Ali Bramwell is a practicing artist, born in Auckland New Zealand, now living and working in Slovenia.

Research interests include a particular interest in public space and the ethical and political interfaces that art produces and reveals when it is outside the usual gallery contexts. A related area of research interest is in performance; from a phenomenological perspective that thinks about personal subjectivity and affect, as well as broader political-strategic potentials. With a strong preference for temporary and ephemeral modes her work often has a kinetic quality or is activated by performance and audience involvement.

She has been working in the feilds of sculpture, installation and performance since 2000 producing exhibitions and public projects internationally. Projects include a permanent public sculpture work in Germany and exhibitions in Georgia, China, Sweden, Bosnia, Australia, South Korea and New Zealand. She earned a Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture from Dunedin School of Art at Otago Polytechnic, New Zealand in 2001.

Bramwell also has a well developed interest in practical policy development in relation to local arts infrastructure, with experience in gallery management (governance and administration) in addition to independent project management and art-political lobbying activity of various kinds.

Exhibition history is detailed on the pages projects :: text index and projects :: image index
Other professional information and experience is organised under the headings listed below::

:: contact details
:: education
:: grants and awards
:: articles and commissioned essays
:: professional experience
:: reviews

Curriculum Vitae. Ali Bramwell

b. 1969 Auckland, New Zealand.

Contact Details           top

E-mail: ali[at]alibramwell.com

Education           top

2000-2001. Masters of Fine Art, Sculpture. Dunedin School of Art at Otago Polytechnic, NZ. Submission by public exhibition and 24,000 word thesis: “Transitional places: moving from, moving towards”. Discussion of affective experiences in habit interrupting artistic strategies with a particular focus on the work of theorists: Deleuze and Guattari, Brian Massumi, Herbert Dreyfus, and artists: Patricia Piccinini, Louise Bufardicci, Mira Govacs.
1998-1999. Bachelor of Fine Art, Dunedin School of Art at otago Polytechnic, New Zealand. (Accepted with advanced standing)
1987-1990. Diploma of Craft Design, Jewellery, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.

Grants and awards           top

2011. AIR Celeia Celje, awarded residency hosted by Center for Contemporary Art Celje, Slovenia.
2011. Selectors Merit Award, 2011 Headland Sculpture on the Gulf. Judged by Heather Galbraith, Trish Clark and James McCarthy.
2011. AsiaNz Foundation, travel grant
2010. Excellence in Research Award, Otago Polytechnic
2006, 07, 08, 09, 10. research grants from Otago Polytechnic
2006. Timaru District Council, creative communities fund
2005. Dunedin City Council, discretionary arts fund
2005. Creative New Zealand, visual arts board.
2004. AsiaNZ Foundation, travel grant
2002. Creative New Zealand, visual arts board
2002. Asia2000 Foundation, travel grant
2002. MFA scholarship, sponsored by Retail Solutions
1991. QEII Arts Council, new craft artist

Articles and commissioned essays            top

Bramwell, A. (2011) “ Review of Napalm Your Personal Disco”, in the Graphics Biennial of Ljubljana. Published online by MGLC. URL: http://29gbljubljana.wordpress.com
Bramwell, A. (2010) “European football with a difference”. Review of Polder Cup by Maidez Lopez for Eyecontact.
Published online at URL: http://eyecontactsite.com/
Bramwell, A. (2010) “Jay Hutchinson at Dunedin's Temple.” Review of Papercuts Bleed Embroideries Drip by Jay Hutchinson for Eyecontact. Published online at URL:http://eyecontactsite.com/
Bramwell, A. (2010) “From Frisky to Libidinal and a diuretic trickle...” Review of Effigies by Alicia Frankovich for Eyecontact. Published online at: http://eyecontactsite.com/
Bramwell, A. (2009). “Douglass Bagnall, Adam Hyde, Walker & Bromwich: Intertidal. A critical response from Ali Bramwell.” Commissioned by Litmus Research Initiative, Massey University Wellington, April.
Published online at: http://www.onedaysculpture.org.nz/
Also published (abridged version) in: One Day Sculpture, Cross, D. and Doherty C (Eds) Kerber Verlag: Bristol 2009. ISBN 978-3-86678-333-1
Bramwell, A. (2009) “Fair Game: Don Hunter and Ana Terry”. Commissioned catalogue essay to accompany exhibition of the same name at Southland Art Museum, Invercargill, NZ. Published online at: www.anaterry.com
Bramwell, A. (2009) Unstable institutional memory in “Old, New, Borrowed, Blue: 10 years at the Blue Oyster”. Wolf, Erika and Cambell, Joanna (Eds). Blue Oyster Art Project Space 2009. ISBN 978-0-473-15590-2
Published online at: www.blueoyster.org.nz
Bramwell, A. (2007). “Occupying the pavement”. Scope (Contemporary Research Topics): Art, Otago Polytechnic research journal, issue #2 November 2007. Published online at www.thescopes.org/art
Bramwell, A. (2006) “Performance Art: whatever that is”. Artists Alliance #83 Published online at www.artistsalliance.org.nz
Abridged version also published in the catalogue "Blue Oyster Performance Art Series", Charlotte Dick (Ed), Blue Oyster Art Project Space 2006.
Bramwell, A. (2006) “Some Symptoms of Painting”. Commissioned catalogue essay to accompany exhibition of the same name curated by Cathy Helps for the Blue Oyster Gallery, NZ.
Bramwell, A. (2006). Blue Oyster (Dunedin) Artist run initiatives. Artlink Magazine, Issue: Vol 26 No 2.
Bramwell, A. (2006). Curatorial Review: Play - An Exhibition. Junctures: the journal for thematic dialogue, 7: Play, December. 119-122. Published online at: www.junctures.org
Bramwell, A. (2006) Haley Williams: Bang Bang Bang. 'Appliance', Artists Alliance magazine.
Bramwell, A. (2006). Sonata in 13 parts. 'Appliance', Artists Alliance magazine, January.
Bramwell, A. (2004/2005). South Island Artnotes. A monthly column giving an overview, context and opinion on art activity in South Island New Zealand. Published in the Artnotes section of Art Monthly Australia magazine, Issue numbers in 2004 and 2005: 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173, 175, 176. 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186.

Professional experience            top

2011-current. Self employed artist.
2011-current. Online content and image editor, for Slovenia Culture portal culture.si, Ljudmila Ljubljana Digital Media Lab.
2006-current. Board member Dunedin City Council Art in Public Places committee, external commissioning and advisory group for Dunedin City Council.
2002-current. Organizing committee for annual Nine Dragon Heads International Environment Arts Symposium, based in Korea.
2006-2010. Lecturer (Art History and Theory, Electronic arts, Sculpture). Dunedin School of Art at Otago Polytechnic. Dunedin, New Zealand. Included: curriculum and assessment design for NZQA level 7,8 and 9. and Post-Graduate thesis supervision.
2002-2007. Board of Trustees, Otago Sculpture Trust.
2004-2006. Director of the Blue Oyster Art Project Space, Dunedin, New Zealand.
2005. Independent curator and project manager for site based exhibition project, Terminus public art project. held in two venues, Nelson and Dunedin, NZ. In association with Nelson Festival of the Arts and Hocken Library and Collections.
2003. Project Manager. Technical commission: lost wax bronze casting, 320kg (2.3m) statue of Sir Edmund Hilary Sited at the Hermitage, Mt Cook. NZ (figurative artist, Bryn Jones).
2002/03. Independent curator and director for Co-Incidence, a site based sculpture symposium. Supported by Creative New Zealand visual arts board.
2001- 2004. Board of Trustees, Blue Oyster Arts Trust, Governing board for Blue Oyster Arts Project Space, Dunedin, New Zealand.
2001. Project manager for the ‘Artists at Work’ residency program hosted by Dunedin School of Art at Otago Polytechnic. Supervised financial practical aspects of artist residency including exhibition installation, community liaison, marketing and financial administration.
2001. Visual Arts coordinator for Dunedin Fringe Festival.
1991-1997. Self-employed contemporary jeweller, metal smith and product designer. Particular technical focus on blacksmithing and non ferrous foundry -sand and lost wax (mainly bronze).

Reviews and mentions            top

'25th Augustus 2011', chmkoome's Blog: Een bundel gebroken spiegels. URL:http://blogger.xs4all.nl/chmkoome/archive/2011/08/26/675600.aspx
Jules Reuter (2010) 'In Search of the Future – Artisterium 3', Caucasus Reader, in FGA#27 july/august/sept 2010. URL:http://www.fuckinggoodart.nl/#atlantis
Leopoulou, A and Markolou, T (2010) ARTISTERIUM 3, 2010: a short review of a meaningful experience. Interartive: a platform for contemporary art and thought. ISSN 2013-679X Url: Http://interartive.org/
Campbell, J. (2009) 'Collecting culture', Otago Daily Times, Thursday 7 May. Art Seen.
Carrick, C. (2009) 'Realist Paintings', Otago Daily Times, Thursday 17 Sep. Art Seen.
Kim, Jae Young (2008) Anti-Concept, Art Korea: The monthly art magazine, November 2008.
Osborne, J. (2007) 129 Oaks: Iain Cheesman Ali Bramwell and Penny Hunt, CS Arts March 2007. p 12
Lonie, B. (2006). The use-value of "nature": projection and estrangement or dialogue and mediation?, South African Journal of Art History, ISSN 0258-3542. Vol 21, Number 2. p 117-123
Hunt, P. (2006) Home Front, exhibition catalogue.
Hunt, P. (2006) Living Memorial, The Christchurch Press. D4 Arts, Wednesday, June 14, 2006.
Eggleton, D. (2006) The War Room, NZ Listener. June 24-30 2006 Vol 204 No 3450. Arts and Books section. p 48
Lonie, B. (2005). Sideways. New Zealand Listener, Vol 200 No. 3414. Oct 15 -21. p 44
Hunt, P. (2004). Dunedin: Blue Oyster Gallery, Iain Cheesman, Ralph Hotere, Maddie Leach. Art New Zealand, ISSN 0110-1102. Issue 112, Spring 2004. p 56
Moriarty, A. (2004) Sculptor detours back to Nelson. The Nelson Mail, September 22, 2004.
Ballard, S. (2001). Dunedin: Violet Fagan, Grant Thompson, Hannah Beehre, Ali Bramwell. Art New Zealand, ISSN 0110-1102. Issue 100, Spring. p 61-62
McClusky, M. (2001) Visual clues to a circular path, Otago Daily Times, Thursday June 7, 2001. Impressions section, Art seen. p 35