Mr Rhett D'Costa

Position

Lecturer

School /
Work Unit

Art

Contact Details

+(61 3) 9925 2710

rhett.dcosta@rmit.edu.au

Location

Building: 24
Level: 2
Room: 10

City Campus

College/Portfolio

Design & Social Context

Rhett D'Costa artwork

Key Activities

Rhett D’Costa was born in Bombay, India and migrated to Australia at an early age. Rhett has lectured variously across a range of Universities and Colleges including La Trobe University, Bendigo Campus, Monash University, Gippsland Campus, LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore and is currently a lecturer in Painting at RMIT University. He teaches Painting in both RMIT University, Melbourne and as part of RMIT University’s undergraduate programme in Hong Kong.

Rhett has sat on various committees, including Board Member, Victorian Tapestry Workshop and the Castlemaine State Festival. As well as sitting on working committees for the Singapore government on Culture and the Arts. he has been invited on to judging panels for distinguished painting prizes including the Sieman’s Fine Art Scholarships, Melbourne, the UOB Painting Prize, Singapore and the Phillip Morris Asean Art Awards, Asia.

Rhett has been a professional practicing artist for more than 23 years, exhibiting in more than 12 solo shows and numerous group and curated exhibitions both within Australia and overseas His artistic practice extends across drawing, painting and installation processes and examines issues relating to Abstraction, Modernism and Modernity both within and outside of a Western trajectory. His research draws on his dual background of British and Indian culture within the context of postcolonial theory, Subaltern Studies and current global art practice in order to determine what shifts occur when modernism is looked at without demarcated Occidental distinctions.

Qualifications

Currently undertaking Ph.D, RMIT University; MA (Fine Art) 1990; BA (Fine Art) 1985.

School of Art Research Cluster

Art, Time and Space

Research Outputs

Solo Exhibitions

  • 2009 - Plays and Wins, Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale, Victoria.
  • 2008 - Little Thought / Secret Pictures, Gallery 101, Melbourne
  • 2008 - Possible Worlds, Switchback Gallery, Monash University, Melbourne
  • 2004 - Harmony and Counterpoint, (3 person show), Gallery 101, Melbourne.
  • 2002 - Neutral Reading, Gallery 101,Melbourne.
  • 1999 - Recent Paintings and Works on Paper, Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1998 - Memory and Slowness, Caldwell House Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1994 - Recent Paintings, Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1992 – Breathing, Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1990 - Recent Paintings, Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1990 - Master of Arts Assessment Exhibition, Lower Storey Hall, Melbourne.
  • 1990 – Misrememberings, Gold St. Gallery, Melbourne.

Group Exhibitions

  • 2010 - Wall Works and Other Projects, Gallery 101, Melbourne
  • 2010 - The Secret Files of the Working Men’s College, Project Space / Spare Room Gallery, RMIT University
  • 2010 - Something in the Air, Gallery 101, Melbourne.
  • 2010 - Drawing in/ Drawing Out, Project Space, RMIT University.
  • 2009 - A World of Art, The Seoul Museum of Art, South Korea.
  • 2009 - The World of Drawing, Sungshin Museum, South Korea.
  • 2009 - Quiet! Stephen Mc Laughlin Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 2008 - Robert Jacks Drawing Prize, Bendigo Art Gallery, Victoria.
  • 2008 - Secondary Sources, RMIT Faculty Gallery, School of Art, RMIT University.
  • 2007 - Electric Valley Studios , Switchback Gallery, Monash University, Victoria
  • 2003 - 2003 Arthur Guy Inaugral Painting Prize, Bendigo Art Gallery, Victoria
  • 2002 - 2002 Melbourne Art Fair Royal Exhibition Buildings, Melbourne.
  • 2000 - 2000 Works on Paper Sungshin Museum, Seoul, Korea.
  • 1999 - 1999 National Works on Paper Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, Victoria.
  • 1999 - Ambulations. Contemporary works based on the Notion of Walking, Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1999 - Carte Blanche - A Drawing Exhibition Alliance Francaise, Singapore.
  • 1998 - SemiosisLASALLE Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1998 - Painting Now LASALLE Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1997 - Look Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1996 - Faculty Earl Lu Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1996 - Works on Paper Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1995 - Faculty Artists School of Fine Art LASALLE Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1995 - The Postcard Show LASALLE Gallery, Singapore.
  • 1995 - Interiors Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1995 - Tenth R.M. AnsettArt Award Acquisitive Prize City of Hamilton Gallery.
  • 1995 - Paintings Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1993 - Artworkz 5 Gallery 101, Melbourne.
  • 1991 - Young Artists New Works Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne
  • 1990 - Landscape Flinders Lane Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1990 - 1st Melbourne International Art Fair Exhibition Buildings, Melbourne.
  • 1988 - Masters Work in Progress RMIT Faculty Gallery, Melbourne.
  • 1988 - Mitchell College and Hobsons Press National Student Art Prize , NSW.