Julian Dashper was born in Auckland in 1960 and graduated from the University of Auckland in 1981 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.
In 2001 he was awarded the senior Fulbright fellowship and was based as an artist in residence at the Chianti Foundation in Marfa, Texas.
In 1992 he exhibited his first conceptual work, a series of drum kits with the names of New Zealand artists on them, for example “The Colin McCahons.” He alluded to artists as rock stars and constructed the drum heads with targets on them that imitated paintings by Jasper Johns. The artwork on the drumheads were made of applied vinyl.
He was one of New Zealand’s well know contemporary artists and exhibited widely in New Zealand and later in Australia and Europe. His work is represented in the collections of the Auckland Art Gallery, Museum of New Zealand – Te Papa, the Chartwell Collection as well as in many private collections.
Julian passed away in July 2009.
