Virtual Tour: Venice Biennale

A virtual tour of Francis Upritchard's Venice Biennale exhibition, presented by her co-curator Heather Galbraith.

The installation Save Yourself includes clusters of figures situated on table-like wooden platforms extending out from the base of giant antique mirrors within the Fondazione Claudio Buziol, overlooking the Grand Canal, in the Palazzo Mangilli-Valmarana.

Each grouping occupies an imaginary landscape which exists in an indeterminate historical period.

The figures populating these fantasy scenes are detailed with a psychedelic surface and a handmade quality. They are searchers, dreamers, dancers; consumed by their acts of meditation or lost in reverie.  

The official preview exhibition openings for the NZ aritsts at the 53rd Venice Biennale will be on Thursday 4 June in Venice (Friday 5 June NZ Time). You can see more at www.nzatvenice.com or follow the daily blog here.

Francis Upritchard bio 

Francis Upritchard is a New Zealand born artist living in London. She has exhibited extensively in Aotearoa New Zealand, Europe and America since graduating from Canterbury University's Ilam School of Fine Arts in 1997. In 2006 Francis Upritchard was the winner of the Walters Prize.

In 2007-08 Francis Upritchard took up a three month residency at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery resulting in the exhibition rainwob I before participating in a residency at Artspace in Sydney where she presented rainwob II.

Upritchard has maintained a regular exhibiting profile in New Zealand, and returns regularly to make new work. In addition to co-running The Bart Wells Institute, a gallery she co-founded with Luke Gottelier, Upritchard has curated a number of group exhibitions in London and New Zealand. The artist's book Human Problems, with text by Hari Kunzru was published by Kate MacGarry and Veenman Publishers in 2006 and Every Colour By Itself, designed by Abake, launched in April 2009.

Video supplied by Creative New Zealand, Filmed by BlueBach Productions.