Biography
| BORN | 1973 | |
| EDUCATION | ||
| 2003-2005 | MA Fine Art (painting) | City & Guilds of London Art School |
| 1993-1996 | BA (Hons) History of Modern Art | University of Manchester |
| ONE PERSON EXHIBITONS | ||
| 2025 | Sites of Conflict | Torrance Art Museum, Torrance |
| 2024 | Revolt Repeat | Gramercy Park Studios, London |
| 2024 | Flying Leaps | City Streets including Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield |
| 2014 | Type 1 Zealotry (curated by Edward Lucie-Smith) | Cock ’n’ Bull Gallery, London |
| 2000 | New Paintings | Clapham Art Gallery, London |
| SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS | ||
| 2024 | Whitstable Arts Festival | Horsebridge Arts Centre, Whitstable |
| 2024 | Chronology (with Sam Jackson) | Michele Mack Gallery, New York |
| 2024 | Art Through Time: Contemporary Reflections (curated by Virginia Damtsa) | Alon Zakaim Fine Art, London |
| 2024 | Art Through Time: Contemporary Reflections (curated by Virginia Damtsa) | Alon Zakaim Fine Art, London |
| 2023 | In It For The Long Haul (curated by Robert Curcio) | Lichtundfire, New York |
| 2023 | Dirty Synth (curated by Tony Benn) | The Globe Taavern, London |
| 2023 | PREVIEW | Gramercy Park Studios, London |
| 2022 | And Now the Good News: Works from the Nobel Collection (curated by Christoph Doswald) | Pera Museum, Istanbul |
| 2022 | DELTA GAMMA | Saatchi Gallery, London |
| 2021 | Repetition (with Graham Dolphin & Sam Jackson) | The Depot x CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2020 | PROJECT PAPYROPHILIA | CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2018 | The Discontents (with Matthew Collings, Tommaso Corvi-Mora, Matthew Higgs, Max Presneill) | Bermondsey Project Space, London |
| 2018 | Sawdust and Sequins: The Art of the Circus (curated by Fiona Robinson & Nathalie Levy) | Royal West of England Academy, Bristol |
| 2018 | Face Value2 | Old Truman Brewery, London |
| 2017 | In Memoriam Francesca Lowe | Old Truman Brewery, London |
| 2017 | Political Gestures | Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt |
| 2017 | Expressive Gestures | Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt |
| 2017 | Back to Basics: Text (curated by Artemis Potamianou) | ENIA Gallery, Pireas |
| 2016 | Black Paintings (curated by Heike Strelow) | Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt |
| 2016 | Semiotic Guerrilla Warfare part III (curated by David Hancock) | Dean Clough, Halifax |
| 2015 | Semiotic Guerrilla Warfare part I (curated by David Hancock) | Paper, Manchester |
| 2015 | An Odyssey | Torrance Art Museum, Torrance |
| 2015 | Cult of the Concrete (curated by Alexis Milne) | Joey Ramone Gallery, Rotterdam |
| 2014 | The Opinion Makers 2 | Londonewcastle, London |
| 2014 | Cultus Deorum (curated by Zavier Ellis) | Saatchi Gallery, London |
| 2014 | Cathal Smyth: A Comfortable Man (curated by MC Llamas) | Wilton’s Music Hall, London |
| 2014 | WATCHMEN: Surveillance and The Flâneur (curated by Max Presneill and Lisa DeSmidt | Torrance Art Museum, Torrance |
| 2014 | Stations of the Cross: Above and Below | St Marylebone Parish Church, London |
| 2013 | First Come First Served | Lion and Lamb, London |
| 2013 | London Abstrakt | BRAUBACHfive, Frankfurt |
| 2013 | Macmillan De'Longhi Art Auction | Royal College of Art, London |
| 2013 | I Love You Because (curated by Chloe Mortimer and Harry Pye) | A-side B-side Gallery, London |
| 2013 | Photo & Print | Charlie Dutton Gallery, London |
| 2012 | Alter | VEGAS, London |
| 2012 | Contemporary Visions | Beers.Lambert Contemporary Art, London |
| 2012 | The Impossible Heap | Galerie8, London |
| 2011 | London International (curated by Edward Lucie-Smith) | Klaipėda Culture Communication Centre, Klaipėda |
| 2011 | THE FUTURE CAN WAIT presents: Polemically Small (curated by Zavier Ellis, Edward Lucie-Smith, Max Presneill & Simon Rumley) | Torrance Art Museum, Torrance |
| 2011 | Polemically Small (curated by Edward Lucie-Smith) | Garboushian Gallery, Beverley Hills |
| 2011 | Stockholm Syndrome (curated by Alexis Milne) | Studio B3.2, London |
| 2010 | Rizing Stars of Bethnalhem | High Roller Society, London |
| 2010 | PressArt: Die Sammlung Annette und Peter Nobel | Museum der Moderne, Salzburg |
| 2010 | The Term “Reality”: Collages 1970 - 2010 | Paul Stolper, London |
| 2008 | Swap Meet | Raid Projects, Los Angeles |
| 2007 | Dorian Gray Project: Happy Days (curated by Infinity Bunce & Katherine Lubar) | John Jones Project Space, London |
| 2006 | Obsession (curated by Robin Mason) | Sartorial Contemporary Art, London |
| 2006 | Wish You Were Here | A.I.R. Gallery, New York |
| 2006 | The Mouse That Roared (curated by Kieron Dennis) | Project 133, London |
| 2006 | The Circus Show (curated by Marcus Cope & Stephanie Moran) | Three Colts Gallery, London |
| 2005 | Young Gods edition III (curated by Zavier Ellis) | Clapham Art Gallery, London |
| 2003 | 100 Sale of the Century | The Arts Theatre, London |
| 2003 | Gallery Artists 2002-2003 | Clapham Art Gallery, London |
| 2003 | 100 | Studio Voltaire, London |
| 2002 | Studio Voltaire Open | Studio Voltaire, London |
| 2000 | 14x14 | Mafuji Gallery, London |
| BIBLIOGRAPHY | ||
| 2018 | FaceValue2 | Exhibition Catalogue, Jealous East, London |
| 2016 | PRESS ART: Die Sammlung Annette und Peter Nobel Vol. II | Stämpfli (ISBN 978-3-7272-1459-2) |
| 2013 | Just who is Zavier Ellis? by Mike von Joel | State Magazine, Edition 09, January 2013 |
| 2011 | London International | Exhibition Catalogue, Klaipėda Culture Communication Centre, Klaipeda |
| 2010 | PRESS ART: Die Sammlung Annette und Peter Nobel | Stämpfli (ISBN 978-3-7272-1134-8) |
| COLLECTIONS | ||
| Beth Rudin DeWoody, West Palm Beach | ||
| Julian & Stephanie Grose, Adelaide | ||
| Werner Grub, London | ||
| Ann Lewis, Sydney / New York | ||
| Sammlung Annette und Peter Nobel, Zurich | ||
| Soho House, London | ||
| Soho Warehouse, Los Angeles | ||
| 180 The Strand, London | ||
| Private collections in Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, United Kingdom & United States |
Press Release | Revolt Repeat
| Revolt Repeat |
| EXHIBITION DATES: Friday 2 August - Friday 30 August 2024 |
| EXHIBITION HOURS: Monday – Friday 10am-5pm |
| ADDRESS: Gramercy Park Studios, 25 Great Pulteney Street, Soho, London W1F 9ND |
| Gramercy Park Studios in Soho host Zavier Ellis’ highly anticipated solo exhibition ‘Revolt Repeat’ in partnership ArtIn Agency and CHARLIE SMITH LONDON. With a unique perspective on contemporary history painting, Ellis’ practice involves deep research into specific subjects, focusing especially on revolution, resistance and conflict. In this exhibition, he explores the French Revolution, Spanish Civil War, Civil Rights, fall of the Berlin Wall and birth of monotheism. Ellis is interested in the complexity of history and the tendency for events, methods and motivations to repeat themselves with different iterations. He draws on the past to inform the present and warn against the future. The use of collage in combination with text and a visual symbolism drawn from his research is fundamental to Ellis’ approach. Whilst adopting rhetorical and propaganda techniques, especially focusing on repetition, he deploys imagery and language that reference specific historical and political events. Always fragmented, Ellis embraces the broken, derelict, incomplete and mistaken to invite new meanings and interpretations. Combined with a distinctive painterliness, Ellis references street signs, historical graffiti, worn posters and the weathered surfaces that form the language of city streets. Recently, Ellis’ work has returned to its source during a project with Flying Leaps. Two works referencing the UK election and Israel’s invasion of Gaza have been printed as posters and fly-posted throughout the UK including London, Manchester, Bristol, Liverpool, Sheffield, Glasgow and Edinburgh. These works will feature in the exhibition as Giclée editions. Zavier Ellis read History of Modern Art at Manchester University (1993-1996) before undertaking a Masters in Fine Art at City & Guilds of London Art School (2003-2005). Zavier has exhibited alongside contemporary and 20th century artists including Peter Blake, Michael Craig-Martin, Marcus Harvey, Damien Hirst, Julian Opie, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Derek Ridgers, Antoni Tàpies, Mark Titchner, Gavin Turk, Keith Tyson and Mark Wallinger. He has exhibited globally including Museum der Moderne, Salzburg; Pera Museum, Istanbul; Torrance Art Museum, Los Angeles; Saatchi Gallery, London; Klaipėda Culture Communication Centre, Klaipėda; Royal West Academy, Bristol; Dean Clough, Halifax; Paul Stolper, London; Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt; Raid Projects, Los Angeles; and ENIA Gallery, Pireas. Zavier’s work is featured in prominent private collections including the seminal Sammlung Annette und Peter Nobel, Zurich and Beth Rudin DeWoody, West Palm Beach. The event will take place at Gramercy Park Studios, 25 Great Pulteney Street, Soho, London W1F 9ND. Available to view Monday-Friday 10am-5pm. For further information please contact direct@charliesmithlondon.com. Follow @CHARLIESMITHIdn Please email direct@charliesmithlondon.com for artwork list |