William Versace
Artist's Statement
William Versace is a contemporary visual artist whose transdisciplinary practice includes painting, sculpture, photo media and installation. Engrossed in the technologies of the materials he works with, each piece is highly conceptualised prior to its development, and is then created in collaboration with different places and environments. An avid environmentalist, Versace’s knowledge of botany and horticulture underpins his passion for illuminating the human impact on the natural world. Firmly rooted in place, he often creates work on-site with local biology, botany and wildlife, eroding sculptural forms with water streams dripping from cliffs or corroding surfaces using elemental forces. By enshrining organic processes found within the natural world, Versace calls into question the anthropogenic dialectic between human and place, exploring the lasting effects on the landscape as we know it and commenting on what our future artefacts may look like.
Biography
William Versace (b. 1995) lives and works on Gadigal land, Sydney, Australia. A multimodal visual artist, he identifies as a queer, first-generation Australian with strong ties to his Calabrian Italian heritage. He holds a double degree in Industrial Design and Creative Intelligence and Innovation from the University of Technology Sydney (2019). Versace has been represented by Curatorial+Co. since 2019, presenting two bodies of work with the gallery since: ‘Directions Back Home’ in 2023, and ‘Future Unearthed’ at Sydney Contemporary in 2025. In 2026, he was a finalist in eight art prizes nationally, including the Glover Landscape Prize, the Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize at the South Australian Museum and the Darebin Art Prize. He was the winner of the acquisitive 2D prize in the 2026 Du Rietz Art Award at Gympie Regional Gallery. Earlier finalist placements include the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize (2024) and Northern Beaches Environmental Art and Design Prize (2023, 2026). His work is held in private collections across Australia.
