Born in Auckland in 1968, Andrew Harman attended Auckland
University of Technology, graduating in 1996 with a Bachelor of
Visual Arts before going on to gain a Diploma of Teaching at the
Auckland College of Education in 1998.
Driven by an interest in simplified compositional elements and
the purity of individual media, Harman works in multiple
disciplines, exploring the relationship between construction and
painting, surface and support. Early in his career, Harman took
aesthetic cues from the notion of archetypal 'homely' objects as
'offerings', leading his his work to evoke the feelings of comfort,
support and protection in surrounding oneself with such familiar
and defining objects in the home. The emotional effect of these
works led Harman to look at the role of the home as a shelter and
nurturer of this totemic lifestyle. His Shelter
Constructions
series examines these concepts with works on board evoking
not only construction - in the manner of their cedar hardboard
creation - but warmth, familiarity and homeliness through Harman's
carefully considered palette.
As Harman's career has progressed, his works have kept this
insitence on simplistic form and a warm and nurturing palette,
while focussing more on presenting the aesthetic effect of the
interplay of large tonal bands of colour and small, insistent marks
on the canvas.
Harman is currently Assistant HOD of Art at Howick College and
and is HOD of the College's Photography and Art History
Departments, positions he has held for the last 10 years.