Artist: Painter Illustrator Designer
John Kennedy was born 1973 in Solihull, UK; his family immigrated to Australia a year later. "As an amusing but true story; for me Art began at the age of five when I chose to follow an ant for a whole day. I remember its journey vividly, across the cracked soils and dry grass. I recall its challenges and the solutions found. I recorded the line of its journey and that became the first line I remember drawing. It's a reference I return to again and again."
Self Portrait ©
At 19 John was put under the wing of one of the great Australian Abstract Expressionist painters, Ron Lambert (1923-1995), who had studied under Oskar Kokoscka in Austria. It was then that he began to experiment with painting more intensely; producing one of his most important works, 'The Lady of Shallot' (Alfred Lord Tennyson), a painting that only took the length of time that the poem was recited. It was the beginning of John's exploration to create works influenced by alternate disciplines.
In 1998 John Kennedy held his first one-man show 'Canto One' and since then he's been part of many National and International group exhibitions, including the 2nd International Student Triennial Exhibition, Istanbul (2000). In March 2007 John held his first exhibition in the UK at London's South Bank Centre in tandem with a concert from acclaimed Jazz pianist Lola Perrin. John exhibited 12 drawings, produced in inspiration of Lola's music.
As well as receiving regular commissions from paintings to theatre backdrops, John Kennedy has a special interest in archaeological illustrations, drawing ancient artefacts from places such as Paphos, Cyprus and New Zealand for academic publications.
"At 19 John was put under the wing of one of the great Australian Abstract Expressionist painters, Ron Lambert..."