About Tom Van Herrewege

Artist’s statement

My work is inspired by my curiosity of the incredible diversity within the animal kingdom and mankind’s interpretation of this across the world.

I am interested in how animals have evolved into what they are and the beauty and variety across this spectrum. Yet it is also how people have perceived them throughout history and the consequential impact that we have on them.

It is how we understand them, categorize them, create ideas around them, worship and demonize them, utilize them, and many other ways in how humanity makes sense out of animals.

Previous projects have taken me to places across the world to understand closer these unique perceptions of wild animals within their own environments. This ranges from the indigenous people and settlers that share these places to working with institutions within the field of natural history.

In recent years, my message and what I am trying to communicate within my work has grown more and more towards raising awareness of the developing extinction crisis and the importance of addressing this.

Selected solo exhibitions

2022: Hit List. Abington park museum. 15th January- 27th March.

2021: ANTHRO ZOOLOGY. Leicester Contemporary. 18th August- 11th September.

2020: The Elephant in the room. StudionAme, Leicester. 18th-19th July.

2019: Hit List. LCB Depot, Leicester. 25th-29th November.

2019: Hit List. Creswell crags museum, Nottinghamshire. 2nd -23rd August.

2019: Hit List. Surface Gallery, Nottingham. 12th -26th January.

2018: Hit List. StudionAme, Leicester. 24th March -6th April.

2016: Superstitious beasts. Loughborough University Gallery, Loughborough. October 17th-21st.

2015: Pica pica. A pop up exhibition in Market Harborough in conjunction with residency at Brooke House College and the release of the publication ‘Pica pica’. 8 Roman way, Market Harborough. January 23rd-30th.

2013: Paradise Lost. Kwazulu Natal Society of Arts, Durban, South Africa. May 21st-June 9th.

2011-2012: Tom Van Herrewege. Window Space. ASC Gallery, London, UK. December 5th-January 5th.

2011: Transfauna. Tanks Art Centre, Cairns, Australia. January 11th-March 11th.

2009: Whittled Rays. Malt Cross Gallery, Nottingham. August 22nd-September 11th.

Art Fairs

2021:The Affordable Art Fair, London: Battersea Park -October 20th-24th.

2021: The Other Art Fair, London: Kings Cross -July 1st-4th.

2019: The Other Art Fair, London: Bloomsbury -October 3rd-6th.

2019: The Other Art Fair, Los Angeles: Barker Hangar -September 5th-8th.

2019: The Other Art Fair, London: Kings Cross -July 4th-7th.

2019: The Other Art Fair, London: Shoreditch -March 14th-17th.

Publications

2018: Hit List. A visual guide to the extinction of animals. Self published in the UK.

2015: Pica pica. Self published in the UK.

2014: Creature fady. Perceptions and understandings of the animal kingdom in Malagasy fady and folklore. Self published in the UK.

Residencies

2013: Kwazulu Natal Society of Arts artist in residence, Durban, South Africa. March 1st-June 9th.

2011: Tanks Art Centre artist in residence, Cairns, Australia. January 11th-March 11th.

Collections

Sir David Attenborough.

Nottingham university school of biosciences.

Durban museum.

Cairns art gallery.

Education

2005-2006: MA in Fine Art Painting- Wimbledon School of Art.

2002-2005: BA in Fine Art Painting- Loughborough University.