Portrait of John Gould
(photographer: Heide Smith, 2023)
John Christian Gould is a painter, sculptor and teacher. Born in 1952 in England of British-Icelandic parents, as a child John lived in England, Iceland, Ireland, Germany and Singapore before emigrating to Australia in 1966.
The travels of his childhood set the stage for a life of travel and exploration of other cultures. A dyslexic, John found his passion for the visual arts at an early age.
John’s initial training was as a sculptor at the Canberra School of Art (1973-78) where he studied welded steel sculpture with Ron Robertson-Swann. In 1977, he was selected as a student to show his sculpture “Solar II" with British sculptors, Anthony Caro and Phillip King at the Australian National University, Canberra, ACT. After graduating in 1978, he assisted Robertston-Swann with construction of the Melbourne City Square sculpture, “Vault”.
In 1981-82, John undertook post-graduate training in sculpture at the City Art Institute (formerly the Alexander Mackie College) with Michael Esson and the late Sydney Ball in Sydney. He later completed a Graduate Diploma in Education (Technical) at the Institute of Technical and Adult Education in Sydney.
He has taught painting and sculpture with NSW TAFE over a number of years in Wollongong, Armidale, Goulburn and Queanbeyan and with the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT Solutions), between periods living overseas.
John Gould, Solar II, 1977, welded steel.
Private collection.
“TAFE College sculpture instructor John Gould with student James Brown” in David Moore, Image of New England, Armidale Development Corporation, NSW, 1992
John Gould, Ascension, 1985, steel, wood, perspex, sand, black stones, paint. Private collection.
Since 1978, John has held 15 solo or joint exhibitions of sculpture and paintings including at the Irving Sculpture Gallery (Sydney), Solander Gallery (Canberra), Gallery Delta (Zimbabwe), Qin Gallery and Australian Embassy Beijing, Australian High Commission Port Moresby, Tuggeranong Arts Centre (Canberra), M16 Artspace (Canberra) and Strathnairn Arts (Canberra). His work has been shown in a further 35 group exhibitions.
John’s first sculptures were squarely in the tradition of the formalist welded steel sculpture of the 1960s. After graduating, and wanting to chart his own path as a sculptor, in 1983 a study of North American Indian culture and functional objects became the point of departure from the tradition in which he was trained. John became interested in sculpture having a narrative which involved investigation, research and documentation—in addition to form and aesthetics.
John’s first sculptures were squarely in the tradition of the formalist welded steel sculpture of the 1960s. After graduating, and wanting to chart his own path as a sculptor, in 1983 a study of North American Indian culture and functional objects became the point of departure from the tradition in which he was trained. John became interested in sculpture having a narrative which involved investigation, research and documentation—in addition to form and aesthetics.
“After making steel sculpture in strict accordance with the established canons of constructed metal sculpture, John Gould's investigative repositioning of his sculptural stance at the age of thirty one was an outcome of his desire to loosen traditional ties, and explore a new idiom within a tightly prescribed medium strongly associated with formal preoccupations. At a time of ruthless questioning of his sculptural values, John Gould read ‘Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee’, which documented the history of American Indians since first settlement, concentrating in particular upon the effect of white domination and deprivation of land rights. It was American Indian imagery and their functional objects which provided the point of departure for his new corpus of work (Celia Winter-Irving, “John Gould’s Sculptures", Aspect, ed. Rudi Krausmann, No. 31, Winter 1984).
John Gould, A Book of Time, 1984, glass, sand, wood, steel, brass, paint.
Artist's collection.
From 1986-88 John was based in Nairobi, Kenya and from 1994-97 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Africa marked a move from sculpture to painting and multi-media 2Dx3D constructions. In Kenya, John developed a technique using pen and ink and sepia-toned wash that give the impression of an etching or original print. Each image takes many hours to produce, including those in the "Africa Nights" series. One of these was published in the limited edition Aries Art 94, Vol 1, No 1 (1994), collected by the National Gallery of Australia and other public institutions, and in The Bulletin (28 June, 1994). John's image "Lamu I" was reproduced by the United Nations Development Programme in Zimbabwe as a card. Collectively, the Africa works are a visual notebook of John’s travels in the region and the vivid peoples, art forms, textiles, street scenes, landscapes and architecture that he encountered.
John Gould, African Nights, 1993, paper, pen & ink, sepia tone wash. Part of a series now in private collections.
John Gould, Lamu I, 1988, paper, pen & ink, gold leaf. Private collection.
Sculpture built with Tanzanian artists at Nyumba Ya Sanaa workshop, 1988, welded steel
In Nairobi, John played a key role in curating an exhibition of artists from eastern and southern Africa—Artists for Peace and Food—for the Kenya Freedom From Hunger Council. In 1988, John travelled to Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania to conduct workshops with Makonde wood sculptors and Tinga Tinga painters—including acclaimed Tanzanian artists George Lilanga and Robino Ntila—at Nyumba Ya Sanaa (House of Art) on using welded steel techniques to produce traditional forms. Founded by Maryknoll Sister Jean Pruitt in 1972, Nyumba Ya Sanaa played a vital role in supporting local artists. The gates featuring the colourful painted metal animals and birds which the workshop produced stood at the entrance to Nyumba Ya Sanaa for many years.
In Harare, John exhibited his work and ran workshops on construction techniques with Zimbabwean artists at Gallery Delta. Founded by Derek Huggins and Helen Lieros in 1975, Gallery Delta also played a vital role in supporting and promoting local artists (https://gallerydelta.com/history/). In Zimbabwe, John’s path crossed again with Celia Winter-Irving (1941-2009), author of Contemporary Stone Sculpture in Zimbabwe who had moved to Zimbabwe to research and curate Shona sculpture (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celia_Winter-Irving). John’s African works were shown at three major exhibitions back in Canberra at Joy Warren’s Solander Gallery (1989, 1992 and 1998).
John Gould, Fort Jesus, Mombasa, 1987, paper, pen & ink, gold leaf, sepia tone wash.
Artist's collection.
John Gould, The Heavenly Guardians, 2004, paper, pen & ink, sepia tone wash. Private collection.
Limited edition prints made.
The opportunity to live in Beijing from 2001-2004 marked a new phase inspired by the immense history and dynamism of China, particularly the juxtaposition of the old and the new. John produced a series of topographical maps of Beijing, inspired by long bicycle rides, in which old Beijing is revealed beneath the surface of the modern city. The artifacts, carpets, textiles, ceramics and sculptures of China were a source of rich inspiration for John’s China series.
In Beijing, John’s work was shown at several exhibitions including at the Qin Gallery and the Australian Embassy. In 2002, John’s artwork “Xanadu” was auctioned at a China-Australia Chamber of Commerce 30th Anniversary event with Australian swimming champion Ian Thorpe. The funds raised went through Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for Youth charitable trust to the Beijing Zhiguang Special Education and Training School. John’s artwork "Colours of the Outback" was auctioned by comedians Roy Slaven and HG Nelson at the Australia Day Ball in 2003 to fund an Australian animal enclosure at the Beijing Zoo.
From 2005-2009, John taught painting and drawing in Canberra with CIT Solutions and was closely associated with the Mawamball Elders Art Group in Queanbeyan, NSW as teacher and mentor. John’s work over this period, and more recently, was increasingly environmental, exploring landscapes, rivers and habitats and the extremes of drought, fire and flood.
His work “Sacred River”, which reflects the Australian landscape and indigenous world, was awarded the Tuggeranong Art Centre’s People’s Choice Award in 2009.
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John Gould, Random Selection I, 2017, mixed media (photo: M16 Artspace). Artist's collection.
John Gould, Sacred River, 2009, mixed media. Private collection.
John Gould, The Drifter, 2010, mixed media. Private collection.
John Gould, Rain Spirits, 2011, acrylic on canvas. Private collection.
Pacific Navigators exhibition, Homestead Gallery 1, Strathnairn Arts
(photo: Strathnairn Arts)
John spent 2010-2012 living in Port Moresby, exploring the diverse landscapes and cultures of Papua New Guinea through his paintings and multi-media constructions. Four decades after his exploration of American Indian artifacts and culture, a similar approach can be seen in the three-dimensional maritime constructions on canvas that John produced in PNG. The approach this time was inspired by the navigational stick charts used by early Pacific navigators and the traditional vessels still used for festivals and everyday travel around PNG’s coastal and island regions. In his PNG paintings, John used colour, paint and canvas on a bigger scale and his work was freer in form, reflecting the raw energy and physical beauty of the environment.
In Port Moresby, John facilitated workshops with the City Mission and Save the Children’s Poro Sapot Project to produce posters for World AIDS Day 2011. He was also a judge for the 2010 and 2011 Luk Save Art Show, a major PNG visual arts event.
John’s exhibition at the Australian High Commission in Port Moresby was the lead event for Australia Week (5-9 March 2012). This was a joint exhibition with noted PNG artist Ratoos Gary Haopa and curated by Katherine McMahon, then Head of Gallery Development, Australian War Memorial, Canberra (http://islandmeri.wordpress.com/2012/05/04/the-haoapa-gould-art-exhibition-port-moresby-march-2012/).
Back in Australia since 2012, John has had work in exhibitions at M16 Artspace, the Tuggeranong Arts Centre and Strathnairn Arts in Canberra. His last solo exhibition, “Pacific Navigators” was at Strathnairn Arts in late 2023 (https://www.strathnairn.com.au/2023-exhibitions/pacific-navigators). “Pacific Navigators” is a series of multi-media 2Dx3D constructions on canvas inspired again by the vessels and stick charts used by traditional Pacific navigators to sail routes between the Pacific islands. Paintings in the exhibition depicted rivers, islands and villages. John now divides his time between Canberra and Tuross Head on the NSW South Coast.
Back in Australia since 2012, John has had work in exhibitions at M16 Artspace, the Tuggeranong Arts Centre and Strathnairn Arts in Canberra. His last solo exhibition, “Pacific Navigators” was at Strathnairn Arts in late 2023 (https://www.strathnairn.com.au/2023-exhibitions/pacific-navigators). “Pacific Navigators” is a series of multi-media 2Dx3D constructions on canvas inspired again by the vessels and stick charts used by traditional Pacific navigators to sail routes between the Pacific islands. Paintings in the exhibition depicted rivers, islands and villages. John now divides his time between Canberra and Tuross Head on the NSW South Coast.