BIOGRAPHY

Born in San Luis Obispo, Zen began his creative odyssey at age 3 when his natural talent for drawing and his acute color sense was first noticed.

Though temporarily daunted by an emotionally disturbed art teacher in high school, he made the decision to become a professional artist at age 15 – the same age that he left school. By the time Zen was 20 he had staged five exhibitions (in New Zealand), had won several awards and among others, was included in the collections of the Royal Danish Consulate and the Lord Mayor of Auckland.

He soon journeyed to California with ambitions to further his art, but he found the gallery scene in San Francisco too conservative and too market-driven for his undisciplined, experimental style. Applying his talents to commercial illustration, Zen’s work began to appear in magazines, on book and album covers, in ads, packaging, brochures and other commercial mediums.

He attended the San Francisco Academy of Art to refine his skills in drawing, painting, anatomy, illustration, photo-retouching & graphic design. During this time, Zen’s love of texture, color and natural forms developed into a series of works called “New Fresco”, a concept blending art with creative wall treatments. In 1979 he exhibited at several galleries in Los Angeles, where his work was exposed to designers & architects, leading to commissions and further exhibitions in the area.

New Fresco featured plaster or cement materials reinforced with fiberglass fibers (now called GRC) for strength & flexibility, treated with layers of matt and transparent color for a rich patina finish. Fabric, metals, shells and other found objects were impregnated into the surface, then sealed with varnish for interior and exterior resilience. The effect was natural yet sophisticated.

15 MINUTES OF FAME

In 1980 an opportunity arose for Zen to display works at an international convention in Manhattan, a dream he’d had for years. He created two impressive (and heavy) New Fresco panels, packed & shipped them to NYC. Each weighed over 100kg and cost a small fortune in freight!

At the end of the 3-day exhibit, Zen realized he could not afford to ship the works back to California, so he decided to gift them to the City of New York and receive a tax break for the donation. The task proved almost impossible, as the Mayor’s Office was hostile, tangling him up in bureaucratic processing for days. With the works in paid storage and his flight leaving the next day, Zen was desperate.

As a last resort, he approached ABC Television, who thought the idea of “Artist Vs. City Hall” would make a good news story. That night before 6 million viewers, Anchor-woman Melinda Nicks grilled the Mayor’s Special Assistant to get to the core of this issue. So why wouldn’t they accept a tribute from a spunky young West-Coast artist? What's the problem guys?

The next morning, Zen’s hotel phone rang with a curt response from the Mayor’s Office… “we’ll take the paintings…” Letting out a jubilant whoop!, Zen ran for his flight, noticing the attention of strangers on the street, in the shuttle and as he embarked his plane. When queried by a passenger about the outcome of his predicament, he announced the good news and the cabin erupted in cheers and applause!

The paintings were installed in the permanent collection of the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) NYC, and to his knowledge are hanging there today.

Over the next few years Zen created works for prominent clients, including a hand-sculpted undulating FLOOR for a remarkable 3-story glass pyramid home in the Pasadena Hills. His works were published in several national interior design magazines and attracted significant attention from the industry.

Also in the early 80's Zen had a significant painting called “Wall of Compassion” accepted by Midge Gold, curator of the prestigious Cedar Sinai Hospital international art collection.

Zen began to explore the positive healing effects of color on physical & emotional conditions, installing vivid works in a progressive Orthokeratology (Eye) Clinic and California College for Intuitive Studies. Private showings and further commissions followed, as well as commercial art for the marketing & advertising industries.

After receiving an unwarranted art critque in 1984, Zen composed a manifesto for an original art movement he called “NeoHumorism”. Two of the core principles of NeoHumorism were that the art required "feeling not thinking", and that it was beyond any critique!



Simultaneously, he merged fine art and commercial design to create “Deep Breakfast”, an album cover for a then-unknown musician named Ray Lynch. Within 18 months, the album went gold, then platinum (over 1-million sold). Deep Breakfast became a classic, due in part (according to Mr Lynch) to Zen's art "perfectly expressing the essence of the music". Later that year, the City of San Francisco installed a large painting entitled “Goddess of Smiles” in a prominent City Hall building.

Numerous shows, exhibits, events and commission followed in the USA, Europe & New Zealand. Zen opened an art & design studio, hired staff and provided illustration, graphics and marketing solutions to small & large companies nationwide. Seven large paintings were commissioned by a Corporate Properties firm for its California headquarters, and a significant piece was created as a fundraiser for the late great (SF music promoter) Bill Graham.

After the sudden death of his brother Jeff in Los Angeles, Zen left the USA in 1996, returning to New Zealand to support his family. Soon after he journeyed to Bali, Singapore and Thailand, immersing himself in the exotic cultures of those lands. During this time, and inspired by the sensual people and lands, he began painting exquisite Abstract Erotica, celebrating the sensual qualities of “the Goddess in human form”.

In 1997 he returned to New Zealand and began making “LightBodies”, beautiful sculptures taken directly from a model’s body and constructed using stained rice paper, collage and resins. The elegant sculptures stood on specially engineered stands or hung on walls with dimmer-controlled halogen lighting for a dramatic illumination effect.

Over the next three years Zen journeyed between Hawaii, California, New Zealand and Australia, developing new works and promoting through his studio gallery on lush Waiheke Island in Auckland Harbour.

Zen moved to Byron Bay on the Eastern-most point of Australia in early 2001 where he now has his primary home. Within a short time he was showing works in local galleries, while also opening his studio to clients and collectors by appointment.

For further information, CV or to contact Zen directly, click here.