Brett Ashby is a multidisciplinary artist, performer, presenter and author from Naarm, Australia. His boundless chameleon artistry across multimedia visual art, performative public art, and sound has framed Ashby as an prodigious figure in the experimental art world.
Ashby is recognisable for his unique methods of practice employing a skateboard as a tool to paint stemming from his public art exhibition defacing his van on Bondi Beach to employing famous faces into his aura painting practice including Sarah McLeod, Mick Harvey, Elvis Presley, Kurt Cobain, and Barack Obama (which is displayed in the White House). Along with participating in community public art commissions and engaging in residency programs with institutions including Pentridge Prison, Ashby has contributed to the artistic landscape through being the first Australian to exhibit at the world’s largest public art festival, Cube Art Fair in both Miami (Art Basel) and New York (Frieze Art), where he made groundbreaking strides in the NFT sphere with works Frequency and Always Neo, exhibited at Venezia Biennale, in 2022, Crypto Art Island, Gibraltar, The Other Art Fair in London, N.gym exhibition, Liechtenstein, EU, and was an award recipient in the Lift-Off Film Festival in Tokyo and Best Experimental Film, Moscow Russia International Film Festival.
In 2022, Ashby published his first book on Amazon, Yell At Me And I’ll Do It: Unlocking our hidden power and purpose, The art is therapy, which biographically explores Ashby’s cathartic artistic journey of art therapy as both a contemporary artist and a cancer survivor. His continued work in this domain drives his work within the art space and community space.
Artist Statement: International contemporary, public and performance artist.
Art has been my voice since I can remember. Better said, eternal by seeing the internal originating from eternity. To promote spiritual transformation in the area of Synchronicity both individually and system wide. Working towards a goal, I draw on experiences not only as an artist but also as a patient.
Truth, Self and Evolution for humanity.
-Contemporary mixed media artworks by Ashby explore frequency, energy and geometry. -Public murals by Ashby capture and communicate the internal voice of his pupils captured through community workshops.
-Performance action painting by Ashby is a spiritual process of striking the brush when encountering that moment of metamorphosing, like a pendulum while skateboarding.
These works harmonize the mind, body and soul to activate the inner creative in all- Oneness.
Contemporary public and performance artist, 15 years, Naarm, NY, LDN, MI, ZRH
Public Realm: As a professional artist since 2006 I have a wealth of knowledge to share, in the past 6 years I have been facilitating public artworks, talks and youth events across Australia. In doing this, I get results and share my art experience with all whom I come in contact with. In this instance, I feel traditional art techniques and new media techniques will be explored during my residency. The importance, in which I place on youth ownership and creative learning, will resonate with both pupil and staff member. I intend to build a partnership between teachers and students to create a sense of place and equal ownership within the School. My lessons will expose the teacher to new ways of creative thinking and I hope through examples of my art portfolio the students will gain a new perspective of traditional vs modern art. Art is a process, my work builds layers and the process I teach, is something everyone can take with them.
