Australian Environmental Artist

John Dahlsen's journey from contemporary to abstract painting and drawing to environmental artist has taken him to new heights. Born in Sydney, John studied at the Victorian College of the Arts, and for the last decade the Australian Artist has become on of the most recognised and awarded artist of our time.

In the early 80's a fire destroyed John' art studio including most of his artwork and supplies. While this incident wasn't the reason for John's transition to environmental artist, it did have profound impact on him. John told us although it was a devastating time for him, it caused him to turn inwards and re-evaluate his life and rethink his life's priorities.

Dahlsen's shift from abstract painting to environmental artist actually occurred in the 90s when a trip to the Victorian coastline to collect driftwood for furniture making, turned into a clean-up project that would provide John with an endless supply of items to create his art. Each trip to beaches around Byron Bay, turned out vast amounts of ocean debris for John to take home and create new works of art.

Among the debris, John finds plastics, styrofoam, rope, thongs (flip-flops) and driftwood. To other beach folk these objects may have been worthless discard, but to John it was an opportunity to use his creative vision to recycle the objects he found into art. John recycles plastic bags and transforms them into contemporary landscapes and abstract assemblages, thongs become wall art made from driftwood colleted from Australian beaches.

Some of John recent works include seascapes and landscapes, images that he encounters on a daily basis. He paints, he tells us, with a sense of urgency... as if to capture these images before they become yet another victim of global warming.

Another one of Dahlsen's genius sculptures, took form with his creation of environmental purges made from by products of everything plastic. They represent everything and nothing - John tells us. The plastic in its petroleum state has survived years of evolution to get to this point and then regarded something worthless ... societies throwaway. But like all of his works, John breathes new life into the objects giving them a second chance to be something.

John Dahlsen is internationally known and has been recognized many times over for his artistic vision, including winning the prestigious Wynne prize at the Art Gallery of NSW (New South Wales) in 2000, and he also was selected as a finalist in 2003 and again 2004. More recently John was a finalist in the Sulman Award at the Art Gallery of NSW.

John Dahlsen has also given many lectures in his environmental art. His audiences are worldwide and include participants in seminars and environmental symposiums. He also speaks at many corporate events and universities. John's concern about environmental issues in relation to the effectiveness of art relaying an important and urgent message about our planet and global warming are the main topic of his lectures.

John's work has been exhibited at many galleries and museums around the globe. To learn more about his work or about the lectures and exhibits, please visit www.johndahlsen.com