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Rate My Professor Nick Austin

University of Otago

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5.04/23/2026

A true expert who inspires confidence.

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About Nick

Nick Austin is the Curator, Art at the Hocken Collections, University of Otago, responsible for the art collections within this renowned research library. Born in Whangārei, New Zealand, in 1979, he completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts at Auckland University of Technology in 2001, followed by a Master of Fine Arts at Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland, in 2004. Initially focusing on sculpture during his studies, Austin shifted to painting post-graduation for its sustainability and immediacy, developing a distinctive practice centered on everyday objects, ephemera, and surreal assemblages. His paintings often feature envelopes, fridge notes, books, and food items rendered in meticulous detail, exploring themes of liminality, memory, and the absurd, as seen in works like Books with Cake (2006), which depicts a stack of books topped with a slice of cake and a red button 'cherry' on acrylic hardboard and was selected for the University of Otago's 2024 calendar.

Rate My Professor Nick Austin | University of Otago