About
Peter Westwood is an artist, curator and arts writer, and while he has worked in various media, his practice is primarily formed through a long-standing interest in painting. The effects of capriciousness or unpredictability in the experience of his artworks reveals ideas of unending transition, provoking reflections upon self, flux and permanence.
Peter considers a painting an immanent experience, as much an ‘event’ as a ‘thing’. And through ‘painting-ness’ coalescing with its imagery, his works appear to present a type of inexplicable cognizance, rather than a representation, imitation or affect. Generally, Peter’s work embodies the feeling of something that may only ever be alluded to visually.
Peter is represented by Blockprojects in Melbourne, Australia, and Boutwell Schabrowsky in Munich, Germany.
Biography
INDIVIDUAL EXHIBITIONS
| 2022 | What happened during the off season, Boutwell Schabrowsky Gallery, Munich, Germany Caught by surprise, a survey of recent work at Galerie der HBK, Hochschule für Bildende Künste Braunschweig, Germany |
| 2021 | Painting as a marker of change, RMIT SITE EIGHT Gallery, School of Art, RMIT University Melbourne, Australia |
| 2019 | What is the Story for Tomorrow? Boutwell Schabrowsky Gallery, Munich, Germany |
| 2017 | Afterall, NKN Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2015 | The Poor Hospital (passage and fate), Blockprojects Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2013 | Drive, Blindside ARI, Melbourne, Australia Staring back at the world, Boutwell Draper Gallery, Sydney, Australia |
| 2011 | Look out, Jenny Port Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2010 | Dieback, Jenny Port Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2009 | 48 Portraits, Jenny Port Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2006 | Hard Times, The Doll’s House, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2004 | Shape, Crossley and Scott Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Differences, Crossley and Scott Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1996 | Things that have happened, Temple Studio, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1995 | Fruit of the forest, School of Art, Monash University, Melbourne |
| 1992 | Procession, Powell Street Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1990 | Untitled (Paintings), Powell Street Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1989 | Assemblages, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1988 | Paintings, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1986 | Drawings, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
AWARDS, GRANTS AND RESIDENCIES
2022 | Artist residency: Hochschule für Bildende Künste Braunschweig (HBK), Braunschweig, Germany |
| 2016 | Major prize award: 2016 Bayside Acquisitive Art Prize |
| 2014 | Artist residency: LIA - The Leipzig International Art Program, Germany |
| 2012 | Project Grant: City of Melbourne |
| 2010 | Artist residency: East China Normal University, Shanghai, PR China |
| 2002 | Curatorial residency: Crossing: New Art from Australia, an exhibition of contemporary Australian art, UIAH, Helsinki University Finland. |
EDUCATION
2021 | PhD, School of Art, RMIT University |
| 2003 | Certificate IV, School of Education, RMIT University |
| 1995 | Master of Arts Research, School of Art, Monash University |
| 1982 | Graduate Diploma in Education, School of Education, University of Melbourne |
| 1981 | Graduate Diploma of Fine Art, School of Art, RMIT University |
| 1976 | Diploma of Fine Art, School of Art, Ballarat College of Advanced Education |
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
| 2022 | All you need is love, Shau Fenster, Berlin, Germany. Curated by Berthe Bosse and Thomas Rentmeister |
| 2021 | 2021 Geelong Contemporary Art Prize (finalist), Geelong Art Gallery, Geelong, Australia |
| 2020 | How Soon is Now, Blockprojects Gallery, Melbourne, Australia The new ab/normal, RMIT Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. Curated by Dr Tammy Hulbert & Helen Rayment |
| 2019 | Spring 1883 Art Fair, Blockprojects Gallery, Sydney, Australia |
| 2018 | Spring 1883 Art Fair, Blockprojects Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Group show, Boutwell Schabrowsky Gallery, Munich, Germany |
| 2017 | B-Side, Blindside ARI, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2016 | Painting, More Painting, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Australia. Exhibition curated by Max Delany (Artistic Director), Annika Kristensen and Hannah Mathews. Artist Talk in conjunction with Gareth Samson. Finalist: 2016 Calleen Art Award, Cowra Regional Art Gallery, Australia Finalist: 2016 Bayside Acquisitive Art Award, Bayside Arts and Cultural Centre, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2015 | The Door in the Wall, curated by Verity Hayward and Lucie McIntosh, Blindside ARI, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2014 | Head: Incidents Above a Bar (part 4), curated by Louise Paramor and Lisa Young, The Alderman, Melbourne, Australia Asteroid, Winter Spinnerei 2014, Leipzig International Artist in Residence Program (LIA), Spinnerei Arts Complex, Leipzig, Germany |
| 2013 | Reading the Space: Contemporary Australian Drawing #3, New York Studio School, New York, USA |
| 2012 | A place to eat from, Michael Jäger Collection, Atelier Dorrit Nebe, Cologne, Germany People … ahh People, Gallery Mesh, Seoul, South Korea; curator Mihwa Park The Rick Amor Drawing Prize, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia Contemporary Australian Drawing #2: drawing as notation, text and discovery, University of Arts London, UK; 120 Langford Street, Melbourne; curator Dr Irene Barberis |
| 2011 | Crossing the Line: Drawing in the Middle East, intersections of understanding, Gallery Tashkeel & American University United Arab Emirates (UAE). An exhibition involving the work of six artists from Australia, six artists from the UK and eight artists from the United Arab Emirates, curated by Princess Shiekha Latifa and Dr Irene Barberis, Dubai Australian Art of the 1970’s. The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia |
| 2010 | 2010: How can a Network…..? The South Project, curator Zara Stanhope, West Wing (part of the program of West Space Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 1918 ArtSPACE, No,20 Moganshan Rd, Shanghai, PR China Winter, Jenny Port Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 2010 Beleura National Works on Paper (invitation), Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, Mornington, Australia Magnetic Islands, Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University – a joint survey of contemporary drawing from Seoul University and RMIT University – project component of the international Drawing Out Conference conducted by RMIT University and the University of Arts London, Melbourne, Australia Distinction, 99 Creative Centre, Shanghai University Academy of Fine Arts, M50 Moganshan Lu Arts Complex; curator Song Kexi; writer/theorist Qui Min., Shanghai, PR China |
| 2009 - 10 | The Shilo Project, curator Dr Chris McAuliffe. The Ian Potter Museum of Art, the University of Melbourne, Australia Imagine, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia |
| 2008 | The Mars Project, Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2007 | Eye to ‘I’ - the self in recent art, curator Geoff Wallis. The Art Gallery of Ballarat. NETS touring exhibition: Warrnambool Art Gallery, Hamilton Art Gallery, Australia |
| 2006 | Robert Jacks Drawing Prize, Bendigo Regional Gallery, Bendigo, Australia The men’s gallery, curator, Rebecca Mayo. The Doll’s House, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2003 | Group Show 2, Crossley and Scott Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2002 | Group Show, Crossley and Scott Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 2001 | 31st Alice Prize, Araluen Arts Centre, Alice Springs, Australia Mediations, curator, David Harley. Mass Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1997 | The Sulman Prize, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia |
| 1996 | Superstar, Billboard project funded by Arts Victoria, Melbourne, Australia A Centre of Culture, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia |
| 1992 | Scotchmans Hill Art Prize, Geelong Regional Gallery, Geelong, Australia |
| 1991 | Painting, Powell Street Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1989 | The ICI contemporary exhibition, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, and then to Regional Galleries in Victoria and NSW, Australia Decadence–10 years of 200 Gertrude Street, 200 Gertrude Street, Melbourne, Australia Adelaide Festival, The Living Arts Centre, Adelaide, Australia New Work, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Reconnaissance, Launceston Community Arts Centre, Launceston, Australia |
| 1988 | New Work, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1987 | New Work, Reconnaissance Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Young Australians, inaugural exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria; traveled to State and Regional galleries in Australia and a range of museums in the USA The Golden Shibboleth, 200 Gertrude Street, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1985 | Acquisitions for the Michell Collection, Melbourne University Gallery, Melbourne The McCaughey Prize (invitation), National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1983 | The New Art: works from the Michell Endowment, Banyul, National Gallery of Victoria annex, Melbourne, Australia |
| 1979 | Still life still lives, Visual Arts Board traveling exhibition; inaugural exhibition at the The Art Gallery of Ballarat. Regional galleries traveling exhibition in Victoria and NSW, Australia Michell Endowment, inaugural exhibition, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia Some Recent Art of the Ballarat Region, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, Australia |
REPRESENTATION IN PERMANENT PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
| Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat. Painting Collection and the Prints and Drawing Collection, Australia |
| Art Bank, Sydney, Australia. |
| Auckland Art Gallery / Toi O Tamaki, Auckland, New Zealand. |
| Bayside City Council Art & Heritage Collection, Melbourne, Australia. Geelong Art Gallery, Geelong, Australia. |
| National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), Melbourne, Australia. Works included in the Painting Collection (Shell Collection and the Michelle Endowment Collection) and the Prints and Drawing Collection. |
| RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. |
| Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia. |
| Wollongong City Gallery, Wollongong, Australia. |
BIBLIOGRAPHY (texts about the artist's creative practice)
Harding, L., (2022) All of this is true, most of it happened. Some thoughts on Peter Westwood’s Caught by Surprise, catalogue essay, Galerie der HBK, Hochschule für Bildende Künste Braunschweig, Germany
Cox, S., and Powles, J., (2019) What is the Story for Tomorrow?, catalogue essay, Boutwell Schabrowsky Gallery, Munich, Germany.
Cox, S., (2017) Afterall, catalogue essay, NKN Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Delany, M., (2016) Painting, More Painting, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Australia. Contributing authors: Jan Bryant, Hannah Matthews, Justin Paton, Quentin Sprague
Powles, J., (2015) The Poor Hospital (passage and fate), NKN Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 2015
Accompanying poem Heel by Paul Carter, 2015
Cox, S., (2013) The Waiting Places, Catalogue essay accompanying the exhibition Staring back at the world, Boutwell Draper Gallery, Sydney, Australia.
Powles, J., (2010) An order of sorts, Online essay accompanying the exhibition Dieback, Melbourne, Australia.
Song, K. and Qui, M., (2010) Distinction, Shanghai University Academy of Fine Arts. Shanghai, PR China.
McAuliffe, C., (2009) The Shilo Project, The Ian Potter Museum of Art, the University of Melbourne. ISBN: 978-0-7340-4146-3
Wallace, G., (2007) Eye to "I" - the self in recent art, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Australia.
Zahra, L., (2005) Rhapsody 21C, ch. (essay) Artist Curator Academic, University of Tasmania Press, Australia.
Lindsay, R., (1995) The Shell Collection of Contemporary Australian Art, Shell Company of Australia Ltd., Melbourne, Australia.
Lindsay, R., (1989) ICI Contemporary Exhibition, ICI Australia Ltd, Melbourne, Australia.
Lindsay, R., (1987) Young Australians, Budget Transport Collection, Melbourne, Australia.
Lindsay, R., (1987) The Golden Shibboleth, Gertrude Contemporary, Melbourne, Australia.
Radford, R., (1979) Still Life Still Lives, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Australia.
Radford, R., (1978) Some Recent Art of the Ballarat Region, The Art Gallery of Ballarat, Australia.
BIBLIOGRAPHY (writing and curating)
Westwood, P. (2022) When we slow down …. Catalogue essay accompanying the work of Charlotte Acklin, Boutwell Shabrowsky, Munich, Germany.
Westwood, P. (2021) Spaces of wordless immediacy. Catalogue essay accompanying the work of Jordan Grant, Blockprojects Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P. (2021) The space of translation. Catalogue essay accompanying the work of Jonah Gebka, Boutwell Schabrowsky, Munich, Germany.
Westwood, P., (2019) Sightings within the whole shebang. Catalogue essay accompanying the work of Jarryd Cooper, Blockprojects Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2018) Wonderlust, curatorial project and catalogue essay, BUS Projects, Melbourne, Australia. Artists include: Georgia Biggs, David Palliser, Julia Powles, Isabel Turner.
Westwood, P., (2017) The colour, the shape, NKN Gallery, Melbourne, Australia. Curatorial project involving the work of Georgia Biggs, David Harley, Melinda Harper, Michael Jaeger, Julia Powles, Antonia Sellbach and Isabel Turner. Exhibition text by Steve Cox.
Westwood, P., (2016) Bus Stop, (extended version) essay published in Michael Wegerer – Bouncing Borders (monograph) University of Applied Arts Vienna Press, Birkhäuser Verlag, Vienna / Berlin.
Westwood, P., (2016) Our ideal world, catalogue essay accompanying the work of Jordan Grant, (ed) Eric Nash, curator, Perc Tucker Regional Gallery, Townsville, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2015) The personal thing, catalogue essay accompanying the work of Melinda Harper, Julia Powles and Nyah Cornish, NKN Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2014) Future Strategies: The New Art Alumni, curatorial project and catalogue essay. Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University Melbourne, Australia. 2014
Westwood, P., (2013) Crowded out. An essay accompanying the work of Matthew Berka for the project My House is too Small, curated by Julia Powles. This project involved an artist residency project supported by Arts Victoria. Artists: Matthew Berka, Jessie Bullivant, Andrew McQualter, Simone Slee, Carolyn Eskdale and CJ Conway. Other writers: Russell Grigg, Carolyn Barnes, Alastair Phillips, Hannah Mathews and Dunja Rmandić. Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2013) The struggle is enough … , catalogue essay accompanying the work of Ryan Wilson for the exhibition Your father’s brother Robert, Kings Artist Run Initiative, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., Not too close, not too far, catalogue essay discussing the work of Lim Dong Seung for the exhibition On Familiar Things, Lee C Gallery (Seoul Korea). 2012
Westwood, P., (2011) Hivemind, catalogue essay discussing the work of Raphael Buttonshaw, Tyler Clark, Dylan Hammond, Daniel Stojkovich. The School of Art Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) The Proposition, catalogue essay discussing the work of Boe-lin Bastian, CJ Conway, Ed McAleice and Sean Crossley, The School of Art Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Powles, J., & Westwood, P., (2010) Can this be a painting? Catalogue essay discussing the work of Michael Jäger (Germany), Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) Desire and what you end up doing. Bringing fiction into reality: Who are you talking to, me? Catalogue essay discussing the work of Barbara Kapusta (Austria), Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) The moment where you think that that’s all it takes … Catalogue essay discussing the work of Julia Powles for the exhibition Dancing Without Lessons, BLINDSIDE, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) Representation in the meaning of a metaphor for a forest as endoscopy / links between locations, curatorial project, installation and catalogue text involving the work of Hoang Duong Cam (Vietnam). Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) Like No Place Known, collaborative curatorial exhibition project and catalogue essay with Katarina Frank. Works by Kieran Boland (Australia), Cecilia Darle (Sweden), Gunilla Hansson (Sweden). Patrick Nilsson (Sweden), Jin Shan (PR China) Andreas Soma (Sweden). Project component of the international Drawing Out Conference conducted through RMIT University and the University of Arts London. The School of Art Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2010) Bus Stop, (version 1) catalogue essay discussing the work of Michael Wegerer (Austria), Künstlerhaus Vienna, Austria. Multiple Matters - Grafische Konzepte, (eds) Wojcech Krywoblocki and Georg Lebzelter, Künstlerhaus, Vienna, Austria. ISBN 978-3-900926-85-4
Westwood, P., (2009) The city lost in snow, catalogue essay discussing the work of Katarina Frank (Sweden/UK), Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2009) Man in the Cold, catalogue essay discussing the work of Godwin Bradbeer for the exhibition Portraits in Exile, Ardel Gallery of Modern Art, Bangkok, Thailand.
Westwood, P., Things that remain, curatorial project, installation and catalogue text. Works by Steve Cox, Jess Crowe, Julia Powles, Greg Pryor and Leonie Zylberberg, Jenny Port Gallery, (Melbourne, Australia), 2008
Westwood, P., (2008) The World in Painting, curatorial advisor and contributing writer to the catalogue essay discussing the work of Lê Quôc Viêt (Vietnam) for the exhibition project The World in Painting, (ed) Zara Stanhope, Heide Museum of Modern Art Melbourne, Australia. Regional galleries traveling exhibition.
Westwood, P., (2007) An obvious problem, catalogue essay discussing the work of Jan Svenungsson (Sweden) and Katrin von Maltzahn (German) for the dual exhibition project A Place on Earth & Tracking and Jorge Luis Borges visited Melbourne for 10 days; School of Art Gallery. RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2007) The brain hand thing, catalogue essay discussing the work of David Palliser for the exhibition Imagine…the creativity shaping our culture, (ed.) Zara Stanhope, Heide Museum of Modern Art (Melbourne, Australia), 2006.
Westwood, P., (2005) One another’s otherworld, Curatorial project installation and catalogue text, at the invitation of the French Cultural Centre, Melbourne. Featuring the works of Laetitia Bourget (France), Philippe Charles (France), Steve Cox, Sanné Mestrom, Dominic Redfern, Philip Samartzis, Ania Walwicz and Louiseann Zahra. Alliance Française de Melbourne (French Cultural Centre / Alliance Francaise), Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2005) Various Presence: the human spaces in new technology. Curatorial project, installation and catalogue text, Shanghai International Science and Art Exposition, China, 2005. Featuring the works of Mark Burry, Martine Corompt, Ho Sui Kee, Nicole Jaquard, Lyndall Jones, Dominic Redfern, Philip Samartzis, Daniel Von Sturmer, Christian Bumbarra Thompson, Jason Wade, Yandell Walton. Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2004) Siblings. Two concurrent curatorial projects with accompanying catalogue text titled Similarities and differences. Featuring the work of Loretta Quinn and Paul Quinn, Fiona Mc Monagle, and Tim McMonagle, Project Space and Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2004) Beyond horizons / Horisonttien takana, curatorial project, and catalogue essay referring to the work of environmental artist Markku Hakuri (Finland). Faculty Gallery, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2004) The Drawing Room, curatorial project and catalogue essay, titled Insideout, accompanying an installation work by John Kelly. Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2003) Benjamin Armstrong and Katherine Huang, curatorial project and exhibition text (text drawing / poster). Works by Benjamin Armstrong and Katherine Huang. Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2003) Crossing: New Art from Australia, curatorial project with catalogue essay. Works by Adam Bunny, Linda Erceg, Fiona Foley, Peter Graham, Katherine Huang, Dianne Jones, Tim McMonagle, Vera Möller, David Noonan and Simon Trevaks, and Christian Bumbarra Thompson. Lume Gallery, UIAH (University of Art and Design), Helsinki, Finland.
Westwood, P., (2002) David Potter, curatorial project (posthumous exhibition) and catalogue essay, Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2001) Berenice’s Hair /Bereniken Hiukset. Exhibition catalogue with curator Leena Lohiniva. Rovaniemi Museum, Finland and Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (2000) Seen something more, curatorial project and catalogue essay.
Works by Tim McMonagle and David Palliser. Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
Westwood, P., (1999) rubik 10 – are you experienced, catalogue essay discussing the work of Tim McMonagle. The Physics Room, Christchurch New Zealand.
Westwood, P., (1999) The trouble with Harry, curatorial project and catalogue essay. Works by Judith Duquemin, Diena Georgetti and Daniel Noonan. Project Space and Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia.
© Peter Westwood 2020