Yonel Watene

Yonel Watene was born 1989 in Auckland, New Zealand, of Māori (Ngati Maru (Hauraki) and Greek descent. Watene studied fine art and economics at Auckland University of Technology, graduating in 2010.

Watene works across a range of mediums and is primarily known for his paintings although he is becoming increasingly well known for his film photography, sculpture and installation projects.

Since 2016, by working through a variety of new media that grew to include photography and object-making, Watene created a diverse oeuvre that, while being inherently complex, is strategically invested in modern cultures, art historic traditions and autobiographic material, all of which are important to the artist. His investment into cultural commodities helps consolidate a diverse visual vocabulary that is equally prolific as it is strategic.

Watene has work in The Wallace Arts Trust Collection, Hocken Collection, Jan Warburton Trust, and various private collections throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, Spain, USA, Mexico, Australia, China and England.

Recent exhibitions include 'Two oceans at once (group)’ ST PAUL St Gallery, AUT, Auckland, February 14 2019; 'Watene Ah Um (solo)’ Firstdraft, Sydney, Australia, August 2018; 'Five Years’ (solo), PAULNACHE, Gisborne, June 2018; ‘How to say something in fewer words: Object without Object’ (group), play_station, Wellington, June 2018; ‘For a moment, maybe six weeks or so, no one knew how to make a painting’ (solo), Wallace Gallery, Morrinsville, ft. Olga Krause (performance), April 2018; ‘The Spirit’ (solo), PAULNACHE, Gisborne, December 2017; ‘rugby ball’ (solo), Casa Lu, Mexico City, Mexico, October 2017; ‘Anything Could Happen’ (group), Yu Gallery, Yu Yuan Garden, Shanghai, China, September 2017.

Yonel Watene is represented by PAULNACHE.