Billy Apple is one of New Zealand's original contributors to Pop art, a controversial and conceptual artist who continues to explore and challenge the art institution.

Born Barrie Bates in Auckland, the artist changed his name to Billy Apple in 1962. The recipient of a National Art Gallery scholarship, he studied at the Royal College of Art in London from 1959-1962. After this time Apple lived in New York for 25 years, eventually settling back in New Zealand in 1989.

Apple works across a variety of medium, including photography, sculpture and installation. His works often celebrate the ‘brand’ of Billy Apple – usually by concentrating on the fruit from which he takes his name. Apple’s series of site-specific installations and his art ‘invoices’ address the concepts of art’s saleability, commodification and hierarchies of display.