Chris Heaphy

b.1965, New Zealand (Ngāi Tahu)
Lives in Auckland, New Zealand

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Heaphy has created a substantial body of artwork. His visually and conceptually layered paintings examine themes of time, place, and memory, often tapping into the dynamic interaction of diverse cultural perspectives. His earlier paintings were often comprised of unified images constructed from a kaleidoscopic array of smaller symbols. More recently, Heaphy's paintings have been comparatively pared back, employing a handful of recurrent motifs rather than the dazzling imagistic mosaic of his earlier work.

To Heaphy, image and paintwork are physically and conceptually intertwined; the image is materially comprised of paint, and the conceptual meaning of the image is inseparable from how it has been painted. His work is dynamic and vibrantly colourful, yet it retains a sense of contemplative poise - a place of rest within a world of turbulence. He is perhaps best known for his symbolistic paintings, which incorporate a range of motifs including feathers, animals, and human figures, though has also produced several series of stunningly restrained abstract paintings. This demonstrates the visual and conceptual depth of his practice.

Heaphy is an artist of Māori and European descent, and themes of cultural identity are often present in his work. Heaphy attended Ilam School of Fine Art, University of Canterbury, graduating in 1991 with a BFA in painting. In 1998 he completed an MFA at RMIT University in Melbourne Australia. Heaphy has been successful in securing a number of grants and fellowships including Te Waka Toi grants in 1993 and 1994, the Olivia Spencer Bower Fellowship in 1995, two Creative New Zealand grants in 1999, and in 2000-2001 Heaphy undertook a residency at the Cite Internationale des Arts in Paris as well as the Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin Residency in Champagne in 2001. He has exhibited extensively throughout Australasia and Europe and his work is held in major public and private collections in New Zealand and abroad.

A publication on his works Chris Heaphy: Daisy in My Lazy Eye was published in 2008 (Plum Blossom, Hong Kong).

Gow Langsford Gallery has represented Chris Heaphy since 2008.