Louis Joseph Rivera Bretaña (born 1967) is a Filipino-born New Zealand painter and sculptor with roots in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

and the Visayan province of

Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...

. Bretaña graduated with

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachelor ...

degree from the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

College of Fine Arts, and moved to New Zealand in 2011. He subsequently earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts with first-class honours (2018) and a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

degree (2019) from the Elam School of Fine Arts at the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

. Bretaña's work actively challenges Euro-western colonial histories and encouraging a respectful engagement with culture via conversation and interaction. Bretaña's notable performance piece ''Eat My Rice'' was held in multiple locations throughout New Zealand, such as New Lynn Community Centre, Projectspace Gallery, RM Gallery, and Play_Station. ''Eat My Rice'' is a reimagining of the Filipino pre-colonial feast, where participants eat the

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

with bare hands, food served on banana leaves, and letting go of standards and expectations of Euro-western society. Pre-Christianity Filipino deities play a major role in Bretaña's paintings and sculptures; they act as a platform for pre-colonial Filipino narratives and mythologies, using glitter and glass crystals, but are merged with the local New Zealand context. In a Radio New Zealand interview, he stated "My works look into stories, myths and legends that I heard in my youth and I then translate them into paintings." In 2024, Bretaña was awarded Artist of the Year, Filipino-Kiwi Hero Awards 2024 for his contribution to the New Zealand's visual arts.

Selected solo exhibitions

* 2023: ''Eat My Rice'', part of World of Cultures,

New Lynn New Lynn is a residential suburb in West Auckland, New Zealand, located 10 kilometres to the southwest of the Auckland city centre. The suburb is located along the Whau River, one of the narrowest points of the North Island, and was the locatio ...

Community Centre,

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

New Zealand * 2021: ''Tumingala sa tinitingala na mga tala'',

Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery (commonly known as Te Uru, formerly known as Lopdell House Gallery) is a contemporary art gallery located in Titirangi, Auckland. The gallery, which serves the West Auckland region, was originally opened wit ...

, Auckland, New Zealand * 2021: ''Dito sa Lupa Para nang sa Langit- On Earth as it is in the Heavens,'' Franklin Arts Centre, Auckland, New Zealand * 2020: ''Blessed Art Thou'', Studio One Toi Tū, Auckland, New Zealand * 2017: ''Eat My Rice,'' Projectspace Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand * 2017: ''Eat My Rice'', part of Performance Art Week Aotearoa, Play_Station, Auckland, New Zealand

Selected group exhibitions

* 2024: ''Belonging: Stories of Contemporary New Zealand Asian Artists'', Bergman Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand * 2024: ''Aotearoa Art Fair 2024'', Bergman Gallery,

Viaduct Events Centre The Viaduct Events Centre is a stand-alone, multi-purpose events centre built on the Halsey Street extension wharf, Wynyard Quarter of Auckland, New Zealand. It was owned and operated by Regional Facilities Auckland, an organisation under the con ...

, Auckland, New Zealand * 2023: ''Five Painters'', Bergman Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand * 2023: ''A Place to Call Home - Contemporary New Zealand Asian Art'', Bergman Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand * 2023: ''Oasis/Respite 2.0'', part of Auckland Pride Festival, Corbins Estate Art Centre & Studio One Toi Tū, Auckland, New Zealand * 2023: ''Pride and Prejudice... Part 1,'' Bergman Gallery, Auckland, New Zealand * 2021: ''Syokes: Marc Conaco and Louie Bretaña'', Objectspace, Auckland, New Zealand * 2021: ''Vaka to A Billion Stars,'' Matariki Festival 2021, Silo 6, Silo Park, Auckland, New Zealand * 2019: ''Showcase'', Fresh Gallery Ōtara, Auckland, New Zealand

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bretana, Louie New Zealand painters Filipino artists University of the Philippines alumni Filipino emigrants to New Zealand Elam Art School alumni 21st-century New Zealand artists 21st-century New Zealand male artists Artists from Auckland Living people 1967 births