Brett Whiteley has always been an artist whose works attract controversy. I have recently had two Whiteley works offered for sale from a private client - they can be seen on the website. What struck me with both of these pieces is the way that Whiteley allows for the art to speak for itself. They are very delicate pieces. In 'The Waves' Whitely counterpoints his brilliant drawing skills with a grace that stays true to the subject. These works are good reminder that much of Brett Whiteley's best art has a lyrical quality that is at odds with the more cliched aspects of his reputation.

Posted in: Collecting Art

The prints of Charles Blackman - along with those of Michael Leunig and David Boyd - are often amongst the first works that kick of an Australian art collection. Blackman has been a very prolific artist over his lifetime - and so it pays to become acquainted with his work before purchasing. In my opinion a great Charles Blackman piece is a work that combines innocence, melancholy and his great sense of colour and line. Blackman would often work in series - and some of these such as the 'Alice' paintings and prints have become very popular. I wouldn't suggest buying a work however just because it comes from a well known series - if you are going to live with a Charles Blackman work for a number of years you want it to hold your interest and not just be an example of his 'brand'!

Posted in: Collecting Art

Artists on the whole are not necessarily the best people to write about their work - and this is probably how it should be. However in the late 1990's a selection of John Olsen's diary entries were published as a book called 'Drawn from Life'. Olsen writes very well about his own experience of making art and his thoughts on the artworks of his predecessors and contemporaries. Many of Australia's best know painters - Sidney Nolan, Brett Whiteley, Fred Williams and Tim Storrier - move in and out of frame. As is obvious from some of his paintings John Olsen is a lover of good food and also includes some of his favourite recipes just in case the reader gets inspired to give them a try!

Posted in: News and Views

The Sidney Nolan retrospective has moved on to Melbourne. I noticed a least one review in the Melbourne press that put forward the view that after the brilliant early works Nolan became a cynical painter. In my opinion this is just plain wrong. Time after time throughout his whole career Sidney Nolan produced paintings of stunning power. In common with many prolific artists Nolan produced his share of lesser works. But even when you compare these pieces to the work of his contemporaries you see what an extraordinary imagination he had as an artist.

Posted in: Exhibition Reviews

Sibling rivalry is a common theme of many art forms. However I doubt that there existed the usual levels between the two painters David Boyd and Arthur Boyd. I'm basing this on interviews I have seen with Arthur and a couple of conversations that I have had with David Boyd. Of course no one can know for sure but I felt that they each had a genuine interest in each other's work. Critics tend to always rate Arthur Boyd's work more highly. However I have often noted how deeply David Boyd's work resonates with Australian art buyers. Even though he has painted a large number of paintings I keep getting contacted by clients who are keen to get hold of a good painting - a request that is increasingly becoming hard to fulfill.

Posted in: Collecting Art

If you were to ask an Australian art collector to name their favourite abstract painter from this country then I would guess that most would answer John Coburn. Like the works of other well known artists - such as John Olsen, Tim Storrier and Robert Dickerson - mature John Coburn paintings have a very distinctive style which is easy to pick out once you have seen a few examples. Coburn is not however an abstract painter in the pure sense - but for that matter is anyone? His shimmering shapes echo the distinctive small hills of the Australian landscape that stand out in such contrast to the vast flatness of the desert. Coburn also had a great ability to evoke in visual form the strange feeling of evening light and the abstract harmonies of music.

Posted in: Collecting Art

I am sometimes asked by my clients who are considering the purchase of a Tim Storrier work - "What do you think are his best pieces?". Perhaps what they really are interested in is what style of Storrier painting I consider to be his most popular. Popularity does not always equate with quality and yet there are some artists - and I would include Storrier amongst them - whose best work is also often their most popular because this is the work which has resonated the most with the viewing public. In regards to Tim Storrier I have found that his 'Blaze Line' and 'Coals' series to be particularly sought after - especially if they are a night or sunset scene.

Posted in: Collecting Art

The reputation of Lloyd Rees may well be the sleeping giant of the Australian art world. Rees has always been well loved - especially in Sydney - but the humble beauty of his art has often lead to it being under-appreciated. Lloyd Rees was a stunningly consistent artist over his whole career - from his early exquisite pencil drawings and paintings to the Turner-like splendor of his last years. His early work - especially 'The Road to Berry' was an influence on Brett Whiteley and although some people are not so sure about his later works I believe they are unique in Australian art in their treatment of light. I have a late Lloyd Rees lithograph in my own collection and am still amazed by how much it moves me when I look at it.

Posted in: Collecting Art

Robert Dickerson is an artist who sits within the modernist tradition of Australian art. His works largely consists of subtle variations upon his own distinctive way of representing the human face. Once you are familiar with a few Dickerson paintings or prints you will find his work easy to pick out. It is this very fact that is sometimes used as a criticism of his art. However I think that this is a superficial stance. Robert Dickerson's work is very rarely pretty. I would argue that what people are responding to - in part at least - is its underlying emotional appeal - the hints of sadness and anger that these figures exhibit in their familiar suburban or work settings. Dickerson's art is more than just a 'branding' phenomena. He has tapped into some sort of questioning dis-ease within our everyday life.

Posted in: Collecting Art

I had decided to wait for a while before visiting the Sidney Nolan retrospective in Sydney. Nolan is my favourite Australian painter and I didn't want the press reviews of the show to colour how I took the exhibition in. On the whole it is a great retrospective. Some rare works of very high quality are included in the show and the selection of the Kelly paintings includes some stunning pieces that are outside of the main series and have a claim to be of equal if not greater strength. I was however saddened to see that the Gallipoli paintings were not represented. If some of the late China works were left out there would have been space for several of the best paintings from this important series. What the retrospective does show off is the sheer depth of Nolan's vision - what an imagination! I will collect my thoughts over the next few days and add a new post concentrating on some highlights. If Sidney Nolan is an artist who you have felt unsure of I urge you to visit this beautiful exhibition!

Posted in: Exhibition Reviews