Nick Austin was born in Whangarei in 1979. He graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts from Auckland University of Technology in 2001 and a Master of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland, in 2004.
His work has featured in several exhibitions, including: When Shoe Leaves Foot (2015, Westspace, Melbourne, with Helen Maudsley), The Town Wrist Watch (2014, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, solo), New Revised Edition (2013, City Gallery, Wellington, group), The Liquid Dossier (2013, Hocken Library, Dunedin, solo), Last Ride in a Hot Air Balloon: the Third Auckland Triennial (2010, Auckland Art Gallery, group), Paperwork (2009, Gambia Castle, Auckland, solo).
In 2012 he was the Frances Hodgkins Fellow at the University of Otago. He has lived in Dunedin ever since.