Biography

Kevin Pearsh was born in 1951 in Melbourne, Australia. Before moving to London in 1972, he attended fine art school in Perth and later lived in Zurich. By the age of twenty-five, Pearsh had works within the permanent collections of the Tate Gallery. He continued to live and work in London until 1983.

In 1982 Kevin was commissioned by American diplomat Robert H. Thayer to paint his 12th century chateau in Burgundy, France thus introducing Mr. Pearsh to the region that would become his artistic base, and place of residence.

While visiting Tasmania in the early 1990's Kevin was inspired by the power and beauty of the island's unique waterfalls. A phase of work resulted where water becomes the catalyst combining elements of luminosity and serenity.

In addition to the Tate Gallery, works by Kevin Pearsh can be found in the permanent collections of the Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge and the Santa Barbara Museum in California as well in numerous private collections throughout the world.

From the start of the new millennium through to the end of 2005, Kevin developed a series focusing on the subject of water, influenced by visits to China, India and Morocco. These works are infused with an intuitive perception of light and reflection. Regular travelling throughout India has heavily influenced Kevin’s palette of colors and resulted in several projects for Air India.

From 2006 to 2009, Kevin Pearsh produced a collection of 21 large format oil-on-canvas works depicting the inner character of the Ganges River. These works highlight geographical features and illustrate a pilgrimage along the entire length of the river. The artist has journeyed by foot, boat and land vehicle from the river's source within the ice cave of Gaumukh in the Himalayas to the delta where the Ganges flows out into the Bay of Bengal. In 2010, the "Ganges 21" collection of oil paintings was inaugurated and exhibited under the high patronage of the Indian government – ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations) - at the Azad Bhavan Art Gallery in Delhi. The exhibit then traveled to the Rabindranath Tagore Centre in Kolkata, and in early 2011 opened at the Bharat Kala Bhavan Gallery of the prestigious Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi.

In 2012, the Ganga21 collection travelled back from India to Europe and was exhibited at the Waterhall of the Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery from November 4th to 18th, 2013.

2014 saw Kevin moving his Burgundian artistic operations to a new atelier located in 400m2 of industrial studio space allowing work on new larger-scale paintings and exploration into sculpture and artistic installations.

In September of 2015, Kevin Pearsh conceived and gave life to the first of what was to become an annual event bringing together music and the presentation of new works in a festive and jovial evening setting, called “Meilly en Septembre.”

2016 saw a return to his native Australia, as well as a trip to India and revisiting of the Islands of Kahalgaon on the Ganges in the State of Bihar, which resulted in the development of a new series of watercolors and oils.

During the course of 2017 and 2018, Kevin continued traveling, while developing and refining his technique of painting reflections in both oil and watercolor on various new materials. This led to the creation of first 3D prototypes of freestanding metal totems designed as indoor or outdoor water features for private residences, public parks and professional sculpture installations.

2019 saw Mr. Pearsh expanding his Totem works and other painting series while traveling throughout Europe and the USA to nourish inspiration. The series of 11 Totems was developed throughout 2019 and installation at the Chateau de Commarin took place in May, 2020. The exhibition opening takes place at the Chateau de Commarin in September 2020, with the participation of His Excellency, Mr. Brendan Berne, the Ambassador from Australia to France.

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