Brett Ramon a'Court | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 March 1968 Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Education | Glendowie College |
| Occupation | Artist |
| Known for | Painting |
| Spouse | Rachel a'Court |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | http://www.brettacourt.com/ |
Brett a'Court (born 1968) is a New Zealand artist who has lived and painted in Waipu, Northland since 1995, and exhibits regularly in New Zealand, including 12 solo exhibitions between 2002 and 2024. His work can be found in both private and public collections throughout the country.
A'Court was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 1968, and went to school in the Auckland suburb of Glendowie. He moved to rural, coastal Waipu in 1995 after he married, and worked in ceramics and painted, mostly in oils. [1] [2]
A'Court's first solo show was called Lectio Divina, and was exhibited at the Letham Gallery, in Ponsonby, Auckland in 2002. It sold well and he left his ceramics job to paint full time. [1]
A'Court struggled financially for the next four years. He said as a Christian he trusted in God, and channelled his fears and sacrifices into his work. Influenced by Colin McCahon's major works, Renaissance icons and other iconography, a'Court looked at the human figure and beyond to our "spiritual anatomy", he sold some pieces, and created his second solo exhibition, Lingua Sacra, shown at a former church hall in the Parnell Community Centre, Auckland in 2006. The work was noted for its darkness and theme of sexuality colliding with the spiritual. [1] [3]
Some art galleries and reviewers struggled with the sexual Christian content and complexity of a'Court's 2008 Do Not Fear solo show at the Wallace Gallery, Auckland. Others were more comfortable with the simpler, contemporary Christian mysticism found in his 2008 Beyond the religious image show, also at the Wallace Gallery. In this work a'Court sought to extend the "spiritual truths" he saw uncovered by McCahon. [1] [4]
A'Court's 2007 oil on canvas, Manu-Kahu, referring to the New Zealand harrier hawk which is connected to the divine by Māori, received praise for combining traditional European-style Christian imagery with Māori indigenous forms and McCahon-style speech bubbles. [5]
In 2018, his first Northland solo show, Sheep, goats and other introduced spirits, at Whangārei's Hangar Gallery, a'Court continued his complex blending of Christian iconography with his life as a contemporary, rural Pākehā New Zealander, depicting the land, colonisation, introduced animals, human anatomy, and the tradition of vanitas. [6]
A'Court was runner-up and winner of the Hugo Charitable Trust Award in Waikato Museum's 2021 National Contemporary Art Award, for Rua Kēnana and Pinepine Te Rika’s descent from Mt Maungapōhatu, which depicts the historical Māori prophet Rua Kēnana and his wife Pinepine Te Rika at the sacred mountain in Te Urewera. [7] [8]
In his 2022 solo show, Shadow of the Epiphany, also at the Hangar Gallery, a'Court continued to explore Christian mysticism and iconography, incorporating his research into the histories of Māori prophets from the Taranaki region's Ringatu and Ratana movements, and others. Many of the works were painted on stretched woollen blankets, which reference British colonisation's "disease, infestation, inequity, technology, trade, but also warmth and comfort". [9]
A’Court’s 2024 solo exhibition Kings, Saints and Prophets – Kingi, Hunga, Tapu me nga Poropiti was made up of 11 woollen blanket portraits of historic Māori prophets and leaders, and explored their inner lives that were shaped by traditional and Christian principles, and their service to people through peace, love and reconciliation. [10]
A'Court has lived at his home studio in Waipu, with his wife Rachel, since they married in 1995. They have two children. [1] [11]