For Northern Territory University graduate Franck Gohier, his journey from student turned lecturer to acclaimed visual artist has been as rewarding as it has been varied.
Franck Gohier immigrated to the Northern Territory in the mid-1970s and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, majoring in printmaking in 1991 at the former Northern Territory University (NTU).
Gohier worked at the then NTU as printmaker/lecturer between 1993 and 1996. During this time he co-founded a series of ground breaking print workshops involving Indigenous artists linking the University with several key Indigenous art communities which formed the foundation of Northern Editions Printmaking Studio at Charles Darwin University.
‘The education I received at NTU gave me the skills to be self motivated, resourceful and self reliant in areas of research and employment opportunities,’ said Gohier when commenting on the quality of his degree.
In 1997 Gohier co-founded Red Hand Print Studio which continued his involvement with the tuition of printmaking to Indigenous communities, later extending this to prisoners’ at Berrimah Jail.
Franck’s work has been acquired by Artbank Sydney, the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory and the Charles Darwin University, as well as a number of private collectors throughout Australia. His prints and posters are held in several Australian collections including: National Gallery of Australia, Casula Powerhouse Museum, Sydney; Labor Council of NSW Print Collection; Queensland University and the University of Wollongong.
Gohier’s latest exhibition titled Samples is part of a larger body of work which was exhibited in Sydney at Ray Hughes Gallery in early 2006.
‘The work is loosely based on the popular Phantom comic book character and parodies characteristic elements of the Northern Territory that I have either witnessed or personally experienced as a long term Darwin resident.’