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Biography                                                                                                          
 
1946 Born in the Hague, The Netherlands. A sixth generation artist. As a child, Robčrt lived in the studios of Mesdag which were connected to the Panorama Mesdag Museum.
1963 to '65 Studied at the Free Academy of Arts, the Hague, The Netherlands.
1965 to '67 Studied at the Free Academy of Arts, the Hague, The Netherlands.
  Emigration to New Zealand
  Robčrt has traveled extensively, organising exhibitions in Switzerland, The Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. He currently lives in Wellington, New Zealand.
 

To me, the process of painting is a journey and the actual painting, when finished, holds the key to the next one. I hope to intertwine being an artist with whatever I do or think, and thereby meet myself in unexpected places. It is my concern to act upon what I really know and screen out that which I have gathered over the years and which is not really mine.
This, I guess, will be a continuous journey Robčrt Franken, June 2001
   
Selected Solo Exhibitions  
1972 Netherlands   (Amsterdam) Gallery Rood Wit Blauw.
1972 to '77 New Zealand (Wellington) Elva Bett Gallery. [five exhibitions]
1972 to '90 New Zealand (Auckland) New Vision Gallery. [three exhibitions]
1977 New Zealand (Hastings) Hawkes Bay Art Gallery.
1977 New Zealand (Christchurch) CSA Gallery.
1978 Japan           (Tokyo) Nippon Gallery.
1979 New Zealand (Wellington) Gallery Legard. THE MANY FACES OF MY CLOUDS
1980 New Zealand (Wellington) Gallery Legard.
1980 New Zealand (Auckland) New Vision Gallery.
1981 New Zealand (Wellington) Gallery Legard. TABLES TO CONJURE UP FAKE ANGELS [Pencil drawings, and watercolours.]
1982 Switzerland   (Berne) Gallery Loeb.
1983 New Zealand (Masterton) Wairarapa Arts Centre A BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF MY PRIVATE WORLD
1983 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery. MY JOURNEY ACROSS THE STYX [Watercolours and glass engravings]
1984 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery. [Oils, pastels, and tapestries.]
1986 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery. IN OUT WITHIN WITHOUT.
1986 Japan           (Tokyo) Nippon Gallery.
1986 New Zealand (Auckland) New Vision Gallery.
1986 New Zealand (Inglewood) Glass Plant.
1987 New Zealand (Motueka) Janne Land Gallery.
1987 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery.
1988 to '89 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery.
1990 New Zealand (Auckland) RKS Art Auckland. [Pastels on paper.]
1990 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery. [Pastels on paper.]
1991 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery. [New works on paper.]
1991 Japan           (Tokyo)) Nippon Gallery. [Works on textile "banners" and works on paper "pastels".]
1992 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Gallery, [Glass engravings and works on paper.]
1998 New Zealand (Auckland) Lopdell Art Gallery.
1999 New Zealand (Waikanae) Mahara Art Gallery ON THE RIM OF FIRE. Pataka Museum Art Gallery, Porirua
1999 New Zealand (Porirua) Pataka Museum Art Gallery.
2002 New Zealand (Waikanae) Mahara Art Gallery
2003 New Zealand ( St James Wellington) Sakai city Wellington exhibition
2003 Japan (Sakai city Japan ) Wellington Artist and Japanese artists
2004 New Zealand (Porirua) Pataka Contemporary New Zealand Quilts 2004
2004 New Zealand (Wellington) St James group show Wellington Artists and Japanese Artists From Sakai city
2004 New Zealand (Porirua) Pataka Dutch show with artist from Holland
2005 Worked on large commission in Las Vegas (USA)
2006 Willow art Gallery in Napier
2006 Vineyard Crab farm exhibition with Anneke Borren and Gerard McCabe
2006 Expressions City Art gallery Robert Franken ,Anneke Borren, Gerard McCabe and Lynda Mappleback.
2006 Group show Academy of fine art
2007 Wag at the St James theatre
2007 Group show Academy of fine arts
2009 Group show Taupo art Gallery
2009 Group show Xiamen ( China ) Guest arists Robert Franken John Walsh. Janet Andrews, Peter Coats , Ping Mabbit
2009 Group show WAG at the st James Theatre
2010 Group show WAG at the st James Theatre
2011 Group show WAG at the st James Theatre
2011 Flame tree gallery Group show “When Dreams visit Dreams’
2012 Group show City art Gallery Taupo “When Dreams visit Dreams’
2012 Group show at the Expressions City Art Gallery” When Dreams”
2012 Group show at the st James Theatre with the tutors of the Learning Connextion
Selected Group Exhibitions  
1967 Netherlands   (De Hague) Gallery de Sphinx.
1967 Netherlands   (De Hague) Lyceum Voorburg.
1969 New Zealand (Wellington) Display Centre.
1970 New Zealand (Wellington) Display Centre.
1971 New Zealand (Wellington) Display Centre.
1971 New Zealand (Auckland) New Vision Gallery.
1972 Austrailia      (Sydney) Bonython Art Gallery.
1974 New Zealand (Wellington) NZ Academy of Fine Arts,[Young Artists' Exhibition]
1974 New Zealand (Lower Hutt) Dowse Art Museum.
1976 New Zealand (Auckland) Auckland City Art Gallery.
1977 New Zealand (Auckland) Peter Webb Gallery.
1978 Netherlands  (Leidschendam) Gallery de Sluis.
1990 Switzerland  (Basle) Biennale International.
1982 New Zealand (Wellington) National Art Gallery. ME BY MYSELF
1983 New Zealand (Wellington) Janne Land Art Gallery.
1989 New Zealand (Auckland) Compendium Art Gallery. [Guest Artist]
1990 New Zealand (Nelson) Suter Biennale Art Gallery.
1990 New Zealand (Wellington) NZ Academy of Fine Arts.[Guest Artist]
1991 New Zealand (Wellington) NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wgtn City Art Gallery. [Guest Artist]
1992 New Zealand (Wellington) NZ Academy of Fine Arts, Wgtn City Art Gallery. [Guest Artist] SACRED PLACES
1994 New Zealand (Wellington) Wgtn international Festival of the Arts. STRANGE NEW LANDS
1994 New Zealand (Manawatu) Manawatu Art Gallery. THE CRANE AND THE KOTUKU
1995 New Zealand (Porirua) Museum Art Gallery.
1996 New Zealand (Porirua) Page 90. 1, Museum Art Gallery.
1996 New Zealand (Wellington) Edible Books, Festival of the Arts, National Library.
1997 New Zealand (Porirua) Painters' Symposium, Page 90, Museum Art Galler.
1998 New Zealand (Auckland) Luck Fun Company.
2000 New Zealand (Wellington) Wellington Arts Festival, St James Theatre.
2000 New Zealand (Petone) Petone Community Art Gallery.
2001 New Zealand (Waikanae) Mahara Art Gallery.SALT WATER PEOPLE.
2001 New Zealand (Wellington) St James Theatre.SALT WATER PEOPLE.
2002 New Zealand (Palmerston North) Manawatu Art Gallery.BEING LIKE A LEAF ON THE BREATH OF TIME
2003 New Zealand (Porirua) Pataka Museum. Amnesty International exhibition
2003 New Zealand  ( St James Wellington) Sakai city Wellington exhibition
2003 Japan (Sakai city  Japan ) Wellington Artist and Japanese artists
2004 New Zealand  (Porirua)  Pataka    Contemporary New Zealand Quilts 2004
2004 New Zealand  (Wellington) St James group show Wellington Artists and Japanese Artists From Sakai city
2004 New Zealand  (Porirua)  Pataka Dutch show with artist from Holland
2005 3 exhibitions  with the Welington Artist group
2006 2 exhibitions with the Academy of fine Arts
2006 New Zealand  Expression Art Gallery  group show  Anneke Borren , Gerard Mc Cabe and Robert Franken
2007 New Zealand Group show Crab farm winery Napier
2007 New Zealand Group show W.A.G st James Wellington
2008 New Zealand Group show W.A.G st James Wellington
2009 New Zealand Group show Museum Art Gallery Taupo
2009 China Group show exchange Xiamen
2009 New Zealand Group show W.A.G St James Wellington
2009 New Zealand Group show Art Gallery Pataka Porirua
 
Film / Video  
1982 A Grasp of Wind Russell Campbell [Producer] and Robčrt Franken [Writer & Director] Shown at the Wellington Film Festival, Commonwealth Film Festival [Brisbane] and the Short Movie Festival [Japan]
1988 Kaleidoscope[10 April 1988] Howard Taylor [Director/Producer]
Awards  
1977 QEII Arts Council Material Grant
1981 New Zealand Film Commission Grant for A Grasp of Wind
1982 QEII Arts Council Studio Grant
1984 QEll Arts Council Studio Grant 1986 QEII Arts Council Travel Grant
1989 QEII Arts Council Major Support Grant
1990 BP Art Award
1994 Grant for Art Festival 1994
2004 Contemporary New Zealand Quilts 2004    first price designed by Robert Franken Made by Kathrine Morrison
Commissions  
1991 Athfield Architects Commission for the painting for the Wellington Library City Centre pools.
1992 Wellington City Council Commission for the Michael Fowler Centre pools.
Represented  
  Museum of New Zealand. Wellington.
  Robert McDougall Art Gallery.Christchurch.
  Wellington Public Library. [Civic Square], Wellington.
Selected Bibliography  
   
  • BRES, 37, ROBČRT FRANKEN pp: 120-123 Robčrt Franken Forum Boekery [The Hague] [1972]
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  • EDGE, pp: 69 & 70 Autumn/Winter Caveman Press [Christchurch] [1973]
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  • SONIC, 2, [Illustration of work included in the Sonic Circus II, organised by Jack Body], [Wellington] [1975]
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  • NEW ZEALAND PAINTING SINCE 1960: A STUDY IN THEMES AND DEVELOPMENTS, pp: 83 & 170, Peter Cape Collins [Auckland] [1979]
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  • ART NEW ZEALAND, ROBČRT FRANKEN. 40, pp: 29,90 Susan Foster The Art Magazine Press [Auckland] [1983]
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  • SKYWAY [The Air New Zealand in-flight magazine] [July] THE NEW ZEALAND LISTENER, 20 August Don Long [1983]
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  • ART NEW ZEALAND, ROBČRT FRANKEN 29,9, pp: 17-18 Avenal McKinnon The Art Magazine Press [Auckland] [1984]
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  • ART NEW ZEALAND, ROBČRT FRANKEN: THE TRADER AESTHETIC, 40, pp: 40-42 Ian Wedde The Art Magazine Press [Auckland] [1985]
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  • NEW ZEALAND ART: A MODEM PERSPECTIVE, pp: 76, 90-82, 90,198, 205 Elva Bett Reed Methuen [Auckland] [1986]
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  • THE NEW ZEALAND LISTENER, 30 September 1989 (title and page numbers unavailable] Don Long
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  • Fabrications, pp: 27 & 98 Anne Nicholas Random Century [NZ] Limited [1990]
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  • ISLANDS. 19 PAINTERS AND THEIR FAVOURITE WORKS, Summer 1994
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  • NEW ZEALAND ART FOR INVESTMENT Fred McLean [1996]
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  • DICTIONARY OF NEW ZEALAND ARTISTS [2000]
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  • WHO IS WHO IN NEW ZEALAND Alastair Taylor [2001]
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    Teaching  
       
  • 1989 -Workshop, Nelson Polytechnic
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  • 1990 -Summer School, Wanganui Night classes, Academy of Fine Arts
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  • 1991 -Summer School, Wanganui
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  • 1991 -Workshop, Nanjang Technological University, Singapore Night classes, Academy of Fine Arts
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  • 1992 -Night classes, Academy of Fine Arts
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  • 1993 -Night classes, Inverlochy House
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  • 1994 -Night classes, Inverlochy House Master Class Workshop, Whitireia Polytechnic
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  • 1995 -Night classes, Inverlochy House Workshop, The Learning Connexion
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  • 1996 -Block courses, The Learning Connexion Night classes, Inverlochy House Night classes, Inverlochy House
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  • 1996 to '2003 -The Learning connexion
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  • 1996 to '2009 -The Learning connexion
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  • 2009 -Summer school Whitireia Polytechnic Paraparaumu 

    • Glass engravings commissions
     
    1985 Engraving for a door panel .  Ian Fraser    NZ 
    1991 Large glass engraving stairwell.   Graham Culy  NZ 
    1992 Two large glass engravings for hallway. Tony stevens  NZ
    2003 Large glass engraving front door panels . John Wells  NZ
    2005 Glass engraving front door panel . Anneke Borren  NZ 
    2005 Large glass commission private house . Daniel Anderson  USA
    2005 Large glass panels for a cabinet  . Melissa Anderson USA
    2005 Panel for a side window .  Bob Gibbs  NZ 
       

     

     
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