Bronwen Vaughan-Evans
Bronwen Vaughan-Evans received her Masters of Arts in Fine Arts in 1995 from the University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg. She obtained her Higher Diploma in Education in 1998 from the University of South Africa.
Vaughan-Evans has participated in numerous group exhibitions. In 2004 she had her first solo show entitled ‘one zero one’ at the KwaZulu Natal Society of Arts Gallery, Durban. She then collaborated with Nontobeko Ntombela on a project entitled ‘negotiated spaces’ also held at the KwaZulu Natal Society of Arts Gallery.
In June of 2008 Vaughan-Evans’ solo show, ‘home is where the heart is’ was held at Gallery Momo in Johannesburg. Later in 2008 she exhibited a body of work collectively entitled ‘Memento Mori’ at Bank Gallery, Durban.
Early in 2009 Bronwen Vaughan-Evans and Deanne Donaldson had a two-person show entitled ‘Left of November’ at The Erdmann Contemporary in Cape Town.
Vaughan-Evans’ work is created using a process of layering light gesso on top of darker gesso to create a controlled surface in which the dark layer sits just beneath a thin, light skin and thereby alludes to a metaphorical weight beneath the surface of things. The images reference objects and places from her immediate environment and are created by sanding / etching through the thin top layer to reveal the dark gesso beneath.
Vaughan-Evans lectures part-time at the Fine Art Department of the Durban University of Technology. Her work is included in corporate, public and private collections both locally and internationally.
This body of work explores the notion of fairytales in a contemporary and playful way. Using personal childhood photographs and patterns from early readers Vaughan-Evans reconstructs stories and myths from her childhood. The works are intentionally illustrative, but do not follow a linear narrative, instead we see real world imagery merging with storybook fantasy to form a slightly surreal series of works.
Bronwen Vaughan-Evans would like to credit the use and incorporation of cover designs from a series of children’s books published by Dent Dutton in the 1950’s.
Selected Exhibitions, including both solo and group shows:
2010 Creative Context: A Group Show by Contemporary African Fine Artists at Source, Singapore
2010 Harbouring Histories: A Staff Exchange Exhibition at Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia.
2010 Early Learning at artSPACE Durban, Durban, South Africa
2010 Test Patterns at Gallery 415, Durban, South Africa
2009 A Little Piece of Africa at artSPACE Berlin, Berlin, Germany
2009 Left of November at Erdmann Contemporary, Cape Town, South Africa
2009 New Connections at KZNSA Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2008 Memento Mori at Bank Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2008 Home Is Where The Heart Is at Momo Gallery, JHB, South Africa
2008 Light show at Bank Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2007 Right Before Your Eyes KZNSA Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2007 Malleable ArtSpace Durban, Durban, South Africa
2007 ARTSEASONS Erdmann Contemporary, Cape Town, South Africa
2006 Form and Substance Erdmann Contemporary, Cape Town, South Africa
2006 Negotiated Spaces KZNSA Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2005 Art for Humanity - Children’s Rights Print Portfolio Durban Art Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2005 Paean to Paint ArtSpace Durban, Durban, South Africa
2005 Being Here (KZNSA Centenary Exhibition) KZNSA Gallery, Durban, South Africa
2004 One Zero One (Solo show) KZNSA Gallery, Durban, South Africa
Collections:
Private collections South Africa, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, The United States of America and The United Kingdom
Public collections The Tatham Art Gallery, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
The Durban Art Gallery, Durban, South Africa
The UNISA Art Gallery, Pretoria, South Africa
Corporate collections The Sasol Collection, Escom, The JSE, Standard Bank