Joseph Rowntree, JR, paints and creates in the land where he was born - Aotearoa, New Zealand. Raised in suburban Auckland, then moulded by 15 years shearing across Canterbury, Hawke’s Bay and Australia, the rural landscape and its people have seeped into his practice, forming synaptic connections that run deep. Now based in Heretaunga, Te Matau a Māui Hawke’s Bay, he graduated with a Bachelor in Creative Practice from the Eastern Institute of Technology in 2018 and has spent the years since honing his craft with near constant practice and consistent showings of work.

JR draws on his personal experience and his keen eye for observation both of himself and of the world he inhabits to create emotive, stripped back works that speak to memory, place, legacy and identity with a vulnerability that eschews sentimentality. With a focus on the figurative, his raw, muted works lean less into superficial likeness than delve into deeper truths, offering quiet yet powerful commentary that asks more questions than it answers. Working across disciplines from studio to street, each piece invites dialogue and reflection, drawing connections across generations and class systems in today’s Aotearoa.