Brett Graham

Brett Graham (born 1967) is a New Zealand sculptor who creates large scale artworks and installations that explore indigenous histories, politics and philosophies. Of Ngāti Korokī Kahukura (Maori tribe) and Pakeha (European) descent, Graham was born in Auckland, New Zealand, where he currently resides.^[1]

His work embraces Maori and other indigenous people's histories, critiquing and exploring issues relating to cultural inequities of the past and present within New Zealand and the wider Pacific.^[2] "I think that his deep knowledge of customary Maori cultural practices is what gives his work its strength. This, combined with a practice which can speak to audiences at many different levels, is what makes his work resonant," said curator, writer, and researcher Candice Hopkins.^[3]

Graham is a Bachelor of Fine Arts (University of Auckland, 1988), a Master of Fine Arts (University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1991) and a Doctor of Fine Arts (University of Auckland, 2005).^[4]

Graham's work was included in the 2007 Venice Biennale, 2017 Honolulu Biennial, and in the Biennale of Sydney in both 2006 and 2010.^[5] The Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki (Auckland, New Zealand), the Honolulu Museum of Art, and the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (Wellington, New Zealand) are among the public collections holding work by Brett Graham.^[6]

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