Born in Songum Village, Saidor dixtrict in Madang Province. He is a self-taught artist known to many as Master of handmade paper and woodblock prints in PNG. Johannes was exposed to paper making and printing in Port Villa in Vanuatu in 2001. The training was sponsored and funded by the UNESCO under the youth program. In 2003 Johannes staged his first solo exhibition of wood block prints at the National Museum and represented PNG at the Pacific Art Festival in Palau. Hohannes has been print making and paper making for over 13 years based in Port Moresby. Most of his creation are based on PNG’s culture and traditiona life style and the impact of outside, particularly western influence. One of his constant themes is Broken Culture. Johannes always struggles to discover new ideas and techniques to move on and progress in his art and his life.
Johannes Gelak Gau presents his contribution to the art project DEUTSCH 1914 / PAPUA NIUGINI 2014.
