HEATHER B. SWANN
b. 1961, AustraliaHeather B. Swann has established a formidable reputation as a maker of sculptural objects and ink drawings of dark, sensual and fantastic presence. With influences ranging widely across themes and imagery drawn from museum culture, history, mythology and natural science, Swann works outwards from the poetics of intimate sensation, emotion and thought. She is closely engaged with both the eternal present of perception and her own world of feeling, as well as making allu- sion to the particular crises of our troubled times. Her project is the translation of such fleeting phenomenological observations into form. Swann’s figurative reflexes often produce images of human or animal bodies, semblances of life kinked by surrealist convulsion and an instinct for abstraction.
In addition to presenting more than twenty solo shows since 1993, Heather has had work included in numerous significant curated group exhibitions, including; 18th Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Inner Sanctum, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (2024); From the other side, Austral- ian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne (2023-2024); NGV Triennial, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2023); The National 4: New Australian Art, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney (2023); Know My Name: Australian Women Artists 1900 to Now, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (2021); Magic Object: Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (2016); and Streetwise: contemporary print culture, National Gallery of Aus- tralia, Canberra (2015). Her work is held in many private and public collections. In 2022, Swann was commissioned, in collaboration with Nonda Katsalidis, to create a permanent public artwork Place for Sea Dreamers for the Setouchi Triennale, Japan.
Courtesy STATION
Works at STATION
Recently Exhibited
Exhibiting Elsewhere
Explore and Follow Artists Shaping Contemporary Art
A respected voice in contemporary art discourse.
Focusing on ambitious storytelling and insightful art-world commentary. Ocula Magazine publishes in-depth interviews, critical essays and timely analysis on the artists, exhibitions and ideas driving the global art world.
Learn more about Ocula Magazine
Showcasing the best of the art world.
Ocula partners with galleries from around the world to highlight their artists, artworks and exhibitions. Gallery membership is by application and invitation, with each member vetted by an independent panel.
Learn more about Ocula Membership
Specialises in the sale of major artworks.
Led by a team with deep ties to the world’s leading auction houses, galleries and collectors. Ocula’s advisory team offers bespoke services to high-net-worth clients from around the world who are looking to acquire the best of contemporary and modern art.
Learn more about our team and services