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Art that engages. Sparks conversation. Stays with you.

Susanne Kerr - Wild Carrot, 2025 - 60x50cm - acrylic on silk 2_edited.jpg

Welcome

I am a contemporary artist known for my intricate technique and compelling visual narratives offering nuanced observations of human behaviour. Figures are often set within ambiguous or naturalistic environments to suggest an underlying psychological complexity. ​I aim to spark conversations and provoke thought. Whether you’re an art enthusiast or just curious about the creative process, I invite you to explore my work and join me on this artistic journey. 

Susanne Kerr - Undergrowth, 2025 - 75x60cm - acrylic on linen_edited.png

Biography

I am recognized for creating evocative and intricate works that express a quiet, deeply human narrative. I hold a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Canterbury (2000), and for over two decades, I have exhibited my work throughout New Zealand and Australia. Some of my recent and upcoming highlights include my solo exhibition, An Echo of Small Things, at Gallerysmith in Melbourne (November 2025), as well as participation in significant art fairs such as the 2024 Aotearoa Art Fair and the Sydney Contemporary Art Fair (2021). My extensive exhibition history includes numerous solo shows at leading galleries, such as Gallerysmith, Milford Galleries, FHE Galleries, Sanderson, Page Blackie, and Pātaka Art & Museum. I have also been selected for major group and public exhibitions, including The Wallace Art Award (across multiple years), the Parkin Drawing Award, and Auckland Art Fair. My work is held in public and private collections in New Zealand, Australia, Asia, the USA, and Europe. Over the years, I have received several distinctions, including the Michael Evans Figurative Award (2018), the Zinni Douglas Merit Award at the Walker and Hall Art Award (2011, 2018), a Merit Award at The New Zealand Printmaking and Painting Award (2015), and the People’s Choice Winner at the Wallace Art Award (2011). My practice has been featured in prominent art journals, exhibition catalogues, and national media, with interviews and reviews emphasizing the distinctive style and narrative depth of my pieces. Beyond exhibitions and publications, I have completed artist residencies, delivered public talks and workshops, and participated in various collaborative projects. For more detailed information, please click the CV link.

View in person

UPCOMING SOLO EXHIBITION: An ​Echo of Small Things,  6 - 26 November 2025, Gallerysmith, Prahran, Melbourne. What if the weeds beneath your feet told the story of survival? In An Echo of Small Things, the unremarkable becomes extraordinary, as overlooked flora and quiet figures intertwine to illuminate our shared capacity for adaptation and endurance. Kerr’s work captures moments of human unease and vulnerability, offering a visual meditation on personal and environmental change. Created during a period of personal transition, these works reflect transformation and growth – where days are measured in walking, observing, traveling and painting. Each work captures the passage of time and maps shifting terrains that are at once familiar and new. Drawing on diverse resource material photographed around her changing studio environment, Kerr transforms fragments of the every-day into imagined landscapes, evoking a sense of place rather than a specific geography. Kerr’s major artwork Liminal, finds inspiration in the native flora and fauna surrounding her former urban studio while a suite of smaller pieces reflect the rural landscape and invasive species that line local roadsides near her new home. Botanical images—drawn from weeds collected during her daily walks—are intricately woven throughout the series. Wild carrot, earth-smoke, dandelion, and hemlock serve as her meditation on resilience and the artist’s fascination with the power of adaptation. These often-dismissed species serve as metaphors for persistence and the capacity to adapt in unfavourable circumstances. By incorporating invasive plants, Kerr repositions them as agents of survival, celebrating their ability to flourish in adverse conditions while challenging conventional hierarchies of beauty and value. Across the series, Kerr balances the tension and interplay between visibility and concealment, endurance and transformation. In an increasingly mercurial world, An Echo of Small Things captures the acceptance of change and the duality of belonging and dislocation.

Art that surprises and challenges.

ARTIST
TALK

Get to Know Me

Join me for an artist Q&A session where I will discuss recent works from my new exhibition, An Echo of Small Things, along with the themes and processes behind them. Event is open to all. DATE + VENUE: Saturday 8 November 2025, 2pm. Gallerysmith, Prahran, Melbourne, AUS

Susanne Kerr in her studio 2023_edited.jpg

Get in Touch

I’d love to hear from you — whether you’re interested in my artwork, upcoming exhibitions, or collaboration opportunities.

+64 27 286 7899

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© Susanne Kerr. All Rights Reserved.

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