Heather B. Swann | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1961 (age 64–65) Hobart, Tasmania |
| Education | University of Tasmania |
| Movement | Contemporary art |
Heather B. Swann (born 1961 in Hobart, Tasmania) is an Australian contemporary artist known for her expressive surrealist sculptural objects, alongside paintings, ink drawings and performance work.[1][2] Swann is interested in the human condition, ‘the intensity of emotions and passions, our deep longing, our desire, our sensuousness and our sensuality’.[3] She has received significant recognition for her work, which is held in prominent collections including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria and the Art Gallery of South Australia.[1]
Career
"My work is a way of holding on to the world. My sculptures and drawings are figurative and modernist in expression, with curved forms, an insistent use of black and a marked surrealist accent."[2]
Heather B. Swann has held over 20 solo exhibitions in commercial and public galleries since 1993.[1] Her work since 2020 has explored figures drawn from the mythology of Classical Greece, in particular the story of Leda and the Swan. With influences ranging from myth to science, emotion to world history, Swann's work engages with a poetics of intimacy, a dark and surreal presence that translates these atavistic instincts into material form.
Recognition, scholarship and awards
- Copyright Agency Commission, UNSW Galleries (2026)[4]
- Barbara Tribe Travelling Art Scholarship, Paris (2025)
- Setouchi Triennale Commission, with Nonda Katsalidis (2022)[5]
- Paul Guest Drawing Prize (2014) [6]
- Goddard Sapin-Jaloustre Scholarship, France (2005)
- Rosamund McCulloch Scholarship, University of Tasmania, Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris, France (1998)[1]
Selected Publications
- Heather B. Swann: Leda and the Swan (2022), Tarrawarra Museum of Art
- Heather B Swann: nervous / rhythm (2018), Michael Bugelli Publishing
Notable Exhibitions
- Wynne Prize (finalist), Art Gallery of New South Wales (2025) [1]
- Inner Sanctum, Adelaide Biennale of Contemporary Art, Art Gallery of South Australia (2024) [7]
- From the Other Side, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne (2023-2024) [8]
- The National 4: Heather B. Swann, Art Gallery of New South Wales (2023) [9]
- Leda and the Swan, Tarrawarra Museum of Art, Victoria (2021-2022) [10]
- Know my name: Australian women artists 1900 to now, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (2021 - 2022)[11]
- I LET MY BODY FALL INTO A RHYTHM, BuOY Arts Centre, Tokyo, Japan and The Ian Potter Museum of Art, Melbourne, Australia (2017-2018)
- Nervous, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (2017) [1]
- Banksia Men, 2016 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Magic Object, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (2016)[12]
- Paul Guest Drawing Prize, Bendigo Art Gallery, Bendigo (2014)[6]
- Solitaire, TarraWarra Museum of Art, Victoria (2014)
- Louise Bourgeois and Australian Artists, Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne (2012)
- Seven Things To Do In An Emergency, The British School at Rome, Rome (2011)
- Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize (finalist), Woollahra, Sydney (2007 & 2006)
- National Sculpture Prize and Exhibition, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra (2001)[1]
References
- "Heather B. Swann". Station Gallery. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- Joyce, Rebecca (14 November 2018). "Heather B Swann". Asialink. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- "Heather B. Swann: Wynne 2025". Art Gallery of New South Wales. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "nipaluna/Hobart-based artist Heather B. Swann awarded Copyright Agency Partnerships commission, in collaboration with UNSW Galleries". Copyright Agency. 2 October 2025. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "Place for sea dreamers". Setouchi Triennale. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "Paul Guest Prize 2014". Bendigo Art Gallery. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "Heather B. Swann: Inner Sanctum". 2024 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Inner Sanctum. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "From The Other Side". Australian Centre for Contemporary Art. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "Heather B. Swann". The National 4: Australian Art Now. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- "Heather B. Swann: Leda and the Swan". TarraWarra Museum of Art. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- "Heather B. Swann". National Gallery of Australia. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- "Heather B. Swann: Magic Object". 2016 Adelaide Biennial of Australian Art: Magic Object. 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2025.