David Brits was born in 1987 in Cape Town and lives there. He graduated from the Michaelis School of Fine Art (Painting) at the University of Cape Town in 2010. 

Brits has, over the past four years, devoted his practice to formal investgations in public-scale sculpture. Equally energised by material exploration and archival investigation, Brits’ practice also spans installation, print-making, drawing, and film.

Recent major public sculpture commissions include the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation, The Speir Arts Trust and the Iziko South African National Gallery. He is the winner of the Rupert Art Foundation’s inaugural Social Impact Arts Prize.

Brits’ recent solo exhibitions include Time is a Flat Circle, curated by Camila Maissune at MovArt Gallery, Lisbon, as well as inclusions in the Matereality group show at the Iziko South African National Gallery, curated by Andrea Lewis, and Synaptic at THK Gallery, Cape Town.

In 2014 Brits was awarded a residency at the St. Moritz Art Academy, Switzerland, under the mentorship of Marcel van Eden and Daniele Buetti. Additional group shows include Words curated by Willem Boshoff at the Nirox Sculpture Park, Johannesburg, Nevermind the M*ss at A SPACE, Helsinki, Kindergeburtstag, held at the Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris. His work has been featured in the academic journal Graduate Research and Reviews in the History of Art and Visual Culture (2015) and has been named a “young artist to watch” by the South African Art Times.

Brits made his curatorial debut with Not My War, an exhibition held at the Michaelis Galleries, UCT. This acclaimed show brought together works by significant South African artists that have reflected on their country’s involvement in border wars in Northern Namibia and Southern Angola during the 1960ies to 1980ies.

Brits’ work is housed in public and private collections in both South Africa and abroad, including the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation Collection, the SunFair Collection in New York, and the  Fondation Gandur pour l'Art Collection in Geneva. He is a recipient of the Golden Key Society Award for Visual Art, the Irma Stern Scholarship and the Barbara Fairhead Prize.

EDUCATION:

2010︎︎︎Bachelor of Fine Art (Painting), UCT Michaelis School of
Fine Art, University of Cape Town

SOLO EXHIBITIONS:

2022︎︎︎Time is a Flat Circle, MovArt Gallery, Lisbon
2016︎︎︎Sketches for the Cathedral of Johannesburg, HAZARD
Gallery, Johannesburg
2015︎︎︎Snake Man, SMITH Gallery, Cape Town
2013︎︎︎1969, Grande Provance Gallery, Franschoek
2011︎︎︎VICTOR VICTOR, Brundyn +, Cape Town

PUBLIC COMMISSIONS:

2020︎︎︎Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town
2019︎︎︎Spier Arts Trust, Stellenbosch
2019︎︎︎Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation, Cape Town

AWARDS:

2020︎︎︎Rupert Foundation Social Impact Arts Prize
2011︎︎︎Rhodes Scholarship Finalist
2011︎︎︎Golden Key Chapter Award for Visual Art
2010︎︎︎Humanities Faculty Deans List
2009︎︎︎Irma Stern Scholarship
2009︎︎︎Barbara Fairhead Prize for Social Responsibility in Art
2007︎︎︎Humanities Faculty Scholarship
2007︎︎︎Gold Medal Fine Art Foundation Course

RESIDENCIES:

2022︎︎︎MovArt Residency Program, Lisbon
2020︎︎︎Social Impact Arts Prize Residency, Graaff-Reinet, RSA
2016︎︎︎Hazard Gallery Artist in Residence, Johannesburg, RSA
2014︎︎︎St. Moritz Art Academy, St. Moritz, Switzerland

ART FAIRS:

2024︎︎︎Investec Cape Town Art Fair, MovArt Booth
2023︎︎︎ArtCurial Paris, MovArt Booth
2019︎︎︎Art Joburg, SMITH Gallery Booth
2019︎︎︎Latitudes Art Fair, Strauss & Co Booth
2019︎︎︎SculptX, Melrose Arch, Johannesburg
2017︎︎︎Cape Town Art Fair, 50ty/50ty Booth
Joburg Art Fair, 50ty/50ty Booth

CURATORIAL PROJECTS:

2012︎︎︎Not My War Exhibition, Michaelis Galleries, University of Cape Town

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS:

2023︎︎︎Liminal States,THK Gallery, Cape Town
2023︎︎︎Full House, Blank Projects, Cape Town
2023︎︎︎Synaptic, THK Gallery, Cape Town
2021︎︎︎Spier Light Art Festival, Spier Wine Estate, Stellenbosch
2020︎︎︎Materiality, Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town
2020︎︎︎Social Impact Exhibition, Rupert Museum, Stellenbosch
2019︎︎︎Spier Light Art Festival, Spier Wine Estate, Stellenbosch
2017︎︎︎Salad, Smith Gallery, Cape Town
2017︎︎︎Cape Town Salon, AVA Gallery, Cape Town
2016︎︎︎Words, Curated by Willem Boshoff, Nirox Sculpture Park, Cradle of Humankind, Johannesburg
2016︎︎︎Bring Your Own Beamer IV, Gallery Momo, Cape Town
2016︎︎︎1k – 4.0, 1k – 5.0, 1k – 6.0, City Guns, Cape Town
2016︎︎︎From Whence They Came, SMITH Gallery, Cape Town
2016︎︎︎Kindergeburtsdag 2016, Bottrop, Germany
2015︎︎︎Best in Store, SMITH Gallery, Cape Town
2015︎︎︎Nevermind the M*ss, A Space, Helsinki
2015︎︎︎Current, SMITH Gallery, Cape Town
2015︎︎︎Not From Here, 70 Juta Street, Johannesburg
2015︎︎︎Kindergeburtstag 2015, Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris
2013︎︎︎Parliament, Roeland Street Studios, Cape Town
2013︎︎︎ Un-bound, Franschoek Literary Festival, Franschoek
2012︎︎︎Our Fathers, , AVA Gallery, Cape Town
2010︎︎︎Amani Festival for Peace Visual Art Exhibition, Look-out Hill, Khayelitsha
2010︎︎︎Time In Our Hands, Clock Tower Precinct, Cape Town
2010︎︎︎Materiality – Ways of Seeing, ORE Gallery, Cape Town
2010︎︎︎Undiscovered Undergrad, Vansa Gallery, Cape Town

WORK PUBLISHED IN:

*Wallpaper
Object 17
Art Africa
Artthrob
SA Art Times
Business Day
Daily Maverick
Sunday Times
Cape Argus
GQ
House & leisure
Visi