Laurens Tan (b.1950, Holland) divides his time between his studios in Beijing, Las Vegas, and Wollongong, Australia. Laurens’s artistic practice concerns the plight of a global trance as it affects cultural identity – linking sculpture, architectural & industrial design, 3D animation and video, graphics, and music.
His work has been included in international survey exhibitions at Iberia Center of Contemporary Art, Beijing; Today Art Museum, Beijing; Boston Institute of Contemporary Art, USA; Houston Museum of Art, USA; Seoul National University Museum of Art, South Korea; Shizuoka Prefectural Art Museum, Japan; National Galleries of New South Wales and Victoria; The Queensland Art Gallery, Australia; and Sydney Powerhouse Museum, Australia. His works are held in major public collections across Australia and internationally. Laurens was a Board member of the Asian Australian Art Association, Sydney (1997-2007), Wollongong City Gallery (2006-08) and Polytechnic Institute of Technology, Sydney (2016-2018), and as Artist Advisory Group Member, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (2004-06).
CV
| 1950 | Born in Hague, Holland |
| 1962 | Migrated with his parents to Australia |
| 1800s | His great grandparents migrated to Indonesia from Fujian, China |
| Present | Lives and works in Sydney, Beijing (since 2006), Las Vegas (since 2012) |
| 2020 | “Three Wise Monkeys”, Las Vegas City Hall |
| 2019 | “The Ox Lantern Sculpture-” City of Sydney 2019 Lunar Lantern Festival |
| 2017-18 | “Babalogic in the Desert”, Sahara West Library (ex- Las Vegas Art Museum) |
| 2017 | “Identity & Nostalgia-” Neon Museum Visiting Artist / Nevada Arts Council Education Grant, Las Vegas |
| “Mooncake-” Animation Sequences, Mooncake Festival, Laneway Project, Rockhampton Regional Gallery, Queensland | |
| “Babalogic in the Desert” (Rotunda Space, Las Vegas) Nevada Arts Council Grant, Las Vegas, USA | |
| Monkey Lunar Lantern Commission Design Development, the City of Sydney, Sydney | |
| 2016 | “Sudu/Speed” (Animation and Installation) Commissioned by Murray Art Museum, Albury, NSW |
| “Depth of Ease” in Vegas, Exhibition Commissioned by Zappos Downtown, Las Vegas, USA | |
| Monkey Lunar Lantern Festival, Sydney Opera House, Commissioned by the City of Sydney, Sydney | |
| 2014 | “Empire Bookends: Basketcase”, Commissioned by the University of Chicago, Beijing, Center, China |
| 2013 | “The China Code (A Retrospective)”, Southern Florida College Melvin Gallery, Lakeland Florida, USA |
| 2012 | “Babalogic”, Commissioned Feature Artist by Art Asia (Art Basel), Miami, USA |
| “ShiWaiTaoYuan”, Public Art Commission, The Opposite House, Beijing, China | |
| 2011 | “Always on My Mind-home: Australia-Korea Foundation Project”, Museum of Art, Seoul National University and GANA Gallery, Seoul Square, Seoul, South Korea |
| “Happy Toy”, Tally Beck Contemporary, New York, USA | |
| “Happy Toy”, Commissioned Feature Artist, Art Asia (Art Basel), Miami, USA |
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| 2010-11 | “Arena-A Post Boom Beijing”, La Trobe University, Bendigo, Victoria |
| 2007 | “The Depth of Ease”, Anniart Gallery, 798 Art Festival, Beijing, China |
| 2005 | “Octogene” Commission, 10th Anniversary, Capitol Theatre Restoration, Sydney |
| 1999 | “Octomat”, World Gaming Expo & Congress, Las Vegas, USA |
| 1998 | “Profile of a Counter”, Banff Centre for the Arts, Canada |
| 1993 | Gallery 14 Contemporary Artists Series, Queensland Art Gallery, Queensland |
| 1992 | “Games & Voices”, Macquarie Galleries, Sydney |
| “Adapt Enforce IV”, Queensland Art Gallery, Queensland | |
| “Adapt Enforce V”, Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Perth |
| 2022 | “Parallel Wanderings”, Chatswood Lunar Festival, The Concourse, Sydney |
| 2021 | Articulate Projects 11th Anniversary, Leichhardt, Sydney |
| “Birds & Language”, Wollongong Art Gallery, NSW | |
| “Diaspora”, Las Vegas City Hall Chambers Gallery, Las Vegas, USA | |
| 2019 | Nanjing Ink Paper Art Biennale, Nanjing, China |
| “Between Two Worlds”, Newcastle Art Gallery, NSW | |
| 2018 | 48- collaborative installation, with Liquid Palace, fRuityspace, Beijing; I-project. space, Beijing, China |
| The First Ulaan Baatar International Art Festival, Outer Mongolia | |
| “Transcendence”, New Art Atrium @ Surry Hills, Sydney | |
| Artists for Guide Dogs Australia Benefit Exhibition, Customs House, Sydney | |
| “Plural: New Acquisitions” UNLV Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, Las Vegas | |
| 2016 |
Chinese Characters in Contemporary Art. SongZhuang Da Di Art Centre, China
|
| 2015 | Second International Zhongshan Art Expo, Guangdong, China |
| “Reverse the Perspective”, Mebo Culture, Wangjing Soho, Beijing, China | |
| “Death”, Casula Powerhouse, Sydney | |
| 2014 |
“Loose Canon”, Artbank Collection Exhibition, Waterloo, Sydney
|
| 2013 | “DaBao/ TakeOut”, Winnipeg Plug-In ICA, Surrey Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada |
| “REDvolution”, Hong Kong House, Sydney | |
| “Snake, Snake, Snake”, Sydney Chinese New Year Festival, Town Hall, Sydney | |
| “X-Field”, RMIT Design Research Institute, Melbourne | |
| “Arena / China Code”, Pinnacles Gallery / James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland | |
| “ACAF at Four Seasons Hotel, Beijing, China | |
| 2012 | “ZhongJian / Midway”, China and Australian National Tour |
| 2011 | “Always on My Mind-home: Australia-Korea Media Project”, Seoul National University Museum of Art and Gana Gallery at Seoul Square, Seoul, South Korea |
| China One World One Home 2011, Qing Tong Museum, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China | |
| “X-Field: Jumping City”, RMIT @ CU Space 798 Beijing, China | |
| “My Australia”, Kuandu University Art Museum, Taipei, Taiwan | |
| 2010 | Fat Art 2010, Today Art Museum at the Village, Beijing, China |
| “Dialog IV”, Bild Volksbad University of Applied Sciences, Jena, Germany | |
| “Asian Landmark”, A Toyota Art Project, Iberia Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China | |
| 2009 |
2009 ANZ Australian Film Festival, Sanlitun Village Beijing, China
|
| “Labyrinth III: Dangerous Liaisons”, Li Gallery, CaoChangDi, Beijing, China | |
| “Another Silk Road”, Ivan Dougherty Gallery, University of NSW, Sydney | |
| 2008 |
“2D / 3D Negotiating Visual Languages”, PKM Gallery Beijing, China
|
| “Vernacular Terrain 2”, IDAp, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane | |
| 2007-8 | “Journey/Process”, Red Gate Gallery Beijing, Eastlink Shanghai, Hong Kong |
| 2007 | “Art for Television 1994-98”, MAAP ArtRage, Griffith University, Brisbane |
| 2005 | McClelland Contemporary Sculpture Award Finals, Melbourne |
| Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award Finals, Melbourne | |
| 43rd Fisher’s Ghost Winner Open Art Prize, Campbelltown Arts Centre, Sydney | |
| 2004-5 |
“Isle of Refuge”, Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Monash University Art Museum, Sydney
|
| 2004 | “Gambling in Australia: Thrills, Spills and Social Ills”, Powerhouse, Sydney |
| 1997 | “Pan Pacifica Multimedia Festival, Groningen, Holland |
| “Lawyers Guns & Money”, Experimental Art Foundation, Adelaide | |
| 1996-8 | “Death: An Insight on Life”, Penrith Regional Gallery, Australia National Tour |
| 1994-6 | “Elvis + Marilyn: 2 x Immortal”, Boston Institute of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, USA |
| “Museum of Art”, Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, Baltimore Museum of Art, San Jose, USA | |
| “Museum of Art”, Honolulu Academy of Art, Philbrook Museum of Art Tulsa, Tennessee State Museum Nashville, Houston Contemporary Art Museum, USA | |
| 1991 | Australian Perspecta 1991, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney |
| 2011 |
“Always on My Mind: Australia-Korea Media Project on Future Shelters”, Museum of Art Seoul National University and GANA Gallery, Seoul, South Korea
|
| 2010-11 | “Arena-A Post Boom Beijing”, Hazelhurst Arts Centre, Sydney, LaTrobe University, Bendigo, VIC |
| 2000 | “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner”, Project Contemporary Artspace, Wollongong, Casula Powerhouse, Sydney |
| 1999 | www.octomat.com, Project Director/ CEO & Curator, R & D Production, Davis, California & Las Vegas, Nevada, USA |
| “Octomat”, World Gaming Congress & Expo, Las Vegas, USA |
|
| 1995 | “Just a Memento”, Project Director & Curator, Regional Survey Exhibition of Souvenirs, Project Contemporary Art Space, Wollongong & Casula Powerhouse, NSW |
| “The Art of Tourism: NSW Tourism Conference”, Parramatta, NSW |
|
| 1994-97 | “To Remember Buy”, Design Innovations in Souvenir Design, Project Director Curator, Western Sydney University, Regional Galleries Association of NSW, Casula Powerhouse, Sydney |
| 2022 | Commissioned Artist, Yours & Owls Music Festival |
| Commissioned Artist, Chatswood Lunar Festival, Sydney | |
| 2019 | Acquisition, Smart Museum of Art Permanent Collection, Chicago, USA |
| Commissioned Artist, City of Sydney Chinese New Year Lantern Project, Sydney | |
| 2018 | Acquisition, Ulaan Baatar Mongolian Art Museum, Mongolia |
| Acquisition, Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art Permanent Collection, Las Vegas, USA | |
| Acquisition, Deakin University Sculpture Park Permanent Collection, Melbourne |
|
| Acquisition, Deakin University Sculpture Park Permanent Collection, Melbourne | |
| Commissioned Artist, Mooncake Festival, Rockhampton Laneway Project, Queensland |
|
| 2017 | Commissioned Visiting Artist, Neon Museum & Nevada State College, Las Vegas Nevada Arts Council Grant for Babalogic in the Desert, Rotunda Space, Las Vegas, USA |
| 2016 | Commissioned Artist, Murray Art Museum, Albury NSW |
| Commissioned Artist, Zappos Downtown, Las Vegas, USA | |
| Commissioned Artist, City of Sydney Chinese New Year Lantern Project, Sydney | |
| 2014-15 | Commissioned Artist, University of Chicago (Beijing Center), China |
| 1997 | Acquisition, 25th Tamworth Country Music Festival |
Artbank Australia, Australia
Arts Council of South Australia
Australian Embassy, Beijing, China
Australian Embassy, Paris, France
Art Gallery of Western Australia
Banff Centre for the Arts, Alberta, Canada
Campbelltown Arts Centre, NSW Australia
Casula Powerhouse, Sydney, Australia
Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris, France
Craft Council Northern Territory, Australia
Curtin University of Western Australia, Australia
Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia
Galerie Cannibal Pierce, Paris, France
Griffiths University, Queensland, Australia
Hunan Normal University, China
Ipoh Gardens Development, Sydney, Australia
Lanyon House, ACT, Australia
Laura Civic Centre, South Australia, Australia
Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, Las Vegas, USA
Moet & Chandon Foundation, Epernay, France
Modern Sky Music, Beijing, China
New Parliament House, ACT, Australia
Orange Regional Gallery, NSW, Australia
Queensland Art Gallery, Australia
Queensland University Art Museum, Australia
Queen Victoria Museum & Art Gallery, Tasmania, Australia
Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, USA
South Pacific Forum Collection (National Gallery of Australia), Australia
Tamworth City Gallery, NSW, Australia
University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia
Wollongong City Gallery, NSW, Australia
Private and corporate collections
Australia, China, Japan, France, Germany, Switzerland, Holland, USA, Canada
| 2006 | The Architecture of Risk, Doctor of Creative Arts (Communications & Media), University of Technology Sydney, Australia |
| 1991 | Visual & Cultural Identity, Master of Creative Arts, University of Wollongong, Australia |
| 1987 | Cultural Studies, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, China |
| 1978 | B.Ed. (Fine Arts) University of South Australia, Australia |
| 1972 | Certificate, Music Theory & Arrangement, NSW Conservatorium of Music, Sydney, Australia |
