ABOUT
From Berlin to Wellington
We are Gabriel Heimler and Anna Proc, contemporary artists based in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand. Our shared practice brings together decades of artistic experience across Europe and New Zealand, spanning painting, portraiture and large-scale murals.
Our work is shaped by people, place, history and the cultures around us. Since making Wellington our home in 2010, Aotearoa has become an important part of both our lives and our art.
OUR STORY
An artistic journey from Europe to Aotearoa
Gabriel was born in Paris, studied art and later moved to Berlin, where he established his career as a painter. In 1989, he painted The Wall Jumper on the Berlin Wall, shortly before its fall. The mural remains part of Berlin’s East Side Gallery and became an important work in his artistic career.
Anna’s background is in cultural history and linguistics. We began working together in Europe, collaborating conceptually on projects including Art Express, a travelling exhibition shown in Berlin, Budapest and Essen.
During these years, Gabriel’s paintings were exhibited internationally, including in galleries in Berlin, Paris, Frankfurt and Brussels, with work also sold through Sotheby’s in New York.
In 2010, we left Europe for Wellington, beginning a new chapter in our lives and our work together.
WORKING TOGETHER
Two perspectives, one shared practice
Our way of working together has developed over many years. Before a painting reaches the canvas, we discuss and critique our sketches together. From there, both of us contribute as the work develops, without a predetermined idea of exactly how the finished painting will look.
At times we work with diptychs, creating across two connected canvases simultaneously. The space between them reflects something central to our practice: two individual perspectives that remain distinct while forming one shared work.
We describe our artistic approach as magical realism, often moving beyond conventional perspective to bring people, places and objects together in unexpected ways. Blue outlines have become a distinctive part of our visual language, alongside influences from artists including Diego Velázquez, Diego Rivera and Gottfried Lindauer.
Ultimately, each work is the result of both our perspectives and is signed simply Heimler & Proc.
IN AOTEAROA
More than 15 years of art in New Zealand
Living and working in Wellington brought new landscapes, histories, people and cultural encounters into our practice. Our work in New Zealand has developed across contemporary painting, portraiture and public art.
Among our best-known Wellington works is The Mover, a large-scale mural formerly overlooking the area near Te Papa. In 2011, Wellingtonians voted The Mover the city’s second-best public outdoor artwork, and our work has since been featured in media and publications in New Zealand and internationally.
Our work has also continued to reach audiences beyond New Zealand. In 2019, New Era and Carved Surf were exhibited at the Beijing International Art Biennale.
In 2023, we published Metamorphosis in the Land of Birds, documenting 13 years of our artistic journey in New Zealand.
Our first decade of living and creating in New Zealand was explored in a retrospective by diplomat Daniela Gil Sevilla, tracing the development of our work in Aotearoa from The Mover in 2010 through a decade of exhibitions and artistic collaboration.
TODAY
Creating from our Wellington studio
Today, we continue to create from our studio in Wellington, producing original paintings on canvas, commissioned portraits and large-scale murals.
Our work continues to explore people, stories and places, bringing together the European beginnings of our practice with the experiences and influences of our life in Aotearoa.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Metamorphosis in the Land of Birds
Heimler & Proc’s arrival in Aotearoa in 2010 marked the beginning of their artistic collaboration and a new chapter in their work. Metamorphosis in the Land of Birds explores this journey, and the transformation of landscape, colour and form that has shaped their practice in New Zealand.
$50 NZD
PRESS & MEDIA
Featured in New Zealand and internationally
Over the years, Anna and Gabriel’s work, exhibitions and public artworks have attracted media coverage both in New Zealand and overseas.