Robert Kerr

Born and educated in London, where I trained as a professional photographer, I specialised in portraiture, fashion and commercial photography, as well as cinematography for over a decade before relocating to Auckland, New Zealand. I was always fascinated by the tactile nature of darkroom processes and the alchemy of the pre-digital photographic process, however, I reluctantly moved away from photography and film in the early 90s feeling, in retrospect, that perhaps I had left a job unfinished. of acrylic paint on canvas enabled me to maintain my interest in the arts and visual media, and I began to find immense personal satisfaction and fulfilment in painting and small-scale furniture making. I found myself able to express myself through use of colour and shape in both disciplines. I suppose it was inevitable that my painting and my previous life as a photographer would eventually collide, and I found my early training to be invaluable. Expression through colour and composition, and their application to modern society inform a lot of the work I do. Some images are combinations of those we all experience on a day to day basis, worked and reworked to form a personal yet immediately recognisable statement, other images, however, appear as if from nowhere, all part of the mysterious process we call art. The idea of reflecting the world we live in and contemporary life is the purpose of the images I create. We live in a time where we are bombarded with visual stimuli, including some of the most iconic and beautiful art of the last century. I hope to create an ever-changing collection of works that enable us to take the best and most positively stimulating images into our homes, to reflect our society and enable people to create a portrait of their modern lives.