About

Born London 1953

Lives Sydney, Australia

Studies
Medicine, Uni of Tasmania 1972-74, 1976-78
Printmaking,  East Sydney Tech 1979, 1983
Bronze Casting,  ESTC 1990-92
Fine Arts, Sydney Uni 1985-91
MFA NSW Uni 1993-95
Marble carving, Carrara, Italy, 2009 

Qualifications
B Med Sc, MB BS, FFMACCS, Dip Sculpture, BA (Hons), MFA

Travels
America, Europe and Asia working at various periods in Indonesia, India, France, Italy, PNG, Tonga and Turkey.

Work
Professional artist,  environment  officer, medical practitioner, art teacher, film script writer, graphic artist.

Languages: English, Italian, French, Indonesian

Website: www.adamrish.net 

Email: adamrish@bigpond.com

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

1975  Secheron House Gallery, Hobart
1976  Salamanca Place Gallery, Hobart
1977  Saddlers Court Gallery, Richmond, Tasmania
           Hunter Island Gallery, Hobart
1978  Bowerbank Mill Gallery, Deloraine, Tasmania
1979  Rex Irwin Art Dealer, Sydney
           Powell St Gallery, Melbourne
           Harrington St Gallery, Hobart
1983  Salamanca Place Gallery, Hobart
           Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
1984  Mori Gallery, Sydney
1986  Mori Gallery, Sydney
1987  Solander Gallery, Canberra
           Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
1989  DC Art, Sydney
           Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
           Despard St Gallery, Hobart
1990  Solander Gallery, Canberra
           D
C Art, Sydney
           BMG Fine Art, Adelaide
1991  Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
1992  Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
1994  Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
1995  Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
           COFA Gallery, University of  NSW, Sydney
1996  Quadrivium, Sydney
1997  Cooee Gallery, Sydney
1998  Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
1999  Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
2000  Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne
2001   Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
2004   Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
2007   Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney
2009   Despard St Gallery, Hobart
2010   Australian Galleries, Sydney
2010   Australian Galleries, Melbourne
2010   Solander Gallery, Canberra
2011   Despard Gallery, Hobart
2013   Orange Regional Gallery, Sturt Gallery, Mittagong
2014   Cessnock Regional Gallery, Manning Regional                          Gallery,   Moree Regional Gallery
2015   Gold Coast City Gallery         


SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

1977 Tasmanian Artists, Tasmania House, London
1980 Queensland Touring Exhibition “Dyeing Fibre and                       Fabric”
1986 Oz Drawing Now, Holdsworth Gallery, Sydney
1989 New York International Print Fair
1992 Chicago Alternative Media Art Fair
1992 Tamworth Textile Biennale
1994 Kalef-Jackson Gallery, Calgary, Canada
1998 City Of Hobart Art Prize
2001 Geometry of the Earth, Orange Regional Gallery
2002  Sir Hermann Black Gallery, University of Sydney
2007 Beyond Hill End, Cudgegong Gallery, Gulgong, NSW
2008 City Of Hobart Art Prize
2008  “Adam Rish, Garry Shead, Stephen Roach”, Australian             Galleries, Sydney
2009  Australian Galleries, Melbourne
2009  Australian Galleries, Sydney
2009  ‘6×6’ Moree Plains Art Gallery, Moree
2010  Lino Alvarez: Collaborations in Clay, Bathurst
          Regional Gallery
2010 Sculpture at the Beach, Coo-ee Gallery, Sydney
2010 The Taronga Zoo Air Exhibition
2010 Sculpture at Sawmillers, Sydney
2011 Adam Rish and Garry Shead “True Fictions from                       Australia – Sanna historier från Australien
           Grafikens Hus, Mariefred, Sweden.
2011 Sculpture on the Edge, Bermagui
2012 Sculpture on the Edge, Bermagui
2012 Moving Parts, curated by Ellie Ray and Astrid Joyce,                Devenport Regional Gallery, Tasmania
2013 Sculpture in the Gaol, SW Rocks
2014 Sculpture at Sawmillers, Sydney
2015 Artisans in the Gardens
2015 Australian Artists in Bali 1930s to Now
          McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Tasmanian  Museum and Art Gallery; Launceston Museum and Art Gallery; Burnie Regional Gallery; Queensland Art Gallery;  Art Gallery  of  NSW; Australian National Gallery; Shepparton Art Gallery; Art  Bank; VAB of Tasmania Collection; Uni of Tasmania Collection; Glasshouse Gallery, Port Macquarie; Grafikens Hus, Mariefred, Sweden, Gold Coast City Gallery.

AWARDS

1979 VAB Special Purpose Grant
1981 VAB Studio Residence, Karolyi Foundation, Vence,                     France
1984 VAB Studio Residence, Besozzo, Italy
1984 Australian Film Commission, Comedy Fund Grant
1992 VAB Travel Grant
1997 Asialink Residency IKJ Jakarta
1998 City of Hobart Art Prize

FILMOGRAPHY

“From A Letter”, 16mm col 13 min 1983. Exhibited Melbourne Film Festival 1983; Adelaide Fringe Festival, 1984.
“The Corporate Choice” 1986, 16 mm colour 14 min
“The Search For Meaning”, 19/091994, Digital 5 min interview with Adam Rish on  REVIEW  ABC “Immunisation: Telling the story”, 1996, Digital 15 min
“Brushes with Fame”, (actor/subjct) Richard Mordaunt and Diana Barbara, 1997 Digital 54 min
“The Flesh Wheelbarrow”, (script development and actor) Garry Shead, 2006, Digital 20 min
“Kangaroo”, (actor) Garry Shead, 2013, Digital 20 min
“Misanthropology: The World Art of Adam Rish”, Adam Rish in conversation with John McDonald,  2013 Digital 25 min

BIBLIOGRAPHY(selected)

“Artists made their debuts with oils”, Alison Carins, The Examiner, July 26, 1978
“Gallery galaxy”, Sandra McGrath, The Australian,  May 18, 1979
“Exhibitions for an anniversary”,  Nancy Borlase, Sydney Morning Herald, May 19, 1979
“Artists of Australia and New Zealand” , Max Germaine, Lansdown Editions, 1979
“The Art of Dyeing, Arthur McIntyre, Craft Australia, Spring, 1979, pp 49-50
The Tasmanian Revue, Number 4, 1980
Aspect, Art & Literature, No 21, June 1981, p18.
Art and Australia, Dec 1979, Summer 1984, Winter 1989.
New Poetry, Vols 26-27
Island magazine – regular graphics contributor.
Helix, Dec 1980.
Vence Upon A Time  Adam Rish and Garry Shead, RYZ Press, 1982.
The Age Of Reason  Adam Rish, RYZ Press, 1984.
Historia Mundi Illustrata  Adam Rish, RYZ Press, 1986.
The Age, Entertainment Guide, 7 July 1989, Emily Gibson, “Artist Finds Inspiration In Irons…”
Tension,  Aug 1989, Rex Butler, ” Adam Rish: Baroque Around The Clock”
The  Mercury, 4/11/89, Susan Legett,  “Easily led Tex and his history of modern art.”
Sunday Tasmanian, 5/11/89, Amanda Leary, “Fancy a toaster or car  on your kilim.”
“Flattening art with an iron: Rish’s wish” Emily Gibson, Canberra Times, April 9, 1990
“Works of art designed to provoke the mind”, Sasha Grishin, Canberra Times, April 14 1990
Vogue Living,  May 1990, Tex Willer, “Artist Adam Rish and  the khilims of Konya…”
Sydney  Morning Herald,  Metro, 24/8/90,  Emily Gibson “Art for Neurotics”.
Interior Architecture, issue 32, Miscellanea 44, “Adam Rish is a  Sydney based painter…”
“Mixing medicine with metaphysical montage” Victoria Clayton, Australian Dr Weekly, 6 Sept. 1991, pp82-83
Sydney Morning Herald, Metro,  13/11/92,  P3S Emily Gibson,  “Frame Games”. 
“10th Tamworth Fibre/Textile Biennial 1992”  catalogue p29, p48.
“Object”, Autumn 1993, Beth Jackson, “From the Floor to the Wall” pp17-19.
“Object”, Spring 1993, Adam Rish, “Objection:From the Floor  to the Flaw”. p49.
“The Book of Hrabel”, Péter Esterházy, Brandl and Schlesinger, Sydney, 1994
“Images from a Visionary”, Felicity Fenner, Sydney Morning Herald, Dec 9 1994
Misanthropology , Adam Rish, MFA Uni NSW 1995.
“Rediscovering forgotten riches. Adam Rish: Misanthropology” Jenny Zimmer, The Age, Feb 7 1995 p19
Contemporary Craft Review 1, 1995 Ed J. Zimmer, Adam Rish “Misanthropology” p92
“Nouveau Rish”, Antonia Williams, Sydney Morning Herald – Domain, p5, 8/8/96
“Prints are a steal”, Bronwyn Watson, Sydney Morning Herald, June 13, 1997, Arts p15
“Reality forms a pattern in tapestry message rugs” Stephanie King, Financial Review, Nov.  8-9 1997 pp4-5
“Object”, 1 1998, Adam Rish, “Shona Wilson – a profile” pp36-37
“Devil TV and other black arts” Susan McCulloch, The Weekend Australian, Feb 21-22 1998 p24
“Mike Parr: blood box”. Parr, M., Tsoutas, N., Geczy, A. Scheer, E., Artspace, Sydney, 1998 (& 2006).
“Doctor’s script for winning design” Eve Lamb, The Mercury Dec 30 1998, p11.
“Cultural weft and warp” Deborah Jones, The Australian, 1 Jan 99, p16.
“Collection creates history” Jeff Makin, Herald Sun, June 19 2000 p111

‘The Art of Lockhart River’, Adam Rish, Australian Indigenous Art News, Autumn 2000, pp. 16–17.
“The Problem with Doctors”, Caroline Brand ed., Little C Books, Melbourne, 2001
“Misanthropology – The Art of Adam Rish” Michael Denholm, Art & Australia Sept 2001 pp92-100
“Collaborations in World Art” Louise Maral, Sydney Uni News, 26 April 2002, p7
“Very Crazy Tapa” Adam Rish and Ruth Hessey, Australian Art Review Jul-Oct 2004, issue 5 pp58-61
“The New McCulloch Encyclopedia of Australian Art”, Alan McCulloch, Susan McCulloch and Emily McCulloch Childs, Aus Art Editions the Miegunyah Press, 2006
“Of Devotion and determination” John McDonald, Sydney Morning Herald, Dec 8-9 2007, pp16-17
“City of Hobart Art Prize 08 Catalogue”, Hobart City Council, August, 2008
“Australian Artists in Ceramics”  Sasha Grishin, Journal of Australian Ceramics, July 2009 pp 39-41
“Brush With Nature” Melissa Mylchreest, Australian House and Garden, Dec 2009,  203-4
“Favourite Things” Katrina Lobley, Good Weekend 22 May 2010, p31
“On the gentle art of collaborating with Lino…” Sasha Grishin, Catalogue Essay Bathurst Regional Gallery, 9 July – 22 August, 2010
“Symbolic Exchanges” Prue Gibson, Australian Art Review Nov 10 –Jan 11 2010  issue 25 pp 38-40
“Surgical approach to his sculpture” Emma Hope, The Mercury, Thurs March 31 2011, p13
“Master Printmaker Residency at the Skopelos Foundation for the Art, Island of Skopelos, Greece”, Barbie Kjar, Imprint, Vol 45, No 2,  2010
“Adam Rish and Garry Shead: True Fictions From Australia”, Imprint, Vol 46, No 4,  2011, p47
“Moving Parts” Catalogue 5 May- 10 June, 2012, Ellie Ray and Astrid Joyce, Devenport Regional   Gallery, Tasmania.
“In like Flynn to hear Rish” Alan Sisley, Central Western Daily, February 23, 2013, p11
“On Sunday Rish takes the floor”, Brenda Gray, Central Western Daily, March 9, 2013, p9
“What’s new at the gallery”, Central Western Daily, Feb 11, 2013, p10
“Collaborating with cultures”, Emma Biscoe, Highlander Weekend, April 6, 2013
“All the fun of the fair”, John McDonald, Sydney Morning Herald, April 27-28, 2013, pp12-13
“The Dealer is The Devil”, Adrian Newstead, Brandl & Schlesinger, Sydney, 2014, pp 244, 323, 484, 509
“World Art by Adam Rish a cross-cultural collaboration”,  Lauren Green, Manning River Times,  June 11, 2014
“Australian Artists in Bali 1930s To Now”, Rodney James,  McClelland Sculpture Park + Gallery, 2015,  pp 46, 48, 58