CURRICULUM VITAE

DAMIEN WRIGHT

Name: 				Damien Peter WRIGHT
Date of Birth: 			4 April 1969
Place of Birth:			Redcliff, Queensland 
Residential Address		56 Wallace Street, West Preston VIC 3072 
Studio Address: 			16/167 Beavers Rd, Northcote VIC 3070
Studio Phone: 			03 9486 4434
Mobile:				0447 728 882
Email:				damien@wrightstudios.com.au
Website:				www.wrightstudios.com.au
Instagram:				@damienwrightstudios
Facebook:				Damien Wright Studios

Education:

1991				Bachelor of Arts (Honours) 
				The University of Melbourne
				Double major in History and Politics

Employment:

1995 - present		Principal/sole proprietor, Wright Studios
				Furniture designer/maker 
Own studio practice designing and making hand-crafted furniture and sculpture in wood.

2010 				Inaugural consultant craftsman/studio manager
				Dharpa Djama Furniture Studio
				Gunyangara, Arnhem Land, NT

Exhibitions:

2019				Black Bamboo Murray Island Design
				Collaboration with NGV, Gab Titui, Cairns 					Art Gallery. Cairns 		

2019				Friends and Associates
				The Stables Meat Market North Melbourne

2019				A Tree’s Worth
				Counahan Gallery Brunswick Town Hall

2018				Friends and Associates
				The Stables Meat Market North Melbourne

2018				This is not Memphis
				Craft Victoria

2017				AFDA Finalist
				Collaboration with Bonhula Yunupingu

2017				Red Gum
				Wangaratta Gallery
				
2017				Extractive Frontier: Mining for Art
				Castlemaine State Festival, Castlemaine
				Collaboration with Bonhula Yunupingu.

2015-16			Timber Memory
				Craft, Melbourne

2015				Intimate Immensities
				online exhibition									http://garlandmag.com/article/online-exhibition

2014				One Night Only (solo)
				Object Gallery, Sydney

2013-14			Wood: art design architecture
National touring exhibition, for venues see:
http://www.naturallybetter.com.au/art-design-architecture/index.html

2013				Melbourne Now
				National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

2006				Make the Common Precious – South Project
				Santiago, Chile

2006				Make the Common Precious
	Craft Victoria, Melbourne

2005                                 	Native Tongue
Native Australian Timber Art, Melbourne

2004				Heresy: The Secret Language of Materials
				Craft Victoria, Melbourne

				Sensoria
				First Site Gallery, RMIT, Melbourne

2003				Living With Wood 03
				Chapel off Chapel Gallery, Melbourne

2001	Series 2, in association with Ethan Steen, architect/artist 
				Landau Gallery, Melbourne

				Wood Quest
				Waterside Woodworks and Gallery, Melbourne

Stolen Generations Memorials: A National Design Competition
(exhibition of Winning and Highly Commended entries)
Museum Victoria, Melbourne			

	Interiors
				Object Galleries, Sydney

Rings of History
Craft ACT, Canberra (and travelling nationally until 2003)

	Living With Wood 01
				Waterside Woodworks and Gallery, Melbourne

2000				Outback Timbers 2000
				R.N.A. Showgrounds, Brisbane

				Pleasures of the Table
				Royal Botanic Gardens Observatory, Melbourne

1999				Furnitex
				Melbourne Exhibition Centre, Melbourne

1998				Living With Wood '98
				Metro!, Melbourne

				Furnitex
				Melbourne Exhibition Centre, Melbourne

1997				Working With Wood
				Melbourne Exhibition Centre, Melbourne

				The Magic of Wood
				Manningham Arts Space, Melbourne

				Winterfest
				Warburton Arts Festival, Victoria

1996				Living With Wood '96
				Meat Market Craft Centre, Melbourne
				
				Working With Wood
				Melbourne Exhibition Centre, Melbourne

				Wonderful Wood! 
				Manningham Arts Space, Melbourne

Public Commissions:

2015				Horsham Performing Arts Centre	
				Outdoor seating
				(in association with Kane Constructions)

2010				Frank Tate Pavilion, University of Melbourne	
	Outdoor seating
	(in association with Cox Architects)
	
2010				Dhimurru Offices, Nhulunbuy, NT
				Board Table

2010				Adelaide Oval, Adelaide 
				Stadium seating

2009				Koori County Court, Morwell, Victoria
				Bar Table

2005				Immigration Museum, Melbourne
Memorial to British Child Migrants 

2004				Immigration Museum, Melbourne
				Foyer Reception Desk

				Federal Court of Australia, Melbourne
				Lectern II								2003		National Gallery of Victoria, Ian Potter Centre 
				(in association with Lab Architecture Studio)
				Board Room tables (2)
				Members Room low tables (4)

				Federation Square Management Offices
Foyer Reception Desk, Board Room table and low tables

2002				Federal Court of Australia, Melbourne
				Conference table for Chief Justice’s Chambers 
				Lectern I

				Catholic Archdiocese of Broken Bay, Sydney
				Ecclesiastical furniture (suite of 8 pieces)
2001				Museum  Victoria
				Winner - National Design Competition 
	“Stolen”: Memorial to the Stolen Generations
				(with Roseanne Bartley, jeweller)

Federal Court of Australia, Melbourne
				Low table for private chambers of Chief Justice
				Feature stair rail for public space

2000				N+1 Equals
				Maribyrnong River, Footscray
				Artists: Simone LeAmon and Charles Anderson
				Sculptural moulds

1999				Holmesglen Institute of T.A.F.E.
				Young Eucalypt Project
				Brief: Design and make chair, coffee table and 					bedside table to showcase young eucalypt timbers.  				To be exhibited nationally and internationally.

1998				Timber Promotion Council with C.S.I.R.O.
				East Gippsland Timber Project
				Brief: Design and make two hallstands to showcase 				East Gippsland timbers. 
				To be exhibited nationally and internationally.

Commercial Commissions:

1995-2016	Projects in association with architecture and design companies including Cox Architects, SAAJ, Richard Swanston, Orchard Piper, O’Connor and Houle, Billard Leece, Allom Lovell, Alan Powell, SJB Interiors, Lab Architecture Studios, Tonya Hinde Design, Tammy Zaro Design

Private Commissions:

1995 - 2016	Home and office furnishings and sculptural works for private clients including dining tables, dining chairs, sideboards, chests of drawers, lounge chairs, beds, bedside tables, hallstands, bookcases, coffee tables etc.
 
See www.wrightstudios.com.au for details.

Awards:

2015				Australian Design Honour Roll
				Australian Design Centre
http://australiandesigncentre.com/australiaan-design-honours/

2014				Winner
Wood: art design architecture People’s Choice Award

2004				Winner
National Design Competition to design a memorial to the British Child Migrants
Sponsored by Museum Victoria and Federal Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs

2001				Winner (with Roseanne Bartley, jeweller)
National Design Competition to design a memorial to Stolen Generations
				Sponsored by RMIT University and Museum Victoria

	First Prize, Best Piece in Show 
				Living With Wood 01, Melbourne

2000				Sponsors’ Prize for Best Workmanship 
				Second Prize, Fine Furniture Division
				Outback Timbers 2000, Brisbane

1997				Best Use of Recycled Timber 
				The Magic of Wood, Melbourne

Conference presentations:

2015				Parallels: International Craft and Design Conference
				National Gallery of Victoria
				https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/event_series/parallels/

2006				South Project – Santiago Gathering

2004				South Project – Melbourne Gathering

Media profiles (select):

“Damien Wright in His Studio” by Gabriella Coslovich, Gallery Magazine, National Gallery of Victoria, May 2013

“In Pursuit of Usable Beauty: Damien Wright and His Table” by Gideon Haigh, The Monthly, April 2009.

Television, radio, newspaper and magazine features.  Further details on request.

Publications:

2006	“Southern Skies, Sliding Doors”, Object, no 53   pp36-37

2001	“Making a Name For Yourself”, Bulletin, Craft Victoria, 1/2001

2000	“Reading the Country”, Craft, Craft Victoria, 2/2000

1999				"In Praise of Working with Wood", Craft, Craft 						Victoria, vol. 29, no. 237, 1/1999	

1996				Unleashed: A History of the Footscray Football 					Club  (Melbourne, 1996) [with John Lack, Chris 				McConville and Michael Small]

Professional Associations:

2015-19			Editorial Board, Garland Magazine

2012-14			President, Victorian Woodworkers Association

2004				President, Craft Victoria

	2001 - 2005			Board Member, Craft Victoria
					Publications and Exhibitions Committee, Craft Victoria

1999 - 2011			Member, Craft Victoria 

1996 - 01	Committee Member/Activities Co-ordinator, Victorian Woodworkers' Association

1995 - 2016			Member, Victorian Woodworkers' Association 

Referees:

Professional		Dr Suzie Attiwill
				Lecturer, School of Architecture and Design, RMIT 
				Independent Curator
				0409 351 859

				Patrick Ness
				Partner
				Cox Architecture
				(03) 96503288

				Dr Susan Cohn
				Craft practitioner, Workshop 3000
				(03) 9650 3171
				
				Private clients on request.