About
James Cousins
b.1965, Christchurch, New Zealand
Lives and works in Auckland, New Zealand
James Cousins was born in Christchurch in 1965. In 1989 he completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Ilam, Canterbury School of Fine Arts. He graduated with a Diploma of Teaching from the Christchurch College of Education in 1998 and a Master of Fine Arts in 2004 from Elam School of Fine Arts in Auckland. In 2000 James Cousins was the recipient of the Christchurch-based Olivia Spencer Bower Award Fellowship and the works created during his residency are now part of the Christchurch City Art Gallery collection. Cousins has since been selected for inclusion in numerous award exhibitions including: The Wallace Art Awards (2005), Waikato National Art Awards (2002) and the Visa Gold Awards (1996, 1998). In 2004 Cousins was selected for inclusion in Code NZ at Canvas International in the Netherlands, which resulted in participation in the 2005 Rotterdam Art Fair. During 2007 Cousins was included in the contemporary painting exhibition: PX: A Purposeless Production/A Necessary Praxis (St Paul Street Gallery, Auckland) curated by Leonhard Emmerling. Cousins currently holds a position as lecturer at Elam School of Fine Arts, Auckland.
Education
2004 MFA, First Class Honours, University of Auckland
1998 Diploma of Teaching, Christchurch College of Education
1989 Bachelor of Fine Arts, University of Canterbury School of Fine Arts
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2012 Genera, Ryan Renshaw Gallery, Brisbane, Australia
2011 Accent, Gow Langford Gallery, Auckland
Front Load, Ryan Renshaw Gallery, Brisbane, Australia
2009 SIGNAL, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland
2007 Small Utopian Dreams, 64zero3, Christchurch
2006 Snares and Traps, Starkwhite, Auckland
2005 Projected Stories and Plastic Nudity, 64zero3, Christchurch
Wetlands, Starkwhite, Auckland
2004 Pretty Vacant, Starkwhite, Auckland
Delusional Painting, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
2003 New Work, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
2001 Cultivar, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
New Work, Cite Gallery, Auckland
2000 Thin White Line, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
1999 Recent Works, University of Canterbury, School of Fine Arts Gallery
1998 Two Works, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
Group, Brian Queenin Gallery, Wellington
1997 Landscape With Colour, Brooker Gallery, Wellington
Selected Group Exhibitions
2013 Summer Show, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland
2012 Melbourne Art Fair, Gow Langsford Gallery Stand D08
2010 TAG: James Cousins and Simon Ingram, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland
2009 John Leech and Gow Langsford Galleries 2009 Spring Catalogue Exhibition, Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland
2007 PX - A purposeless production / A necessary praxis, St Paul Street Gallery
Afterimage, Two Rooms, Auckland
Art School 125, Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu
2006 Team McMillan BMW Art Awards, Auckland
2005 World Nature Art, De Nieuwe Kerk. Amsterdam, Netherlands Rotterdam Art Fair, Netherlands
Wallace Art Awards
2004 Code NZ, Canvas International, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Bloom, 64zero3, Christchurch
Landscape, Anna Bibby Gallery, Auckland
2003 Group Show, Bath Street Gallery, Auckland
2002 Art Waikato National Art Awards, Hamilton
2001 Art Waikato National Art Awards, Hamilton
1999 Last Show 1999, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
1998 Christmas Exhibition, Campbell Grant Galleries, Christchurch
Visa Gold Award (finalist), Wellington (toured)
1996 Group Exhibition, Brooker Gallery, Wellington
Visa Gold Award (finalist)
Collections
ANZ National Bank Collection
Simpson Grierson Collection
Selected publications
Watson, R. (2009) Signal, published on the occasion of the exhibition Signal. Gow Langsford Gallery, Auckland 2009.
Wilson, M. (2010) "James Cousins and Simon Ingram" in Artforum online 16.01.2010. http://artforum.com/picks/section=world#picks24640