Keith Morant

Lifetime Award Winner at Florence Biennale, 2007

 

Biography
Born in England 1944. Largely self taught as an abstractionist. Worked and exhibited in London and Southern England until moving to New Zealand in 1973. Married and settled in Christchurch. Continued painting and exhibiting throughout New Zealand. From 1986 exhibited in Connecticut, New York, London and Tokyo. Moved to New York in 1989 to work and exhibit in Manhattan and London. Now resettled in Christchurch, New Zealand as a full-time painter.

Artist Statement

"nourishment through visual perception towards a greater quality of mind and life"

My art is always a journey of discovery into the essence of being - an attempt to externalize the truth of my existence on as many levels as possible. It is also an effort towards the stimulation of enquiry into the greater spheres of understanding beyond conventionalized intellect. I must trust that, while initially seen only by the eye, my work will eventually be perceived by mind, thus contributing to the expansion of human conscious awareness and quality of life.

I see art as the ultimate exertion of that communicative energy we regard as nature, and as such, will always defy initial analysis by human intelligence. It is (as with all newly discovered phenomena) the inspirational precursor to human intellectualization and functions as an inbuilt reflective generator of human evolutionary awareness. Assimilation of new imagery gives birth to new thought patterns, thus the feelings of today become the thoughts of tomorrow. The work of art, if it is true to itself and conveys its mystery with authority, becomes another focus for intellectual analysis - another relative that displaces an absolute - thereby pushing back the boundaries of the unknown just a fraction further.

In my painting I try to emulate the power of music and evoke the universal through the specific. It seems that this is only achieved when certain synchronizations of conscious and unconscious mentality is attained. I often seem to be working at the very edge of my mind where I become deeply involved with the great dichotomy of the known and the unknown. It is like treading a fine tightrope across the abyss between meaning and futility, and the further I move out the more I leave logic and conscious reasoning behind. It is through this mental and emotional balancing act that I may encounter a new order, which may be termed the logic of chaos - Nature itself. Here is where my search begins - where the battles are lost and won. I fight to capture a fresh and vital sensibility; a new state which, while it may emerge as a subjective and self-referential phenomenon, still projects potential for higher orders of human understanding.

I believe that a great part of my inner necessity to create is a reaction against the transience of existence. Permanence is an illusion. Everything exists in a continued state of ‘becoming’ and all existence is the sum of its opposite. Death is as much a necessity to life as life is the predicate to death. This is the nature of nature - its only reality being change and metamorphosis. When I am painting I know that I am closer to the manifestations of these truths than at any other time.

I have been painting now for over thirty-five years and I believe that my experience has given me an evolving advantage where sometimes satisfactory conclusions may be reached. However, every painting is a totally new experiment and I know that I will never live long enough to experience any form of ultimate satisfaction or so-called success. What small accomplishments I do experience must stay deep within myself in the knowledge that they will not communicate their fullest potential right away. I must always work for the future with the full confidence that someday my understanding beyond knowledge will communicate more conclusively whatever it is that nature is expressing through me.

 

Recent exhibitions and awards

 

2009

* Premio San Valentino International art exhibition, (Taranto, Puglia) Southern Italy.

First Prize. 'Medaglia del Presidente della Repubblica' (The President of the Republic's Medal).
* Represented by Abbott Fine Arts. Vancouver, Canada.

* Represented by Bryce Gallery. Christchurch, New Zealand.

 

2008
* Exhibition: Trevisan International Art 'Traces of Memory', Estense Castle, Ferrara, Italy.
Award: "Premio Ercole D'Este della Critica Award" (Critics Choice)

* Represented by Bryce Gallery, Christchurch, New Zealand.
* 'Harmony Of Elements', (four artists), NoHo Gallery, New York.
* Solo Exhibition 'Morant In Manhattan' Access Art, New York.
* Solo Exhibition: 'Italia' Christchurch, New Zealand.
* Exhibition of International Art, 'San Valentino' Vico del Garno, Italy.

Award: "Premio Internazionale"
* Group exhibition with Trevisan International Art, 'Little Treasures', Bologna, Italy.

 

2007

* Biennale Internazionale Dell'Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italy. Award:"Lorenzo il Magnifico, Premio alla Carriera" for 'Lifetime Achievement in Art'
* Exhibition: Trevisan International Art 'The Spirit In Art', Estense Castle, Ferrara, Italy.

Award: "Manifestation Of The Spirit In Art"
* International Contemporary Art Fair. Istanbul.
* 'Apple II': World Art Media, NY, Touring exhibition to Valencia, Beijing and New York.
* 'The Woodhaven Paintings' Solo Exhibition, Christchurch, New Zealand.