Will Bennett (b.1994, Ngāmotu New Plymouth) is a Pākehā artist based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. His colourful and dreamlike paintings draw upon his own personal experiences and ongoing interests - weaving ideas of ancestry, history, landscape, place and folklore into visual references that range from the representation of Anglo-Saxon figures of his own ancestral past to the Tuna that are present in the waterways of Aotearoa. These varying subjects often lead to a surreal quality, merging aspects of differing historical timelines and landscapes – resulting in paintings that feel both familiar and otherworldly. Bennett holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from Whiti o Rehua School of Art, Massey University.
Bennett has had several solo and group exhibitions across Aotearoa. Recent exhibitions include: Community (Envy6011, 2023) Fauxktales (Twentysix, 2023), The bush points back (Kingsroy, 2022), The Right Place? (Auckland Art Fair), Polyester Soldiers Stitch Witches, Always Forever Now, Summer Selection and One (Jhana Millers Gallery, 2019-2021); Burnt Bridge (Anderson Rhodes Gallery, 2019); and Gone with Makura (Precinct 35, 2017). Bennett was a finalist in the Adam Portrait Award at the New Zealand Portrait Gallery in 2014.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS2023
Fauxktales, Twentysix Gallery, Wellington, NZ
2022
The Bush Points Back, Kingsroy, New Plymouth, NZ
2020
Polyester Soldiers Stitch Witches, Jhana Millers Gallery, Wellington, NZ
2019
Always Forever Now, Millers O’Brien Gallery, Wellington, NZ
Burnt Bridge, Anderson Rhodes Gallery, New Plymouth, NZ
2017
Gone with Makura, Precinct 35, Wellington, NZ
2016
Gatherings, Kina Gallery, New Plymouth, NZ
2015
Address to Now, Whanganui Arts Centre, Whanganui, NZ
GROUP EXHIBITIONS2023
Community, Envy6011, Wellington, NZ
2021
The Right Place?, Auckland Art Fair, Jhana Millers Gallery
Summer Collection, Jhana Millers Gallery, Wellington, NZ
2019
ONE, Millers O’Brien Gallery, Wellington, NZ
The Garden, Precinct 35, Wellington, NZ
2018
xmas’ 18, PG gallery192, Christchurch, NZ
do you want to keep dreaming?, Tacit Gallery, Hamilton, NZ
2017
dark works, hung low, Space Gallery, Whanganui, NZ
2016
Exposure, Massey Campus, Wellington, NZ
We’re Not Dead, Wellington CBD, NZ
2014
Adam’s Portrait Awards, National Portrait Gallery, NZ
Connections, Percy Thomson Gallery, Stratford, NZ
EDUCATION2016
BFA (First Class Hons), Whiti o Rehua School of Art, Massey University, Wellington
AWARDS2016
Space Studio & Gallery National Emerging Artist Award
2014
Adam’s Portrait Awards, Finalist, WellingtonDownloadable CV here
