A consummate printmaker, painter and drawer, John Pratt is primarily concerned with tenous states of being and mindstates evoked by physical surroundings.  In his images, the boundaries between the figure and its environment are dissolved, each serving as a visual metaphor for the existence of the other.  John's latest body of work reveals a fascination with physicality and originated from studies made at his local public swimming pool and beaches.  "I have always been curious about the capacity of everyday situations to contain the figure in various guises and resonate broader states of being.  The various movements of floating, submergence, frolicking, swimming, flailing and diving … evoke other conditions of release, vulnerability and uncertainty."  John is masterful in exploiting the scope for strength and vitality offered by his chosen medium and he creates highly expressive and original works.

John Pratt is an established Canberra printmaker, known for his work with children and youth groups.  He is a lecturer in the Printmedia and Drawing workshop at the National Institute of the Arts, and has frequently exhibited interstate and in Europe.  In 2002, he participated in the exhibition “The Sleep of Reason” at the Canberra Museum And Gallery which received the Canberra Critics’ Circle Award.  John is represented in many public collections, including the National Gallery of Australia; Australian National University, Canberra School of Art Collection; State Library of NSW; Queensland Art Gallery; Print Council of Australia; KPMG; University of WA; Sydney College of the Arts; Fremantle Art Centre ,WA; Central Queensland University and Latrobe University Art Gallery, Vic.