gallery, Paris, France 2000 Wonder Works, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ

Selected group exhibitions

2008 Sacred XIV, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland, NZ 2007 Frieze Art Fair, London, Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York City 2006 Triple Candy, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ Turn Off The Century, Pataka Gallery, Porirui, NZ Group Exhibition, Jonathan Smart Gallery, Christchurch, NZ 2005 Ka Kino To Pounamu He Pounamu Onamata, Auckland Art Gallery, NZ Contexts: Being Bicultural in Contemporary Art, Hawke’s Bay Cultural Trust, Napier, NZ Michael Lett, Auckland, NZ 2004 Michael Lett Gallery stand, Melbourne Art Fair, Melbourne, Australia 2003 Changing times in painting, Conny Dietzschold Gallery, Sydney, Australia Slow Light, Curated by Wystan Curnow, Gus Fisher Gallery, University of Auckland, Auckland, NZ 2001 Painted Spaces, Australia Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Australia Parihaka, City Gallery, Wellington, NZ Accents Australians, Adamski Gallery, Paris, France Painted spaces, Auckland City Art Gallery, New Gallery, NZ