Newell Harry
Residency period
16 February – 17 April 2015
About
Newell Harry is an Australian-born artist of South African and French-Mauritian heritage. His work draws from a diverse range of interests and fields from anthropology, religion and cargo cults, to language, trade and economic notions of value, currency and exchange.
Harry holds an MFA (2004) and BFA (2000) from the college of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, Sydney. Selected exhibitions and biennials include: 2015 Venice Biennale (2015); 12th Istanbul Biennial (2011); 17th Biennale of Sydney (2010); 6th Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane (2010)
Focus
Subjectively, Newell Harry’s interests and work touch on diverse fields from religion and language, to the postcolonial impacts of trade and globalisation. An itinerant wanderer, his work is largely formed through a complex web of intercultural engagements bridging Australia’s east coast, the Vanuatu archipelago, South Asia, and his extended family’s home in Cape Town. These interests often culminate in installations drawing together a combination of media, generally unrestricted by any singular approach or application. Whilst in Singapore as an NTU CCA Artist-in-Residence, Harry looks at the under represented connections between the Cape Malay of South Africa and the Straits Malay linking these two histories to interchanges on the Malay Peninsula.
Public programmes
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Join NTU CCA Singapore Artist-in-Residence, Newell Harry in conversation with National Gallery Singapore, Senior Curator, Russell Storer. This talk will focus on Newell’s practice and touch upon his work during time spent engaging with Vanuatu.
Following the talk, Newell and fellow Artist-in-Residence, Bani Haykal have organised Artists for Vanuatu, a fundraising event for the Singapore Red Cross Vanuatu Appeal in response to the recent aftermath of Cyclone Pam that struck the island on 13 March 2015. The performance will bring together various music and art communities within Singapore and consists of music and improvised ensemble performances. Participants include: weish, Hell Low, Tim O’Dwyer, Erik Satay and the Kampong Arkestra.
Newell Harry‘s (Australia) work is largely formed through a complex web of intercultural engagements bridging Australia’s east coast, the Vanuatu archipelago, South Asia, and his extended family’s home in Cape Town. His work will be in All the World’s Futures, the 56th Venice Biennale exhibition curated by Okwui Enwezor.
Russell Storer (Australia) is Senior Curator at the National Gallery Singapore and former Head of Asian and Pacific Art at the Queensland Art Gallery / Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, Australia.
Bani Haykal (Singapore) is an artist working across sound and installation and has participated in festivals including Les Hivernales: Avignon (France), Media/Art Kitchen (Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia and Philippines) and Liquid Architecture (Singapore / Australia).