Curriculum Vitae
Bio
Aarone Neill is an Irish-Australian sculptor, living and working on Gadigal land in Sydney, Australia. He was born in 1979 on the County Down coast in the North of Ireland. His multidisciplinary installation works are grounded in memories of growing up during the Troubles:
“It was a beautiful childhood, in a place of beauty, at a time of violence”.
Aarone’s artistic approach is deeply rooted in his childhood experiences of a divided society, as well as his engagement with the physical world around him. His work reflects a desire to find beauty and meaning in the midst of conflict and adversity, exploring the complex relationship between destruction and creation.
Aarone's installations and encaustic paintings are characterized by their immersive nature, inviting viewers to enter into and engage with the work on a physical and emotional level. Through his slow and deliberate process, Aarone transforms his materials into complex, multi-layered works that explore themes of memory, trauma, identity and place, and engages with the viewer on multiple levels, from the emotional resonance of his subject matter to the tactile experience of his chosen materials.
Artist Statement
Aarone’s work begins with a single found object: a block of beeswax, a damaged door, a sheet of steel. His creative practice is methodical, repetitious, and pensive. He moves slowly in a place of stillness and contemplation, engaging with each medium. This process allows a connection to emerge between the subconscious mind, the hand, and the material. Aarone investigates the tension inherent in an object’s materiality: a sheet of floating steel hanging as weightless as a murmuration of translucent boxes. His life experiences permeate the work, allowing him to integrate his past with the present.
The three elements of Aarone’s current installation, In This Shirt, act as a transitional space: a murmuration of translucent boxes hovering in the air, a door leaning awkwardly against a wall and a wasps’ nest cast in bronze, quietly becoming. The space between these objects is gently charged with each piece having an equal value in the triangulation despite their variations in size, density, and material. In This Shirt presents us with a self-portrait that becomes a gift, inviting the viewer into a contemplative site, drawn from a complex history.
Formal Art Education and Awards
Major Award: Aboriginal Art Centre Internship, Tapatjatjaka Arts, Titjikala, Northern Territory (2022)
KNULP Solo Exhibition Prize, Sydney (2022)
National Art School, Sydney (2019 -2021)
Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree, majoring in Sculpture
Holywood Rudolf Steiner School, Northern Ireland (1997)
O Level Art and Design
Exhibitions
Portraits of Place
Australian Galleries, Sydney (2023)
Solo Show, In This Shirt: Door
KNULP Gallery, Sydney (2022)
Queer Contemporary Exhibition, Metonymymesis
National Art School (2022)
BFA Grad Show, In This Shirt
National Art School, Sydney, 2022
BFA Grad Show Drawing Exhibition, Uncommissioned
National Art School, Sydney, 2022
Group Show, barefoot
Sculptures in the Garden, Mudgee, 2021
Margaret Olley Drawing Exhibition
Rayner Hoff Project Space, 2021
Group Show, Pink in the Middle
Sculptures in the Garden, Mudgee, 2020
Margaret Olley Drawing Exhibition
Rayner Hoff Project Space, 2020
Group Show, Lady Daffodil
Sculptures in the Garden, Mudgee, 2019