Explore every episode of the podcast Talking with Painters
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
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| Richard Lewer After the Archibald Win + Excerpts from Our 2025 Conversation | 09 mai 2026 | ||
Watch a 2 minute highlights video of this episode on the YouTube channel here In this special episode of Talking with Painters, I’m bringing you my conversation with Richard Lewer recorded shortly after he was announced as the winner of the 2026 Archibald Prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Richard won Australia’s most prestigious portrait prize for his powerful portrait of artist and Pitjantjatjara elder Iluwanti Ken, a striking full-length painting set against a powerful ochre background inspired by time spent with Iluwanti on country. I also share some of my favourite parts from my longer 2025 conversation with Richard, where he talks about growing up in New Zealand, using art as a form of escape as a child, painting deeply personal works about family and grief, and creating his exhibition Steve, currently showing at the National Gallery of Australia. Along the way we also discuss this year’s Wynne and Sulman Prize winners, including works by Gaypalani Wanambi and Lucy Culliton. Links
‘Iluwanti Ken’ ‘The Waṉambi tree’ by Gaypalani Waṉambi ‘Toolah, artist model’ ‘We have grave concerns for your father’s health’, Richard Lewer
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| Ep 172: Ann Thomson on International Women’s Day | 08 mars 2026 | 00:27:18 | |
Watch a short highlights video of this episode on the TWP YouTube channel In this special International Women’s Day episode I speak with acclaimed artist, and previous podcast guest, Ann Thomson about building a career in the male-dominated art world of the mid-20th century.Born in 1933, Ann’s art education took place during the 1950s and early 60s, a time when male artists like Arthur Boyd, Sidney Nolan, John Brack and Charles Blackman dominated the Australian art scene. Today Ann Thomson is one of Australia’s most respected and internationally acclaimed artists. A painter and sculptor, she has held more than 60 solo exhibitions, won numerous awards, and her work is represented in major public collections. As this episode is released, an exhibition of her work is also showing at Messums Gallery in London. Links https://youtu.be/94aHBnKwR2w?si=SCWA0GDPvevSDMyM | |||
| Ep 171: Mary Tonkin | 28 déc. 2025 | 00:43:40 | |
Watch highlights from this conversation on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel I loved this conversation with Mary Tonkin at the S.H. Ervin Gallery in Sydney, before the start of her survey exhibition Among the Trees (opening 3 January 2026). The show brings together paintings, drawings and ceramics dating from 2008, works that reflect Mary’s deep relationship with her family farm in Victoria’s Dandenong ranges and with painting from life. Her painting ‘Ramble Kalorama’, measuring almost 19 metres long, is a magnificent meditation on what it is to be in the Australian landscape and was a huge hit at the 2022 Sydney Contemporary Art Fair. Mary Tonkin has won many awards and her works are held in major public institutions and private collections. She is represented by Australian Galleries. NB: When Mary speaks about her teacher Geoff in this conversation she is referring to Geoff Dupree. Links
https://youtu.be/84JSU210-38?si=78SsLYUPGalbja-g ‘Ramble, Kalorama’ (2017–2019) at Sydney Contemporary, 2022
‘Coprosma Madonna, Kalorama’ 2021-22 ‘Madre, Kalorama’ 2008 ‘A scream, Kalorama’ 2023 ‘Regent, Kalorama’ 2012 charcoal on paper 241 x 271cm Photographer John Brash ‘Saint Anthony Beaten By Devils’ 24.5cm x 39.5cm
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| Ep 170: Aida Tomescu – ‘Messiaen’ | 21 nov. 2025 | ||
A highlights video from this episode will also be coming soon to the Talking with Painters YouTube channel In this episode, I visit the studio of acclaimed abstract painter Aida Tomescu just days before the opening of her exhibition Messiaen at Fox Jensen Gallery in Sydney. The exhibition continues until 20 December 2025.
Previous TWP YouTube videos of Aida Tomescu:
Previous podcast conversations with Aida Tomescu:
Messiaen II 2024 Messiaen III 2025 Messiaen 2013
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| Ep 169: 12 finalists, 12 landscapes | 04 oct. 2025 | ||
Watch an edited video version of this episode on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel here Podcast listeners see the works we talk about here or go to talkingwithpainters.com (ep 169) When I travelled to Hobart for the announcement of the Hadley’s Art Prize, I not only interviewed the winner, Sophie Cape (you can hear her in the previous episode), but also had the privilege of speaking with twelve of the other outstanding finalists (see images of works below)At $100,000 the Hadley’s is Australia’s richest landscape art prize, and the calibre of work this year was outstanding. With 29 finalists in total, I would have loved to talk with every single one, but time was short in the lead-up to the celebrations! Even so, these conversations give you a cross-section of artists and approaches to depicting the Australian landscape — from bold abstraction to meticulous realism. In this episode, you’ll hear from the following artists: Michaye Boulter, Belinda Street, Neil Haddon, Valerie Sparks (Honourable Mention), Peter Griffen, Harrison Bowe (People’s Choice winner), Melanie McCollin Walker, Denise Lamby (Residency Prize winner), Julz Beresford, Raymond Arnold, Richard Klecociuk and Melissa Kenihan. Links
Neil Haddon Valerie Sparks (Honourable Mention) Peter Griffen Belinda Street Harrison Bowe (Winner People’s Choice Award) Melanie McCollin Walker Denise Lamby (Winner Residency Prize) Julz Beresford Raymond Arnold Richard Klecociuk Melissa Kenihan | |||
| Ep 168 Sophie Cape wins the Hadley’s Art Prize | 01 sept. 2025 | 00:31:11 | |
Watch an edited video version of this conversation on the YouTube channel here Sophie Cape has just taken out the $100,000 Hadley’s Art Prize for landscape with her powerful painting Thunder Shifts the Shivering Sands.It’s a raw and visceral work on canvas made using rust, charcoal, soil, pigment and binder. In this episode I talk with Sophie about what winning the prize means for her at this point in her career. She also tells me about her incredible path to painting — from training as an elite athlete with Olympic ambitions to finding her way into the art world after injury changed the course of her life. Sophie has received multiple awards and residencies over her career. She has exhibited in over a dozen solo shows and her work is held in many public and private collections. She is represented by Olsen Gallery. A highlights video from this conversation will be up on my YouTube channel soon. I also spoke with 12 of the other finalists, and those conversations will be heading to YouTube shortly as well. During my time in Hobart, I was a guest of Hadley’s at the beautifully restored Hadley’s Orient Hotel (built in 1834) and is the venue for the exhibition. The show runs until 21 September, accompanied by a series of talks – you can find more information on their website here . Links
Thunder Shifts the Shivering Sands Romper Stomper, 2014, oil, acrylic, bitumen, charcoal, and soil on canvas, 209 x 203cm | |||
| Ep 167 Remembering William Robinson with Davida Allen (2020) | 27 août 2025 | 00:21:48 | |
Australia has lost one of its great painters. William Robinson has passed away at the age of 89.
I was lucky enough to meet Bill in 2020 when I interviewed his close friend, artist Davida Allen. At Davida’s suggestion, Bill joined the conversation —and what unfolded was something special.
In this re-released episode you’ll hear Bill’s warmth, humour and generosity as the two artists reflect together in his Brisbane studio. | |||
| Ep 166: Julie Fragar wins the 2025 Archibald Prize | 09 mai 2025 | 00:14:53 | |
Watch an edited video version of this conversation on the YouTube channel here It’s one of the most thrilling days on the Australian art calendar—and this year, Julie Fragar has taken out the Archibald Prize with a captivating portrait of fellow artist and colleague Justene Williams. Her large scale portrait of Justene, appearing to float in space and surrounded by model figures and structures drawn from Justene’s creative universe, commands the viewer’s attention. Julie talks with me about the portrait and its elements, her approach to colour and her tips for a productive sitting. This episode also includes Julie’s moving acceptance speech. Also announced today:
Scroll down for images of the winning works
https://youtu.be/h4NfQDN803I Julie FragarFlagship Mother Multiverse (Justene) Jude Rae Gene A’Hern
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| Ep 165: Richard Lewer | 07 avr. 2025 | 00:50:28 | |
Watch this interview on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel here Step into the gripping world of Richard Lewer — where drawing, painting, and video meet the raw edges of human experience.Richard doesn’t look away from life’s toughest stories. From the deeply personal — like the final days of his father’s life — to the harrowing and socially charged, including the tragic death of an Indigenous child in custody and the haunting Snowtown murders, he takes it all on. But never with shock tactics. His work is quietly powerful — full of feeling, sensitivity, and a surprising touch of humour. And the surfaces he paints on? Anything but traditional — think steel, aluminium, formica table tops, even billiard tables. Richard is a multi-award-winning artist whose work has appeared in major public and private collections. He’s been a finalist multiple times in the Archibald and Sulman Prizes, and his recent acquisition by the National Gallery of Australia will soon be part of an upcoming exhibition and tour. This was the perfect time to sit down for a deep conversation — just ahead of his new show ‘The stories that persist are not always true’ opening on 10 April at Hugo Michell Gallery. Richard is also represented by Jan Murphy Gallery in Brisbane and Suite Gallery in New Zealand. Links
https://youtu.be/4bei8rp-Tto?si=VJHHvFMwMcg6_2oU ‘We have grave concerns for your father’s health’ I’m not the boy who cried wolf, 2025 Richard’s medical disasters NGV Confessions (one wall of several) The serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals that God had made. He said to the woman ‘Did God really say that you must not eat from any tree in the garden?’. She replied ‘We may eat fruit from all the trees in the garden except for the…, 2022, acrylic on canvas, 153 x 153 cm ‘The 2006 Granny’ 2024 ‘The 2006 Granny’ 2024 https://youtu.be/Du-Lad05_vk?si=lW4hXdAYI9jmNEfo
Body of work ‘Steve’ acquired by the National Gallery of Australia | |||
| Ep 164: New Videos, Loading Dock Invite & What’s Next | 18 mars 2025 | 00:04:36 | |
Catch up on the latest YouTube videos and Instagram reels, and don’t miss the chance to be part of my next Loading Dock interview at the Art Gallery of NSW!
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| Robert Malherbe and Keith Burt (live at the Tweed Regional Gallery) | 05 déc. 2024 | 00:55:56 | |
See the video version of the interview on YouTube here
My conversation with two remarkable Australian artists, Robert Malherbe and Keith Burt was in front of a fabulous audience at the Tweed Regional Gallery.
Robert and Keith completed residencies at the gallery’s Nancy Fairfax Artist in Residence Studio, drawing inspiration from objects in Margaret Olley’s recreated home studio at the gallery. The result of their residencies is A Dictionary for Painting, a stunning exhibition on display until March 2, 2025. In this episode, Robert and Keith share their creative highs and lows, offering an intimate glimpse into the making of their works. Special thanks to Tweed Regional Gallery for recording this event and sound engineer Dan Harcombe for his expertise. A video version of this interview will be online soon – and don’t miss my earlier interview with Robert from 2021, linked below. Links
https://youtu.be/qbeENrJo6Nc?si=ZpIcNoNDKF7276_f Selection of work by Robert Malherbe Selection of work by Keith Burt Robert Malherbe (b.1965) Keith Burt (b.1969) Keith Burt (b.1969) Robert Malherbe (b.1965) Margaret Olley (1923–2011) Keith Burt Robert Malherbe Keith Burt (b.1969) Keith Burt (b.1969) Robert Malherbe (b.1965)
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| Ingrid Hedgcock at the Margaret Olley Art Centre | 19 nov. 2024 | ||
Ingrid Hedgcock, director of the Tweed Regional Gallery, shows me around the amazing Margaret Olley Art Centre which is the relocation of Margaret Olley’s home studio from Paddington in Sydney.
Famous for being like an Aladdin’s cave of eclectic objects, the recreated home studio contains the sources of many inspirational items which appear in Margaret Olley’s paintings. Over an astonishing 21,000 items were relocated from Sydney to the gallery. Ingrid, having been involved in the project almost from its inception, is the ideal person to share insights into the creation of this extraordinary tribute to Olley. This is the second of three episodes recorded at Tweed Regional Gallery. The previous episode is my conversation with Sophie Perez and Sarah McDonald undertaking a residency at the gallery and the following episode will be my conversation with Robert Malherbe and Keith Burt at the gallery about the exhibition ‘A Dictionary for Painting’. Photo of Ingrid Hedgcock supplied by Tweed Regional Gallery
‘The Hat Factory’, Margaret Olley Art Centre ‘The Yellow Room’, Margaret Olley Art Centre | |||
| Sophie Perez and Sarah McDonald (with edited version on YouTube) | 12 nov. 2024 | 00:23:51 | |
See an edited version of this episode (5 mins) on the talking with Painters YouTube channel An artist’s residency provides more than just uninterrupted time to work; it’s also a valuable space for risk-taking, experimentation, and self-reflection. That’s what I learned when I caught up with Sophie Perez and Sarah McDonald during my recent visit to the Tweed Regional Gallery. They were there for a residency in the Nancy Fairfax Artist in Residence studio. Both are accomplished landscape painters working in oils, have exhibited in solo and group shows across the country and both made the trek across Australia to immerse themselves in this experience – Sophie from Victoria and Sarah from South Australia. It was wonderful to hear their thoughts on the value of the residency and what has come from it. This is the first of three podcast episodes which I recorded on my visit to the Tweed Regional Gallery a couple of weeks ago. I was invited to facilitate a conversation in front of an audience with Robert Malherbe and Keith Burt, two leading painters who recently completed funded residencies at the gallery. Their new works, now hanging in the exhibition A Dictionary for Painting, are inspired by objects from Australian art royalty Margaret Olley’s glorious home studio, which has been relocated within the gallery. The gallery recorded the conversation and it will be coming soon to the podcast. I was also lucky enough to have an impromptu chat with gallery director Ingrid Hedgcock, an expert on Margaret Olley, who will be joining me on the next episode. Links
https://youtu.be/jxJybTWc81s?si=8neVQgRZyTP1x7y6 Wall of Sophie Perez’ work Wall of Sarah McDonald’s work Work mentioned by Sarah at about 9min 40s Work mentioned by Sophie at about 18min 30s Work mentioned by Sophie at about 21 min
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| Karen Black | 21 août 2024 | 00:44:51 | |
Podcast listeners click here to view the works Through layers of paint in varying translucency, Karen Black explores not only the physical nature of the female form but through her use of abstraction and considered use of colour she brings out another dimension – an emotional layer.There is a strong sense of a spontaneous response in her paintings so you may be surprised to hear that reading and research play as much a role in her process as creating those drips and brushstrokes. Karen talks with me in this episode about her fascination with recent research on frequencies and vibrations which occur in all matter. That interest informs her most recent body of work which will be on view in her upcoming solo show ‘alternative frequency’ at Ames Yavuz in Sydney. Karen has been acclaimed with awards and residencies and her work is in the collections of many public institutions. She has been repeatedly shortlisted in the Archibald and Sulman prizes, among many others, and has work hanging in both those prize exhibitions in the Art Gallery of NSW this year. She has also been recognised for her ceramic work, two of which have been acquired by the National Gallery of Victoria. In this podcast episode Karen talks with me about her childhood memories of art, how she came to painting, the story behind her current show and some interesting aspects of her process. Links
‘Both of us’ ‘Head wind’ 2024, ‘Licking the rain’ 2017 ‘I Will Shade You from the World’ Vivian Vidulich ‘Crown legs arms’ 2016
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| Laura Jones wins the 2024 Archibald Prize | 09 juin 2024 | ||
Congratulations to previous podcast guest Laura Jones on winning the Archibald Prize – Australia’s most famous portrait prize – with a sensitive and meaningful portrait of writer and environmentalist Tim Winton.
On Friday I interviewed Laura shortly after the announcement and I’m bringing you that 5 minute conversation in this episode but I’ve also gone through the archives to my podcast conversation with Laura in 2018 to bring you something extra. When I interviewed Laura a few years ago it was after she had finished a residency on the Great Barrier Reef where she was studying the terrible bleaching events which occurred there (and continue to occur) and her concern surrounding those events is not unconnected with her winning portrait in this year’s Archibald Prize. Because it was after seeing Tim Winton’s documentary on the ABC, Ningaloo Nyinggulu, about the fight to save the Ningaloo reef that Laura requested an Archibald portrait sitting. They have in common a sense of urgency that we must act now on climate change and are doing everything they can to bring attention to the devastating and inevitable consequences of inaction. One of the most interesting parts of my conversation with Laura was when she explained how coral bleaching occurs. It’s complex and scientific but she explained it in a way that anyone could understand so I thought I would bring you that part of the interview today . The Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes exhibition continues until Sunday 8 September 2024. The Archibald finalist works then go on tour across 5 venues across NSW and for the first time, to the Northern Territory. The Wynne Prize finalist works will tour to four venues in regional NSW.
Tim Winton
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| The Loading Dock Interviews (also on YouTube) | 19 mai 2024 | ||
See the video version of this episode on the TWP YouTube channel here. This is my 5th collection of Loading Dock Interviews of entrants to the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman prizes. Six brave painters fronted my camera and microphone as they delivered their work to the packing room at the Art Gallery of NSW via the loading dock. Thankyou to these artists (tap on their name for their Instagram page): Sign up for the Talking with Painters Newsletter here. https://youtu.be/T-26mfmJMqw?si=L_YMco2XH8Hwwsup
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| Caroline Zilinsky | 21 avr. 2024 | ||
See highlights of this interview on the YouTube Channel Caroline Zilinsky’s paintings freeze pivotal moments in our culture’s history, encouraging us to reflect upon our times, whether it’s the absurdity, the horror or the humour.At the risk of being labelled a conspiracy theorist, she’s attracted to the dilemmas brought on by the internet era and shines a light on the things that trouble most of us: our loss of privacy, shortened attention, a heightened focus on appearance, a growing indifference to human suffering and the increasing power assumed by tech giants. Her paintings often depict a political or social narrative and although she accepts some are too confronting to hang above the sofa, there’s something about the levity in her use of line, colour and form which invites us to venture into the darker corners of our culture, causing us to linger and question. Caroline is also well known for her portraiture and landscape painting. She won the Portia Geach Memorial Award portraiture prize in 2020 (the same year she won the Evelyn Chapman award) and has been a finalist in many others including the Archibald and Darling portrait prizes. This interview took place at the mid-career survey show of Caroline’s work ‘Exquisite Cadaver’ at the University of Newcastle Gallery. Curated by Gillean Shaw, it was a collection of 40 stunning works spanning over 2 decades. The interview was also filmed and a 6 minute video of highlights can be seen here on the YouTube channel. Feature photo: Phillip Antonio Lemos
https://youtu.be/qW9UOk7RA7I?si=Sc30OmX9unO_Mitu ‘Kubla Khan’ ‘Exquisite Corpse’ ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ 2023 ‘Faceless The Congressional Hearing of Mark Zuckerberg’ 2020 ‘Man of Few Words’ ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ 2023 ‘Plastic Fantastic’, 2023 ‘Refract Back’, 2023 ‘Too Long; Didn’t Read (Universal Declaration of Human Rights)’ ‘Me and Ellie’, 2004-2005
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| The Story Behind the Painting (Part 2) | 04 avr. 2024 | ||
Podcast listeners click here to see images of the work Over the years, podcast guests have shared some fascinating back stories to paintings they have made, stories which you could never have guessed just on viewing the work. Sometimes that back story has made me look at the work in a totally different way and I’m bringing you another eight artists’ works in addition to those in ep 155. Click on the artist’s name below for the full podcast episode (and any YouTube videos) and see images of the works we talk about below.
I dream of Sam Neill when I go to bed, 1986 Drawings of George Stirling George Stirling from the Heads of the Family series Sam Leach Robin Eley Peter O’Doherty Kathrin Longhurst Tom Carment Nicholas Harding | |||
| The story behind the painting: Fantauzzo, Flint, Quilty and Dobell | 19 févr. 2024 | 00:25:49 | |
Podcast listeners click here to see images of the works Over the years, podcast guests have shared some fascinating back stories to paintings they have made, stories which you could never have guessed on merely viewing the work.Sometimes that back story has made me look at the work in a totally different way and I’m bringing you a few of those to you in this episode. See images of the works we talk about below. Links
2:40 ‘Heath’, 2008, oil on canvas, 106 x 140cm (Collection of the Art Gallery of NSW, highly commended and winner of the Archibald Prize People’s Choice award 2008. Portrait of Heath Ledger) 10:40 ‘Baby’, 2015, oil on linen, 105 x 90.5cm (Finalist in Archibald Portrait Prize 2015) 15:45. ‘Kandahar’ 2011, oil on linen, 140 x 190cm 18:00 ‘Captain S. after Afghanistan’ 2012, oil on linen, 210 x 230cm 20:30 ‘Margaret Olley’, 1948, oil on hardboard, 114.3 x 85.7 cm board 23:45. ‘Storm Approaching, Wangi’, 1948, oil on cardboard on composition board, 32.9 x 56cm | |||
| Inspiration from the archives | The Flow State | 23 janv. 2024 | 00:34:17 | |
Podcast guests talk with me about the flow state! See below for timestamps and links to each guest’s full podcast interview and video 3:39 Julie Nicholson and Fiona Verity – Podcast | Instagram video 6:40 Ann Thomson – Podcast | YouTube 7:54 Joshua Yeldham – Podcast | YouTube 10:15 Antonia Perricone Mrljak – Podcast | YouTube 11:25 Wendy Sharpe – Podcast | YouTube 12:51 Lewis Miller – Podcast | YouTube 13:50 Aida Tomescu – Podcast | YouTube 16:30 David Griggs – Podcast | YouTube 17:27 Idris Murphy – Podcast | YouTube 18:40 Kathrin Longhurst – Podcast | YouTube 20:50 Anthony White – Podcast | YouTube (coming soon) 22:07 Bernard Ollis – Podcast | YouTube 23:59 Kim Leutwyler – Podcast | YouTube 25:20 Tim Maguire – Podcast | YouTube 26:40 Belinda Street – Podcast | YouTube 27:58 Yvette Coppersmith – Podcast | YouTube (coming soon) 29:30 Tim Storrier – Podcast | YouTube 31:15 Jacqui Stockdale – Podcast | YouTube 32:02 Sandi Hester – YouTube Links Sandi Hester interview on the YouTube channel Sandi Hester’s YouTube channel ‘Bits of an Artist’s life’ TWP Instagram reels – ‘Summer reels from the archives’ Ep ‘Inspiration from the archives: Colour (1)’ | |||
| Jan Senbergs | 02 déc. 2023 | 00:06:09 | |
Above photo of Jan Senbergs by Riste Andrievski Click play for my podcast introduction to this interview and scroll down for the transcript. Podcast listeners click here and scroll down for transcript. Watch the YouTube video of Jan Senbergs’ studio and work here Links
With over six decades of work as a painter, printmaker and draughtsman, leading artist Jan Senbergs has exhibited in over 50 solo shows and has been the subject of three survey shows including a major retrospective curated by the National Gallery of Victoria in 2016. A rare accomplishment. His art evolved from early masterly screenprints to large scale paintings and with subject matter as varied as urban and natural landscapes, industrial themes, surreal structures and forms and aerial map-like works. This episode has been a long time coming. Covid threw out our plans for an early 2020 meeting but two years later we met in Jan’s inspirational studio in Melbourne. His voice has been affected by some health issues and so this episode is coming to you by way of transcript (below) and an intro on the podcast. As I was setting up my audio equipment on the day of the interview, Jan and I chatted about the time he had spent in London in his 20s. We talked about other Australian artists who were there at that time. That’s where the recording of the interview began. Jan Senbergs I was the younger artist who came into that area and I didn’t know anybody. I didn’t want to bother the local Antipodeans (laughs) so I usually went out by myself. I headed for the National Gallery on one occasion and ran into Arthur Boyd heading there too. We travelled together on the bus from Pimlico to Trafalgar Square. It was very nice because we walked through the Gallery making comments. It’s lovely to do that with another painter. We walked past one room and Arthur stopped and said, ‘There’s a good painting in this room.’ It was a big dog watching over a dying nymph, by Piero di Cosimo. He was such an interesting painter. Afterwards, Arthur suggested we go and have a drink, so we went across the road and had a couple of beers and then he said ‘You’ll have to excuse me, but I’ve got to go back home. I’ve got a few duties there.’ We shook hands and I never saw him again. Maria Stoljar You never saw him again? JS No, but what was nice about it was the generosity of the older person to somebody younger who had just arrived. MS How lovely. But you knew a lot of famous Australian artists like Fred Williams, for example. He was a friend of yours, wasn’t he? JS Yeah, I knew Fred. When I first started showing around, I mixed with some of the older artists. At that time there were hardly any younger artists around. And because I hadn’t gone to an art school, I was very isolated. It’s quite different for artists today. Now there are thousands of young people trying very hard to make good art after their schooling. It’s a different atmosphere. Schools pump out all these people with hopes and ambitions. That’s the reason it’s good to know some of the older painters. MS Yes. Like John Brack? JS Yes, John Brack was one … Len Crawford, Fred, Roger Kemp – these were heavy-duty Melbourne blokes. MS It’s amazing that you, in your early 20s, were hanging out with those people. JS Yeah, it was actually. Because I couldn’t get into art school so I’d started working in a silkscreen printing company, which was a terrible bloody job (laughs). ‘Modern monument in colour ‘ 1975, MS Why? Was it heavy work or just dirty work? JS Dirty work. Screenprinting was very dirty. It was toxic and unventilated. As an apprentice you’ve got to scrub the screen and so on – you get all the shit jobs (laughs), but that’s understandable. On Friday nights, though, during the period of the six o’clock closing, I used to go into town. I didn’t want to go with the local trades blokes and drink with them, I’d go straight into Little Collins Street where all the real old lefties hung out – a fantastic atmosphere. They weren’t all painters by any means – there were writers, clapped-out academics and all sorts of people. MS Really bohemian. JS Yeah, but interesting to me. I went there and I just stood around. They didn’t pay any attention to me, but I was listening. It was an education. A political education as well. MS How amazing. So did you keep in contact with those people? JS Well, most of them I did, yeah. Including some writers. I was always interested in writing and writers. I used to read a lot when I was younger. The usual standard fare of James Joyce (both laugh). So I was mixing with all these people at six o’clock closing. There was a frantic atmosphere on a Friday night. There were all these characters coming in from work, and they wanted to have debates and bash out the things that they wanted to talk about. It was interesting. MS Yeah, and do you feel like that sort of political leaning comes through in your painting? Do you consciously think about that? JS No. I mean, it’s there. How can I put it? I don’t like to be a spruiker for any cause. Your paintings should do that. Usually what happens is that if people are too strident in their political views, they produce paintings which are very single-minded – with a message they want to send, but often the artworks are no good. There’s always been a debate about that, to see how far you can go. MS Actually what comes to mind are the ‘Altered Parliament House’ works. Those two works you painted when you were in Canberra. You were there during the dismissal of the Whitlam government in 1975. They’re powerful paintings which are silkscreen and oil. Can you tell me a bit about that time? ‘Altered Parliament House I’ (1976) Synthetic polymer paint and oil screenprint on canvas Collection: National Gallery of Victoria JS I was in Canberra at the ANU for a couple of years. What do they call it? Creative Arts Fellowship. They gave me a studio. Students were supposed to come and listen to your wise words but nobody turned up so it was a very easy job (laughs). And a very interesting period because at that time the Whitlam Government was introducing Medicare. I used to go to Parliament House and sit listening to Question Time. I’d wander up there out of curiosity, to see what they were talking about – to see how they were misbehaving (laughs). It was fascinating, it was lively. Then the day came when Gough was overthrown. The two paintings I did were of Parliament House (the Old Parliament House). They were sort of on a dark ground. It was nighttime. I was living in Campbell which crossed Anzac Parade and in the distance you could see this white ghost-like structure that was Parliament House. It gradually became a kind of symbol, or the anchor, for the paintings. They’re about as close as I’ve ever been to a political painting – I like to leave that sort of thing with a suggestion rather than hammering it down somebody’s throat. MS I think one is in the National Gallery of Victoria and the other is in the National Gallery in Canberra. With respect to number one, in the foreground there are ruins and so it’s like a metaphor for the destruction of the whole parliament in a way? JS Yeah, it did have those suggestions. Everybody was very keen on what was happening politically at the time and so you didn’t need to sort of push your point. Politically, I’ve been towards the left all the time, but at the same time I’m very critical and I’m becoming more critical as I get older! (laughs) MS What I find interesting about your work is the fact that you started off in silkscreen printing and even though you let that go by about 1980 or so, you started incorporating that into your painting. JS That’s true, yeah. MS That sounds like a quite laborious thing to do. JS It was a shocking thing. I hated it by the end of it. (laughs) MS (laughs) Did you? Why? JS Oh, it was so laborious to get things right, setting up the registration over large areas. It was very hard work. It wasn’t like when you’re painting or doing a drawing. When I came back from Canberra, I was doing screen prints and I felt at that stage that I was getting a bit too sophisticated with the prints – too much of a smartarse (laughs) – so I gave it away. ‘The flyer’ 1975 MS I think by that time you were being called ‘the greatest silkscreen printer in Australia’. Maybe that was when you felt like you had had enough? JS Well, I don’t know about that. But what I wanted to do was to make a mark again, go completely the other way. So I began to draw. And I started to draw around Port Melbourne, especially old Port Melbourne. I gradually changed. Port panorama, 1980, lithograph, printed in black ink on white BFK Rives Moulin du Gué paper MS So that was quite an industrial sort of landscape? JS Yes. And that was also around the time that I met my second wife Helen Beresford. MS Yeah. JS All of these things – it was a very exciting time. MS It must have been a really big change in your life. JS It sure was, yeah. MS And it was around that time that you got that huge commission to create a work for the High Court of Australia. I think you were involved from the very beginning when they were designing that building. Just to give a bit of background – the High Court of Australia is a great example of brutalist architecture. We’re talking about huge concrete walls, big open spaces, and the area that you had to create a work for was quite a large area. JS In the atrium, yeah. MS So how did you go about that? JS They had a shortlist of about four or five when they gave me the job. I think they probably gave it to me because I’d realised it was too huge an area for canvas – it would sag within a couple of years – so I’d thought of some other material. I started through theYellow Pages to look for materials. I didn’t get very far! I spotted ‘aluminium’. That was it! (laughs) Aluminium was light and it was permanent, you had to anodise it, it wouldn’t corrode. Constitutional Wall Mural and States Wall Mural 1977 – 80 MS Had you ever used it before? JS No MS So this was a totally new technique that you were going to try? JS That’s right. I had a friend, Ian Claremont, who knew about anodising. It was all a bit unexpected. I told the story of the Constitution of the High Court, the States and the Supreme Court with images etched into the aluminium. MS So the brief was basically to depict imagery about the Commonwealth and the six states. Is that right? JS They didn’t mention the six states but that became part of it. I introduced that. When I first got the job, I knew nothing about the High Court and I wondered ‘What the hell am I going to do? What sort of design?’ MS (both laugh) Well, I think before the building was built, the High Court was sitting in Melbourne and Sydney. There was no building in Canberra? JS That’s right. The High Court had rooms in every state – small rooms, chambers. In order to find out more about what the function of the court was, I was lucky enough to meet Ninian Stephen, who used to be the Governor-General and a High Court Judge. I asked him if I could come and see him to explain what the functions of the High Court were. MS (both laugh) Well, I mean, when you think about it, the layman wouldn’t know what the High Court did. JS Ninian Stephen was so tolerant and kind to me. He carefully explained how the High Court worked. Then I had to design it. The logistics alone were a challenge. I was worried the whole thing would slide off the wall – so I designed these boxes and I screen printed images on them. There was the Constitutional wall and the States wall, shooting all the way up to the top. MS And how did you come up with the imagery? What were you looking at? JS Well, by that time I was looking at various symbols of Australian institutions. In the case of what I call the States wall, I had all sorts of symbols from each state. For example, Queensland had a tropical industry, sugar cane, which told a story. The larger Constitutional wall was to do with things from the time of Federation when Australia became a state in its own way – a changeover from the British way – so there are a lot of images there. And they liked it (laughs). I found an anodising factory in Melbourne. When it finished for the day, Ian and I would go there through the night and etch the big aluminium sheets in huge acid baths before the factory began its morning shift. MS It’s fantastic and it’s still there, obviously. And I think the Queen came when they opened the High Court, and didn’t you have an exchange with her? JS I did, actually. When we finished the job and the time came to open it, we were all lined up and the Queen and Prince Philip came along, with the Chief Justice Garfield Barwick introducing us. When the Queen got to me she looked up at my piece and she said, ‘My, that’s big.’ I said, ‘Yes, Ma’am’. The Duke was about four paces behind, and he came up and said, ‘Do you do this kind of thing often?’ and I said ‘Whenever I can’ (laughs). So that was my meeting with the Queen and the Duke. MS (laughs) That is a pretty amazing story. So let’s talk about other works of yours that I’ve found interesting. And one of them was when you went to Antarctica. What was that trip like? JS It was marvellous, wonderful. It was back in 1987. We went down with the Australian Antarctic Division’s resupply ship MV Icebird. It sailed out to Heard Island and delivered food and supplies to the Davis and Mawson stations. That was the main intention of the trip. It was marvellous too on all sorts of levels. The Antarctic landscape is fantastic and it’s been photographed a million times, but my angle was a bit different. I was fascinated with life down there and how we are squatting on another continent with our suburban values. My paintings were more about the bases than the icebergs. MS And you had two major paintings, ‘Mawson’ and ‘Davis’, depicting those bases down there where you gave us that aerial perspective that you’re very well known for – those map-like paintings. These aren’t the same as your more urban pictures but it’s that sort of feel, of an aerial perspective. And with all that ice in the background, these are very dramatic paintings. ‘Davis’ 1987 ‘Mawson’ 1987 JS Yes, the ‘Mawson’ painting is like that. You’ve got this settlement right on the edge with a huge dome of Antarctica behind it. I exaggerated it. There was a kind of map-like painting of a base as well as a huge amount of rubbish lying about. Part of the job was to pick up some of the rubbish and go and put it back on the ship and take it to a quarry in Tasmania. MS Oh ok, I didn’t realise that. That’s interesting because that idea of detritus and waste, that’s something that often appears in your work. Is that something that attracts you – those forms? JS I start off with images that I want to use. Then I apply some of them to paintings. It’s a combination of thinking. It’s hard to explain. It’s a kind of storytelling, only in a less obvious way. Firstly, I paint a quality of imagery, before I start telling the story–you know, that’s important. With Davis and Mawson, I wanted details of various things that I wanted to add to the composition – a bit like early Chinese landscapes that are taken from various levels – unlike the Western view on a fixed level. So you have various points of viewing all crisscrossing that make up the composition which you in turn take to the next step to make it interesting. MS Yeah. Would you start with a sketch to determine the composition? JS Yes. But also I had notebooks. I’d do sketches there. They were mostly sketches from memory. Plein air ones as well of course. MS And when you’re working on a big painting, do you ever decide halfway through ‘this isn’t working, I’ve got to change it’. Does that happen often, or have you really predetermined it before you start? JS You mean the composition? MS Yes. JS Sometimes. Sometimes you fail and you start from scratch again. But not often. For me, a lot of these canvases are like maps. I’d worked out the scale, the relationships. There’s a lot of fiddling around with map-like imagery early on.
‘Melbourne capriccio 3’ (2009) MS I’d like to jump back now – so in 1966 you were awarded the Helena Rubinstein Travelling Art Scholarship and you went to Europe. You stayed in London for a while and then when you came back in the late 1960s, things had changed in the art world hadn’t they? JS They sure had, yeah. MS Can you tell me a bit about that? I think all the rage was colour field painting, hard edge abstraction … JS That’s right. When I came back there was this new type of thing here and so I wanted to show some of the smart tricks I learnt in London (laughs) MS (laughs) So, you found that you changed direction a little bit over that period? JS Yeah, I realised that my previous paintings were too clogged up, too rich sometimes, and also crude. I didn’t mind the crudeness but it was time to leave that. I’d grown up a bit (laughs). I made some steel sculptures, a kind of gesture at outdoor art, minimal art. MS They were quite geometric, weren’t they? JS Yes, standing on legs. They were about 20 feet tall. I made them in my backyard. I left the final processes to the fabricator but I made the design, a kind of slot to hold this image of a head, but the problem was the image was too top heavy (laughs). MS So they didn’t stay up? JS They stayed up for a couple of years, in St Andrews, in the hills north of Melbourne. I found some land to put this stuff on and met Cliff Pugh, who lived up there. He said I should contact Frank Dalby Davison. Dalby Davison was a very controversial and interesting writer in the ’30s, being ahead of the game and writing about people’s relationships. He agreed to put them up on his land, and I said I’d try not to make a mess (both laugh). I made five of these sculptures and dug a ditch and put them in concrete and left them there. You could see them from the road down below the hill and people were wondering what the hell they were. MS They looked sort of alien? JS Yeah, some people thought they were guideposts for planes coming in. People came up with all sorts of explanations for them. MS Isn’t that the definition of great art? To get people to wonder and to use their imagination. JS Exactly, yeah, that’s right. They stood up there for a while and then one day there was a huge storm and they blew over. Also, the cows didn’t help. Frank Dalby Davison had a lot of cows and they were leaning against the sculptures, causing them to topple, and I thought that was very unfair for Frank (both laugh). MS That’s a shame, but at least you’ve got images of them. JS Yes. I went back and saw Frank and said, ‘You’ve been very generous’. MS I bet he missed them because they would have been like a real statement on his property. JS Well, it could have been that. I suppose I was one of the first people doing that sort of thing in Australia. The Americans did that sort of land art– Robert Smithson and a couple of others, but in different ways. I had always wanted to do something outside of painting. MS And 3D obviously as well. But you didn’t continue to do a lot more of that sort of sculptural work? JS No, I stuck with the brushes. MS I want to take you back to when you first got to Australia. You had a rough time during the war years. What was it like when you got here? JS We left Latvia, ending up in the British sector after the war, in a DP (Displaced Persons) camp. We stayed there for about four or five years. And finally, we got boats to Australia. Nobody knew anything about Australia. For example, my grandmother who was with us carried a ham that she’d cured because she thought that in Australia there’d be no food (laughs). When she got off the ship the Customs officers took the ham. She was so upset – ‘They’ve taken away my food!’ (laughs). We were hauled off to Bonegilla, the migrant camp near Albury-Wodonga. It was an old army camp. All the adults were moaning and groaning but us kids loved it. I’d just turned 10 so I was very happy. It was like we were released from some dark place to this wonderful sky and golden grass, to muck around and enjoy all of it. MS So it was a very optimistic experience coming to Australia for you. You couldn’t speak English at that point? JS No. We lived there for about four months – my sister, mother, grandmother and I. The camp had people from all sorts of countries. We went to a one-teacher primary school for young farming kids – there were only about eight students. I often wonder how the local kids must have felt – their lovely little school invaded by hundreds of little wogs! (laughs) MS (laughs) What experience did you have with art at that point? How did you become interested in art? JS I was always drawing as a child. I went to trade school in Melbourne, at Richmond Tech – but I wasn’t at all interested in trades. I started to do little sketches in my exercise book. One day Len French the painter came to the school as a rookie teacher. He was a terrible teacher (laughs), but he used to liven the place up. One day he brought in three postcards: One was of saints, by El Greco, one was Cezanne’s ‘Mont Sainte-Victoire’, and the third was ‘The Sleeping Gypsy’ by Henri Rousseau. Len said, ‘Which one do you like?’. I liked Rousseau’s Sleeping Gypsy. And that triggered something in me because I began to realise that there was this other big world out there. MS He must have been a very exciting person to come into your life. JS He was, yeah. MS Was he an established painter at that point? JS No, he wasn’t. He was becoming established – he ran with the local scene. A couple of years before that he’d been overseas, he’d done a bit of travel, so he was sort of sophisticated. MS And he became a mentor for you for many years? JS He was in a way. He introduced me to the pubs (both laugh). MS Is that how you got to meet John Brack and Fred Williams and the other artists in Melbourne? JS The way I met John Brack was different. I had a studio in Hardware Lane – one of the lanes of Melbourne. It was an awful place, very dark and dingy, and I was doing these black, ugly pictures that nobody could possibly want (laughs). One day in walked John Brack with a bloke called Hal Hattam. He was a doctor who hung around with the artists and was a bit of a collector as well. Brack was very austere and firm, and I was like a rat scurrying around. They didn’t say much, just looked around and then left. But about two weeks later I was asked to drop a painting off at John Brack’s house – he’d bought one of my paintings. I was so touched. MS Wow. JS Because coming from him it was so special. MS Yes, and that’s before you actually got to know him? JS Yeah, he liked my stuff. MS He was a lot older than you, like 20 years older? JS He was, yeah. He came out of the army without firing a shot and then he became a teacher in Melbourne and got a job at the Gallery School at the NGV. He ended up teaching at Melbourne Grammar – all the little rich boys. (laughs) MS Well, they have to be taught too (both laugh). JS John Brack was a big influence on me because he was the conscience of our generation. Later, we shared the same dealer, Rudy Komon, who was my dealer in Sydney. George Baldessin was also with Rudy. As was Fred Williams. A bit of a boys’ club. MS Well, I suppose in those days there were fewer women artists. But that must have been a pretty amazing thing for you because Rudy Komon was one of the most influential art dealers in Australia at the time. He got you on his books when you were in your mid 20s I think? JS Yes, I was. MS That’s amazing. JS He was planning to give me a first show. But I’d gone and made a mess of myself – I sort of spoiled it all – I smashed myself up in a car accident. Went through the windscreen and almost lost an eye. Rudy came into the hospital and saw me and as he walked out, he said to someone, ‘Well it’s a pity about Jan, he could have been a good artist’ (laughs), and I said ‘Don’t say that!’ MS I can imagine you didn’t want to hear that at that time. That didn’t happen in the end, thankfully! JS Years later when Rudy and I travelled around the place I sometimes raised that: I said, ‘Rudy, you almost wrote me off – you told me I was no good!’ He said ‘Oh, I wouldn’t do that to you.’ MS So, you were with him for 20 years or so? JS Close to it yeah. He was quite different from the other dealers. He gave money to various painters from his stable. MS Like a wage sort of thing? JS Yeah, to keep them going. Rudy also had Jon Molvig from Queensland. Molvig would ring up Rudy and say, ‘Rudy I need some dough- not just some dough – the full symphony’. He was very keen on Molvig. MS And Rudy had a lot in common with you, didn’t he? Because he was also a migrant. JS He was, yeah. Though he never talked much about his past. MS He was a lot older than you. JS Oh, yeah. He was an interesting character. The first time I showed with him was in the ’70s. I was in a drawing show. When I came in from Melbourne to the gallery and saw red stickers everywhere. I said, ‘Rudy, Jesus! You mean all these people bought my drawings?’ and he said, ‘Oh yes, Jan, there are a few people who like you.’ But who they were he wouldn’t say. Years later, after he died, I was at Rudy’s gallery with Gwen Frolich. She was Rudy’s rock. She’d pulled him out of problems time after time – tax problems and all the other stuff – and she and I were looking through Rudy’s storeroom. We were digging through all this stuff when I came across one of my drawings. Then I found more of them, all from that first drawing show. And I said to Gwen, ‘What’s the story?’ Gwen just smiled and drew on a cigarette. She said, ‘Rudy thought you needed some money at the time.’ Rudy had bought up my drawings! MS And he did it that way so that it bolstered your confidence as well. JS Yeah, he was a good bloke. But he was full of bullshit as well (both laugh). MS Well, anyone in the art world has to be a bit like that don’t they? JS Yeah. I once travelled with him to South America, to the Sao Paulo Biennial, in which I was representing Australia. We went on this trip with James Gleeson. MS The famous surrealist painter. JS Yes, that’s right. Gleeson’s partner, Frank O’Keefe, wanted to go as well so it ended up being the four of us on a plane to Brazil, via Tahiti. Rudy wanted to go as our representative, but he really just wanted to be there for the trip. MS So for that 1973 Sao Paulo Biennial I understand you did 18 large paintings over two years. Those works were very typical of what you were doing at the time, those bleak industrial landscapes, very large works?
Fort 2 (1973), JS Yes, that’s right. MS And I think Fred Williams called you an ‘industrial surrealist’. JS (laughs) Yeah. MS Those structures and forms that are in those paintings – for example, ‘Fort 2’ – they do have quite a surreal quality to them. They don’t exist in the world. How did you come to paint those images? JS I was just starting to use silkscreen techniques in a painting, which straight away made everything much sharper. Even though you might have very dark colours, blacks and browns, there’s movement within those colours. People picked up on an industrial theme. People have sort of pigeonholed me as an industrial landscape artist. I’m not just that, I’m a lot of other things at the same time. But they like to label you – it’s always the case. MS Yeah. For example, those Antarctic paintings are totally different. Actually, those works where you were painting near your holiday home around the Otway Ranges in south-western Victoria, they’re also really beautiful works, and very expressive paintings. ‘Otway night’ 1994 JS I’m glad you like them. MS And you know what I noticed about those and also the map paintings, those aerial paintings – they have much more colour. Did you find that you were using more colour later in your career? JS Yeah, I think so. I was slowly moving away from what I call my ‘axle grease’ period. MS (laughs) Which I liked as well. JS But you’re right. The colour change is there in the Otway paintings. It’s not over the top, but it’s there. I suppose as you get older you don’t have to hammer everything every time. You learn how to just step back, to retain your point. When you’re younger you’re fierce and attacking. As you get older it doesn’t matter so much. I’m finding that with me these days. I’ve had a very good run when I come to think of it – all the things that I’ve had the opportunity to do. It’s been marvellous. I’ve had the chance to do my own imagery, and I have always wanted to be outside the main movement. Maybe close to the movement sometimes, but not part of it. MS Why do you think that is? JS Must be my twisted nature (laughs). MS Yeah, well, I’m going to be a psychoanalyst now. Is it partly due to coming to Australia when you were 10, and not going to art school, not doing the traditional thing that somebody who was born here might have done? JS Yeah, sure. You become very aware of that of course, but you still want to follow your own path. I never wanted to copy anybody’s work. You always try for some kind of originality, even if it isn’t possible. That’s what I’ve always thought. MS Your subject matter is really interesting, and the ways in which you find inspiration, for want of a better word. For example, in the Otways works, the William Buckley theme came through; the outsider, the escaped convict who lived among the Indigenous locals. It must be pretty exciting when you come across a theme or subject that really draws you? JS Yes, it is. Sometimes it takes a long while to realise that but you’re right – it’s very much about retaining your ‘handwriting’ — I always tried to do that. ‘Buckley’s Cave’ 1996 MS Well, I suppose you can’t paint any other way. You’ll always end up painting like yourself. JS That’s right. When I did a series of paintings, whether they were from Antarctica, or Mount Lowell in Tasmania, or some of the other places, I always had a father figure. For Mount Lyell I had Robert Sticht, who was chief metallurgist in Queenstown in the late 1890s. He was a very eccentric character. A mining boss, but also quite sophisticated. He was a man of some culture. He had a Rembrandt print and a priceless private library. I’ve always been attracted to characters like that. There were two people from the Antarctic. One was Carsten Borchgrevink. He was a schoolteacher in country New South Wales at the turn of the century. But he was also a bloke who wanted to go down to the Antarctic. He ended up getting on a whaling boat as a sailor, bound for Antarctica. At this point no one had set foot on Antarctica – a lot of people had come close. When Borchgrevink who was rowing a boat with an advance party realised he was coming close to the land, he jumped out and said, ‘I’m the first human being to put foot on Antarctica’. His captain pulled him back straight away, but Borchgrevink was a hero. He was a difficult man, very awkward, but he had this madness about him which I found very attractive. Borchgrevink’s foot (1987) After that first trip, he gathered a team together and went down to the Cape Adare area. They stayed there for a year, so he was among the first to stay for an extended time as well. He was a real outsider. I’ve always loved mavericks like that. Despite Borchgrevink’s success, the British ignored him completely because he wasn’t part of the Establishment, not part of the Royal Scientific Society and all that, he was just a loose cannon. But before that he beat Scott to the South Pole. He also stayed with Amundsen. In retirement Borchgrevink was finally given some sort of recognition, the British Royal Society medal – bugger all, really! I got a sense of what inspired Borchgrevink when I went to Antarctica myself. A couple of helicopters used to drop us off right in the middle somewhere, in the most remote expanse. And you sat there in the evening with a glass of whisky in your hand, thinking, ‘I’m really away from the world’, that sort of feeling. MS Amazing. I imagine the stars were really bright. JS That’s right – and also the southern lights, Aurora Australis. At 10 o’clock one night on the Icebird we were all down in the hold drinking and I went on the deck just to get away from all that – and I saw this massive white yellow streak going right across the sky, like a big question mark. The others came out and we stood around in awe. MS You know one of the paintings I liked from Antarctica was the one where your fellow artist Bea Maddock is being lifted onto the boat. She’d broken her leg and you painted her being winched aboard? JS Yes, poor Bea. She’d barely made it to shore when she slipped. For the rest of the trip she could only sketch from the boat. MS That would have been pretty rough being on a boat for weeks not being able to move around. JS Yeah, she was very stoic. The isolation was tough even without an injury like that. This was back in the days with the old radio systems – no phones, so to make contact with your family or anyone else you had to book in and you could talk for 10 minutes on the bridge and that was it. ‘Bea Maddock being lifted onto the Icebird- Heard Island’ 1987 MS So you would have really felt cut off from the rest of the world just on this solitary ship. And back home, as far as your regular routine goes, have you always worked five days a week or does that vary? JS Probably five days a week. On Saturdays I could be found sort of floating around the house, or maybe having a punt on the horses or watching a bit of footy. I’m very ordinary! (laughs) MS (laughs) I don’t know if ‘ordinary’ is the right word, Jan. When I look around this studio and see how much work you’ve done over the years the thing that strikes me is that you have created so many huge works over your life. You didn’t muck around. You had an idea and you executed it. JS Yeah, that’s generally true. MS I suppose using acrylics is quite good for that? JS Yes, acrylics are good for large-scale painting. When I was doing some smaller work I’d use oil. But what I found was that I’d use acrylics so close to oil that people don’t know. MS Let’s talk about work you’ve done more recently. When I was supposed to first see you two years ago, before COVID intervened, your show with Niagara Galleries was on, called ‘Not Quite the Last Picture Show’ . You had a self-portrait in that and I thought, wow, I hadn’t seen a lot of self-portraits by you. Although, speaking to your wife Helen, she said that you actually do self-portraits from time to time. JS In secret (laughs). MS Well, I thought that one in the show was great. It was called ‘Floating’ and it was basically a head disembodied – there was no neck even. JS That’s right. That was the intention. MS Can you tell me about that? JS It was because I wanted some sort of figurative element for the show. I was hoping to do a bigger one but then when I did it I thought, ‘That’s enough.’ I’ve done other self-portrait drawings and so on, but portrait painting is another thing, a special thing. ‘Floating’ 2019 MS Do you like it? JS I like it, yeah. There are some good portrait painters – people like Rick Amor, fantastic painter. There are quite a few in Melbourne. MS Yeah, Rick Amor is amazing. JS But the thing is with the art scene there’s a lot of intellect – the new way of making art. You get all these sort of sharply designed things, bold colours and everything else, but at the same time I think they have a limited life. The photographic image is good, but I think painting is better, though it depends what the painting depicts. Every week when you read the reviews – not that there’s many reviews anymore – you see the fascination with a method, a technique, and not enough of what it’s actually saying. I always thought that anything is valid providing you’re not overcome by the wonderment of technique. I still believe you can be very avant garde just being a painter. Just painting. It’s your life in a way. It’s done by hand. MS Totally. It’s becoming more and more valuable and valued because we are bombarded by so many digital images and photographic images that this idea of putting paint on a surface, it’s becoming more rare. JS That’s right. When you’re growing up you’re learning all about art, modern art and so on, it’s all part of it, but at the same time you’re always looking for some odd character that’s coming up. MS You’ve held lots of very important positions over the years. We talked about your position at ANU. You were also appointed visiting chair in Australian studies at Harvard University, which was I think the first time an artist was appointed to that position. And you were a trustee of the National Gallery Victoria. You’ve been bestowed the highest award at RMIT, the Doctor of Arts, and you’re one of the leading artists in Australia. Yet you’re so modest, Jan. How have you been able to keep your feet on the ground over all these years? JS Well, I don’t know about modest. The thing is you do these things – and I’ve never asked for this to happen – people just gave them to you. Harvard, for instance, there was never an artist in that position, it was always high-class academics. I’d never been to university and here I was going to the top university in the world! (laughs) MS (laughs) What was that experience like? JS Marvellous, but tough. The students at those universities are very, very eager and I found myself doing quite a lot of talks on Australian art. When I went there I thought, ‘What the hell have I got to do here?’ and then Harvard said, ‘Jan, could you arrange an Australian art show?’ So I started asking around about borrowing all sorts of art. It was all going to take so long. Then when it all looked impossible we got the Holmes a Court collection, a very distinguished collection of Aboriginal art from various parts of Australia. And that was part of my mission – to show Australian art. MS You were saying to me before that you’re probably not going to return to painting at this stage. Have you decided definitely? JS Well, it’s rather hard for me, having this ailment, it’s harder to set up. MS Are you still drawing? JS Yeah, I’m doing some drawing. But you see I’m at the end of things – this is my studio, this is the place I built over the years. I mean, (my wife) Helen and my daughter Jes are doing a great job cataloguing my stuff, but it’s not a working studio anymore. MS It’s a pretty special space. I’ve seen a lot of studios over the years since I’ve started this podcast. And I’ve got to say this one is probably in the top three, if not number one – it’s just wonderful. JS Yeah, it’s a special workplace. MS Well Jan, I’d like to thank you for your time today and for sharing your story and your extraordinary work in this amazing space. Thank you so much. JS Thank You.
Melbourne August, 2022 https://youtu.be/XhGHEkABcjc?si=yaDOc7AgrCAe7sRA | |||
| ‘Kandinsky’ with co-curator Jackie Dunn and artist Desmond Lazaro | 05 nov. 2023 | ||
See a video version of the interview with curator Jackie Dunn here See a video version of the interview with artist Desmond Lazaro here The largest exhibition of Kandinsky’s work ever to be seen in Australia has just opened at the Art Gallery of NSW!The exhibition, titled simply ‘Kandinsky’, brings together over 50 works of one of the 20th century’s most innovative and ground breaking painters – Vasily Kandinsky – with 47 paintings from the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum in New York. Curated by the Guggenheim’s curator of modern art and provenance Megan Fontanella together with the AGNSW’s senior curator Jackie Dunn, these works touch on the most important periods of Kandinsky’s artistic career, from the early ‘Blue Rider’ period, to his time in Germany when teaching at the Bauhaus school right through to his final years in Paris. In this podcast episode (which you can also see on YouTube) I talk with Jackie Dunn about this extraordinary exhibition. She tells me about Kandinsky’s life and work, including what the catalysts were for him to become a painter, his use of colour, line and form and his interests in spirituality and music. I also talk with Desmond Lazaro who was commissioned to design a family-friendly space where visitors are invited to follow the path of a colourful labyrinth and create drawings using the shapes that inspired Kandinsky. Lazaro is a British-Indian-Australian artist whose primary ingredient is colour. His practice explores map-making, planetary systems and the concept of the journey. Also, alongside the Kandinsky show is an exhibition of ‘spirit drawings’ created by British medium Georgiana Houghton in the 1860s and 70s. The exhibition, ‘Invisible Friends’, brings together a collection of rarely seen swirling, evocative watercolours. They highlight how significant spiritualism was in early modernism. ‘Kandinsky’ is a must-see exhibition. It runs from November 4th to March 10th, 2024. More details here. To hear the podcast episode press ‘play’ beneath the above photo. To watch the video versions of the interviews click on the links at the top of this page or see below. Links
https://youtu.be/Pgm4112joG8 https://youtu.be/D3b3WLlsakc ‘Composition 8’ July 1923, oil on canvas, 140.3 x 200.7 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, by gift, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation ‘Blue mountain’ 1908-09, oil on canvas, 107.3 x 97.6 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, by gift, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation Vasily Kandinsky ‘In the black square’ June 1923, oil on canvas, 97.5 x 93.3 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, by gift, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation ‘Landscape with rain’ January 1913, oil on canvas, 70.5 x 78.4 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation ‘Yellow painting’ July 1938, oil and enamel on canvas, 116.4 x 88.9 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation ‘Around the circle’ MayAugust 1940, oil and enamel on canvas, 97.2 x 146.4 cm, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Founding Collection, photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation
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| James Powditch live at the AGNSW | 21 oct. 2023 | 00:51:43 | |
This episode is a conversation between James Powditch and Maria Stoljar in front of an audience at the Art Gallery of NSW, recorded by the Art Gallery Society James Powditch has always loved the movies. As a child in the 70s and 80s he would watch whatever he could get away with – from Taxi Driver to Deliverance.But in recent years, after being shortlisted in the Archibald prize with paintings of Labor leader (now PM) Anthony Albanese and journalists Kerry O’Brien and Laura Tingle he noticed other themes emerge; media and politics. In his most recent solo show at Nanda Hobbs Gallery he found a way to merge those interests. In Medium Cool: Journalism in Film, works took on titles of films in which journalism and politics were central themes. Beautifully composed assemblages incorporating found objects explored the ideas behind movies such as All the President’s men and Network. James has exhibited in over 10 solo shows and has won the Mosman and Blake art prizes. He has been a finalist in the Archibald Wynne and Sulman prizes for a combined total of about 25 times. In this episode Maria has a vibrant (and often humorous) conversation with James in front of an audience at the Art Gallery of NSW as part of the Artists in Conversation series. You can see images of the works they talk about below. Members of the Art Gallery Society can also see a video of this conversation for a limited period on the Art Gallery website. To hear the podcast conversation press ‘play’ beneath the above photo. Links
‘Once upon a time in Marrickville – Anthony Albanese’, acrylic on paper and board 190 x 190 cm Finalist Archibald Prize 2020 Lloyd Cole and the Commotions album cover New Order – Power, Corruption and Lies album cover ‘Citizen Kave’ mixed media 200 x 300 cm, Finalist Archibald Prize 2014 ‘Citizen Kane’ 2022 Mixed media, framed 80 x 120cm ‘All the President’s men II’ 2023 mixed media, 40 x 60cm ‘All the President’s men’ 2023, mixed media 130 x 282cm ‘Laura Tingle – the fourth estate’ Acrylic and paper on board 204 x 170.1cm Finalist Archibald Prize 2022 Movie poster ‘Judgment at Nuremberg’ Digital work, James Powditch Peter Powditch Photograph by Robert Walker (c1970) ‘Peter Powditch is a dead man smoking’ 2009, Mixed media 193 x 263cm, Finalist Archibald Prize Family photo, James Powditch ‘Crowdy Head (after Peter Powditch)’, acrylic on paper and cardboard 122 x 366 Finalist Wynne Prize 2022 ‘Crowdy Head IV’, Oil on masonite, 50 x 48cm, Peter Powditch The Wynne Club Championship 2023, oil, acrylic and pen on board, found objects , 180 x 316.1 cm , Wynne Prize finalist Sam I Am, acrylic on paper and board 200 x 240 cm, Finalist Archibald Prize 2023 Digital work, James Powditch
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| Inspiration from the Archives | Risk | 07 oct. 2023 | 00:24:24 | |
Risk. Some painters want it in their toolbox while others are terrified by it. But nearly every painter will tell you that you need it in order to move forward in your practice.
It might be using a new material, drastically altering the composition of a nearly completed painting or creating a completely different body of work to what had previously been commercially successful and critically acclaimed. Any way you look at it, you’re leaving yourself open to the possibility of failure, disappointment and probably the most painful of all – ridicule. So whether we call it risk, chance, letting go of control or just leaving yourself open to mistakes, it all amounts to a greater openness to creativity. Taking the leap and seeing what happens. In this episode I bring together clips from eight previous guests about what risk means to them – and how they use it. See below for a list of the artists together with links to the full podcast conversation and YouTube video Press ‘play’ beneath the above image to listen
Watch the Idris Murphy YouTube Video Listen to the full Idris Murphy podcast interview Book tickets for my conversation with Steve Lopes at the Art Gallery of NSW
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| Inspiration from the Archives | Colour (Part 2) | 10 sept. 2023 | 00:35:17 | |
More inspiration from the archives! Here are another 12 past podcast guests talking with me about colour. Links to full podcast conversations and YouTube videos on each of the artists in this episode:
Sign up to the TWP monthly newsletter here Follow the show on Instagram Follow the show on Facebook Connect with me on LinkedIn
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| Inspiration from the Archives | Colour (Part 1) | 22 août 2023 | 00:20:36 | |
This episode I’m bringing you some gems from the archives. Leading artists talk with me about colour! Episodes of featured artists: Links
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| Ann Thomson in her 90th year | 09 août 2023 | 00:25:26 | |
Watch an edited version of this conversation (4 mins) on the YouTube channel here Ann Thomson, one of Australia’s most important artists, might be in her 90th year but she shows no signs of putting down the brush. A powerful collection of works is currently hanging in a solo show at Sydney’s Defiance Gallery and Ann is looking forward to a busy 2024. A major survey show to be curated by Terence Maloon will open at the S.H.Ervin Gallery in Sydney and travel to Orange Regional Art gallery in country NSW and solo shows at Messums in London and with Stephane Jacob in Paris are also in the calendar. Although Ann resists the label ‘abstract artist’, it’s her masterful use of colour and her superb mark making that will most likely catch your attention – those luscious brushstrokes and drips. But subjects often emerge; a landscape, tribal elements, creatures of the ocean. You’ll also see collaged passages. Ann is well known for using a textured ‘tarred paper’ which was used by builders. Although it’s in scarce supply (she believes she has bought up all remaining rolls in existence!) she doesn’t treat the material as a precious commodity. If you look closely at ‘Calypso’ for example, you’ll see the section of collaged paper is splattered with drips of paint. That’s because it had previously been lying on the floor of Ann’s studio like a drop sheet. She later pasted the paper onto the canvas where it exists surrounded by bright colours, its own history intact. It was wonderful to catch up with Ann to hear her thoughts on creativity and studio life. She has been a guest on the podcast twice previously – in 2018 talking about her life and art and in 2020 talking about her memories of meeting Ian Fairweather (links below). Ann is represented by Defiance Gallery in Sydney, Mitchell Fine Art in Brisbane, Charles Nodrum Gallery in Melbourne, Messums in London and Stephane Jacob in Paris. To hear our conversation press ‘play’ beneath the above photo and scroll down for images of selected works included in the show. Latest Talking with Painters YouTube videos Other links
https://youtu.be/qLf00VQ3U6E Transcending 2018 Shield, 2023 This is one of the two works referred to at about 4mins in the episode. Calypso, 2013
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| Francis Giacco at his Australian Galleries exhibition | 19 juin 2023 | 00:39:36 | |
Watch the edited video version of this podcast episode on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel The exhibition of Francis Giacco’s paintings now showing at Australian Galleries in Sydney has been a long time coming. Covid pushed back the scheduling but it was worth the wait!I met Francis at the gallery and we walked through the exhibition talking about several key works which cross portraiture, still life and landscape. Apart from the Archibald, Francis has won the Percival Portrait Painting prize (and other awards) and has been a People’s Choice winner in the S.H.Ervin’s Salon des Refuses. Titled ‘Recent works: Pictures at an Exhibition (apologies to Mussorgsky)’, the show is a combination of recent work and major paintings from the 80s and 90s. It includes Francis’ enigmatic multi-figured portrait which won the Archibald prize in 1994. Several other works hanging in this first room were shortlisted in the Archibald and Doug Moran National Portrait Prize. Influenced by Vermeer and the early Renaissance masters, his work exudes beauty and vitality. He’s a keen observer of the effects of light, whether it’s streaming from behind a still life or fracturing through a bamboo curtain and the way he depicts detail in the illuminated subject often pushes the real into the abstract. Francis (also known as Frank to those who know him) was my first podcast guest and in the past also taught at Julian Ashton Art School where I first met him. Many of his students have gone on to make paintings which have hung in the Archibald prize themselves and I can think of at least three who are finalists in this year’s exhibition. The exhibition continues at Australian Galleries until 2 July 2023. To hear the episode click on ‘play’ above. Click here to watch the shorter 8 minute video version of this episode. Links
https://youtu.be/csBvbFfcwUc Homage to John Reichard (1994) egg emulsion on marine plywood, 202cm x 188cm Archibald Prize Winner, 1994 Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Lee Lin Chin (1993) egg emulsion on marine plywood, 163cm x 127cm, Archibald Prize Finalist, 1993; Doug Moran Finalist, 1995. Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries White widow 1999-2000 egg emulsion on marine plywood, 132cm x 119cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries The piano 1984 oil on canvas, 96cm x 89cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Jenny’s garden #25 – the altar 2020-23 oil on marine plywood, 122cm x 128.5cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Jenny’s garden #20 – commotion 2020-23 oil on marine plywood, 43cm x 88cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Balthus’ cats 2020-23 oil on marine plywood, 122cm x 126cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries The audition 1990 egg emulsion and oil on marine plywood, 60cm x 60cmImage courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Bondi Pavilion 1988 oil on canvas, 76cm x 61cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Self portrait #3 – after Rembrandt c. 1980 oil on canvas, 31cm x 27cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries Rushcutters Park – bushfire smoke c. 1990 oil on canvas on board, 39cm x 35cm Image courtesy of the artist and Australian Galleries | |||
| When I won that art prize (part 4) – Georgia Spain | 11 juin 2023 | 00:14:37 | |
In the final episode of the series ‘When I won that art prize’ we go back to 2021 when a 27 year old Georgia Spain won the Sir John Sulman Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW, the first time she had entered the prize.
In the same week she was announced the winner of the Women’s Art Prize Tasmania. These announcements were made less than 12 months after she was one of 5 artists to receive the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art scholarship. Georgia’s recent work is currently hanging in the exhibition ‘Once more with feeling’ showing at Ngununggula, in the southern highlands of NSW. See below for links to Instagram videos about that exhibition. To hear this episode click on ‘play’ beneath the above photo. Links
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cs73wXShsoy/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cs94XEbhR5e/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
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| When I won that art prize (part 3) – Megan Seres | 17 mai 2023 | 00:16:25 | |
In this episode I’m taking you back to my interview with Megan Seres who won the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize in 2016.
Megan received the $150,000 in prize money for her stunning painting, ‘Scarlett as Colonial girl’, which depicted her daughter in 19th century dress against a golden landscape. Megan hadn’t planned on entering the competition, but was persuaded by a friend. When she heard her name announced as the winner, she was completely shocked. To hear the episode press play beneath the above photo. Central photo of Megan Seres supplied by the artist Links
‘Scarlett as colonial girl’, 2016, winner of the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize 2016 | |||
| Archibald winner Julia Gutman | 06 mai 2023 | 00:14:54 | |
You can see an edited video version of the interview with Julia Gutman here Australia’s most famous art prize was awarded yesterday at the Art Gallery of NSW together with the Wynne and Sulman prizes.The $100,000 prize went to a shocked but happy 29 year old Julia Gutman for her fabulous portrait of singer/songwriter Montaigne. It’s titled ‘Head in the sky feet on the ground’, a beautiful mixed media work consisting of oils, found textiles and embroidery. I had a chance to talk with her shortly after the announcement and I’m bringing you today that conversation together with her acceptance speech. The Wynne prize for landscape painting or figure sculpture went to Zaachariaha Fielding for his painting ‘Inma’. Zaachariaha is primarily a singer, the lead vocalist of the band Electric Fields, and sings in Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara and English. Together with producer Michael Ross they have received 22 awards over the past 6 years for his music. In the winning work Zaachariaha aimed to visually depict sound, specifically the sounds of Mimili, a small community in the eastern part of the APY lands in South Australia and thrilled everyone at the announcement by singing with a few friends saying ‘this is what the canvas sounds like’ (see below for a link to a short video). The Sulman Prize for genre painting which was judged by the artist Nell and went to Doris Bush Nangarrayi for her work ‘Mamunya ngalyananyi (Monster coming)’ which depicts several Mamus the ominous and malevolent spirits that terrify Anangu. These figures are typically seen to have large haunting eyes with straight hair standing upright and can shapeshift into many different forms, including the human figure. Doris lives in Papunya in the Northern Territory and paints vivid memories stories and dreams from her life. See below for images of all winning works. Linkshttps://youtu.be/eI1pStmYY0E?si=uOzNmScilDmGki0l https://youtu.be/GIF0LOntO2o https://youtu.be/eaTKIf6fBT4
Winner Archibald Prize 2023, Julia Gutman ‘Head in the sky, feet on the ground’, oil, found textiles and embroidery on canvas, 198 x 213.6 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter Winner Wynne Prize 2023, Zaachariaha Fielding ‘Inma’, acrylic on linen, 306.2 x 198.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter Winner Sulman Prize 2023, Doris Bush Nungarrayi ‘Mamunya ngalyananyi (Monster coming)’, acrylic on linen, 198 x 273.5 cm © the artist, image © Art Gallery of New South Wales, Jenni Carter | |||
| When I won that art prize (part 2)- James Drinkwater | 28 avr. 2023 | 00:11:58 | |
In part 2 of the series ‘When I won that art prize’ we go back to episode 29 when James Drinkwater recalled winning the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship in 2014.
The award included a three month residency in Paris at the Cité Internationale des arts, a dream come true for any young painter. However, when he and his young family set off for France, not everything went according to plan. Upcoming show
Photo of James Drinkwater by Maria Stoljar (2017) ‘Encrusting the marvellous heart’, diptych, 2015, oil and collage on hardboard, 180 x 244cm Finalist Wynne Prize 2015
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| When I won that art prize (part 1) – Prudence Flint | 22 avr. 2023 | 00:13:47 | |
Golden moments from the archives! While I’m busy updating my YouTube channel and taking a break from new interviews, I’m thrilled to bring you a new series featuring clips from past podcast guests.
In my first series ‘When I won that art prize’ I look back at conversations I’ve had with painters about their experiences with winning awards. Although there are plenty of upsides (the prize money being one of the main ones) it’s not always a positive experience! In 2017 (ep 35), I chatted with the fabulous Prudence Flint. No stranger to art prizes, she has won the Portia Geach Memorial Award, the Len Fox Painting Award and has been shortlisted in the Archibald seven times. But when I asked her what it was like winning the Doug Moran National Portrait prize in 2004, with prize money of $100,000, her response was not what you might expect. Links
‘A Fine Romance #9’, 2004, oil on linen, 117 x 82cm Winner of Doug Moran National Portrait Prize 2004 ‘Baby’, 2015, oil on linen, 105 x 90.5cm Finalist in Archibald Portrait Prize 2015 | |||
| Idris Murphy: Backblocks (live at the S.H.Ervin Gallery) | 18 mars 2023 | 00:35:10 | |
See the YouTube video of Maria Stoljar’s earlier conversation with Idris Murphy here Last Thursday I was thrilled to speak with Idris Murphy, leading contemporary artist and a previous podcast guest, in front of a live audience at the S.H.Ervin Gallery in Sydney.It’s where the survey exhibition of his work, ‘Idris Murphy: Backblocks’ is now showing and continues until 26 March 2023. Curated by Terence Maloon, it features breathtaking work predominantly from the last two decades. Paintings which shimmer, glow, and transport the viewer. Idris talked with me about his career including the stories behind several works, the influence indigenous culture has had on his approach and how he works in the studio. Although this exhibition is impressive in its quality and depth, this isn’t the first survey show of Idris’s work. The exhibition ‘I and Thou’ in 2009/2010 had highlighted the preceding 30 years of work. He has exhibited in over 40 solo shows over the years with work in major public collections including the National Gallery of Australia and Art Gallery of NSW. Thanks to everyone who came along! I also filmed our conversation and will be uploading an edited version of this chat to the TWP YouTube channel in the coming months. Idris is represented by King Street Gallery in Sydney. Photo of Idris Murphy in his studio (2022) by Maria Stoljar Current exhibition‘Idris Murphy: Backblocks’, S.H.Ervin Gallery, Sydney, until 26 March 2023 Links
https://youtu.be/YlceSOHxf6w?si=Alp_RTOQcEWFxoRd Installation photo – S.H.Ervin Gallery (see below for individual works) ‘Somewhere in France 1’, 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm ANU Art Collection ‘Somewhere in France 2’, 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm ANU Art Collection ‘Somewhere in France 3’, 2017, acrylic and collage on aluminium, 151 x 141cm ANU Art Collection ‘Half Moon at the New’, 2015, acrylic on aluminium, 153 x 153cm Courtesy of the artist and King Street Gallery ‘Weipa Harbour Storm’, 2005, acrylic and collage on board, 120 x 120cm ‘Low tide Boodery National Park’, 2015, acrylic and collage on board, 150 x 150cm Private collection | |||
| Yvette Coppersmith | 27 févr. 2023 | 00:57:13 | |
See video highlights of this interview on the YouTube channel here
For those of you interested in portraiture in Australia, Yvette Coppersmith needs no introduction.
She has painted dozens of portraits, including a collection of fascinating self-portraits, and is regularly shortlisted in the country’s most competitive portrait awards. In 2018 she was awarded the one that would place her in Australian art history – the Archibald Prize. What has captured my attention more recently, though, are Yvette’s abstract works, particularly a body of work I saw in her exhibition ‘Presage’ at Sullivan + Strumpf in Sydney last year. They were thickly textured, swirling abstractions and how she came to create that show is as interesting as the paintings themselves. Yvette has been painting for over 20 years and her work is held in many public and private collections. In addition to winning the Archibald Prize, she has won the Metro 5 Art Award and has been a finalist multiple times in nearly every prestigious portrait prize in Australia, including the Doug Moran, Portia Geach, and Darling Portrait prizes. In this episode we follow her career from her early photorealistic works to her present-day experimentation with paint and genre, encompassing still lifes and interiors along the way. To hear the conversation click ‘play’ below the above photo. See below for images of the works we talk about in the show. Photograph of Yvette Coppersmith by Mel Savage Links
https://youtu.be/1c3mK8FR-2k?si=D_VVZf9YrjbrWQGI ‘Self-portrait after George Lambert’, oil and acrylic on linen, 122 x 101.5cm, 2018 Winner Archibald Prize 2018 ‘Nude Self-portrait after Rah Fizelle’, oil on linen, 91.5 x 66cm, 2016 Finalist, Portia Geach Memorial Award, 2016 ‘John Safran’, oil on plywood, 120cm x 90cm, 2009 Archibald Prize finalist 2009 ‘John Safran’, oil on plywood, 120cm x 90cm, 2009 Archibald Prize finalist 2009 ‘In the Garland, portrait of Paul Capsis’, oil on linen, 22.5 x 111.5cm, 2007 Finalist, Archibald Prize, 2008 ‘Untitled Movement (Scarlet Lake)’, oil on jute, 76.5 x 61cm, 2022 Photo: Matthew Stanton
‘Untitled Movement (Triptych)’, oil on jute, 3 x 122.5cm x 91.5cm Photo: Simon Hewson ‘Arrangement with Grey and Yellow’, oil on linen 61cm x 46cm , 2014 ‘Geranium and Succulents’, oil on linen, 80cm x 59.5cm, 2015 Posthumous Portrait of Edith Morris, oil on linen, 86.5cm x 63.5cm, 2020 Photo: Matthew Stanton Collection of Melbourne Girls Grammar School
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| Anthony White | 02 févr. 2023 | 00:51:03 | |
The gestural marks in Anthony White’s work are often bold and demanding of the viewer’s attention. These abstract works vary from swirling lines in saturated colour, to textured surfaces and more formal collaged constructions.
What is not apparent on the surface of the canvas is the time the artist has spent reading, writing and researching in the lead-up to their creation. Newspapers and books play as much a role in his work as the paint itself and writing his own thoughts on social and political issues and current events are crucial to his creative process. In this podcast conversation we touch on those ideas but Anthony also makes many insightful observations about the creation itself. Born in Australia, Anthony is now Paris-based and is represented by several galleries in Europe and Australia. His first museum show, titled ‘Mobilising Material’, was held at the Mark Rothko Art Centre in Latvia in 2022. He also returned to Australia last year on a creative fellowship at the National Library of Australia where he researched Sidney Nolan‘s commissioned mural of the Eureka Stockade. (See below for a link to his presentation relating to that research) He has been awarded the Marten Bequest Travelling scholarship, amongst other residencies, and his work is held in public and private collections internationally. Scroll down for a video of highlights of this interview on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel. Click on ‘play’ below the above photo to hear the podcast episode. Photo supplied by the artist Links
https://youtu.be/QzWRmXJ_p1c?si=DfHqQFlVys2y85-_ ‘Lampedusa’, 2019, oil and ripolin enamel on linen, 150 x 120cm ‘The Landscape is never Innocent (after Mannalargenna)’, 2018, oil and ripolin on linen Finalist and Highly Commended in 2018 Glover Prize ‘Sanctuary’ 2016, oil and shellac on linen, 120 x 100cm ‘Federation Peak II’, 2020, oil on linen, 150 x 120cm Finalist 2021 Glover Prize ‘Ghost series XIII’ 2022, acrylic and flash on linen, 90.5 x 90.5cm ‘Proletariat’, 2017, 91.5 x 91.5cm | |||
| Paul Newton (part 2) | 28 déc. 2022 | 00:53:41 | |
Most artists know that painting a portrait in a tradition where colour and form appear realistic takes years of training where trial and error play an important part.
This is part 2 of my interview with leading portrait painter Paul Newton. He makes the analogy of a painter being like a cook and it’s an appropriate one. And like a celebrity chef printing his secret recipes in a cookbook, Paul shares in this episode many of the lessons he’s learnt through his years of experience. In the first of this two part conversation, Paul spoke with me about how he became an artist and the stories behind several of his stunning portraits. In this episode, we talk more about the creation of his paintings. Amongst other things, we talk at length about colour, he shares the pitfalls when using photographic references, the challenges of painting backgrounds and he shares an interesting approach on how to see work with fresh eyes, something crucial for portraitists painting in a realistic style. Paul is a fifteen-time Archibald finalist (including twice People’s Choice and Packing Room Prize winner), has 6 works in the National Portrait Gallery’s collection and has painted dozens of commissions of notable people from politicians to movie stars. Scroll down for two YouTube videos, the first of excerpts from the podcast interview and the second of Paul demonstrating mixing flesh tones on his palette. To hear the podcast episode click ‘play’ beneath the above photo. Links
https://youtu.be/YhVVKyAZO6w https://youtu.be/R3w1znrxtMs ‘Self portrait 2022’, oil on linen, 35.5cm x 36cm Progress photos of ‘Self Portrait 2022’ The palette sheet Paul refers to at the beginning of the episode. ‘Portrait of Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness’ ‘Self portrait in lockdown, 2021’ Finalist, Darling Portrait Prize 2022 ‘Maggie Tabberer 1999’
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| Paul Newton (part 1) | 20 déc. 2022 | 01:11:29 | |
It was the 80s. Paul Newton had finished a science degree and was a singer in a band. He sensed, though, that this was not meant to be his life’s work.
‘I’m a bit of a perfectionist and unless I can do something really well I find it frustrating to do it at all’. So he decided to change course and he put that perfectionism to good use; he is now one of Australia’s most highly skilled and accomplished portrait painters. If you are interested in the Archibald prize, you no doubt will have seen a Paul Newton portrait. He’s been a finalist 15 times, a People’s Choice winner twice and Packing Room winner twice. But those portraits are just the tip of the iceberg. He has been painting the portraits of notable people for over 30 years, spanning the arts, business, law, sport, the church, the military and more. From Hugh Jackman to Kylie Minogue, from former prime minister Bob Hawke to former governor general Sir William Deane, from David Gonski to Frank Lowy, Roy and HG to David Campese, Maggie Tabberer and even Saint Mary Mackillop. Paul has six works in the National Portrait Gallery’s collection, has been awarded art prizes in the US and his many commissions include 32 pictures for the interior of the Domus Australia Chapel in Rome. In this first of a two-part episode we talk about how he became an artist and the stories behind many works including his portraits of Hugh Jackman and Deborra Lee-Furness, Roy and HG and Maggie Tabberer. In the next episode we’ll dive into other works but also talk more about technique including an in-depth discussion about his use of colour. Scroll down for two YouTube videos, the first of excerpts from the podcast interview and the second of Paul demonstrating mixing flesh tones on his palette. To hear the episode click on play beneath the above feature photo. Latest YouTube videos and Newsletter Signup link
Links
https://youtu.be/YhVVKyAZO6w
https://youtu.be/R3w1znrxtMs ‘Portrait of Hugh Jackman and Deborra-Lee Furness’ ‘Roy and HG (John Doyle and Greig Pickhaver)‘ Finalist Archibald Prize, Art Gallery of NSW, 2001, Packing Room Prize winner, People’s Choice winner (L) ‘Maggie Tabberer 1999’ (R) ‘Maggie Tabberer 2020’ ‘David Campese II’, 2000, oil on canvas, 125.0 cm x 115.0 cm Collection: National Portrait Gallery The Beethoven death mask study which Paul talks about at 27min 15sec | |||
| Belinda Street | 27 nov. 2022 | 00:46:56 | |
It’s hard to define what makes a good landscape painting but, if you investigate the backstory, you might find the artist has a close connection with that place.
In Belinda Street’s October show at Straitjacket Artspace, ‘Keep your feet on the ground and your thoughts at lofty heights’, her bond with the alpine landscape was obvious, particularly with Mt Kosciuszko in NSW. Her repeated exploration of that mountain has led to exciting reimaginings in paint. A winner of one of Australia’s most significant landscape painting prizes, the Paddington Art Prize, Belinda evokes a reverence for this natural environment through expressive mark making and dramatic use of colour. It was this body of work which we talked about in front of an audience as part of the Newcastle Art Gallery Society art program and which I’m bringing to you in this podcast episode. We also touched on Belinda’s early career, the representational and the abstract in her work, juggling motherhood and an art practice, as well as many aspects of her process including colour preferences, how she sees work with fresh eyes and ways of achieving a flow state in the studio. The conversation was recorded at Newcastle City Hall on 5 October 2022. Click ‘play’ beneath the above photo to hear the interview. You can also see my YouTube video here of Belinda at Straitjacket Artspace which we filmed the day before our talk. Upcoming shows
https://youtu.be/5Lh5gM2GsSM ‘Yellow Box Gully’, 2019, oil on canvas, 100 x 150cm Winner 2019 Paddington Art Prize ‘Organ Pipes 2’, oil on board, 51 x 61cm ‘Along the Organ Pipes Track 3’, oil on canvas, 100 x 150cm ‘Walking Kunanyi 2’, oil on canvas, 40 x 40cm ‘Renewal’, acrylic on board, 40.6 x 30.5cm ‘Parrots of Central Australia’ (12 panels in total) this panel: Major Mitchells Cockatoo, acrylic on canvas ‘Mr Toby Cedar’, oil on canvas, 180 x 150cm | |||
| Nicholas Harding (2019) | 02 nov. 2022 | 01:17:31 | |
We lost one of our greatest artists last night. Nicholas Harding – landscape, still life and portrait painter – and my heart sank when I heard the news.
It’s early afternoon and already there are many tributes coming through in the newspapers and social media. It’s clear he will be greatly missed by many. When I started this podcast, Nicholas Harding was on my wish list and when he agreed to an interview three years later I felt like I had hit the jackpot. I was right. He was one of the most authentic, warm and thoughtful guests I’ve interviewed and it was a privilege to meet him in his studio. Although Nicholas was a highly acclaimed painter with sell out shows, he spoke with me in a grounded and humble way. He was humorous and not afraid to reveal moments of self doubt. He was also open about the cancer treatment he’d undergone the previous year and, in what seems typical of his nature, he was more interested in sympathising with those who were worse off than himself. It’s this interview which was first published in 2019 that I’m posting again to the podcast. I also made a video from our conversations that day. (link below). There is no doubt that Nicholas will be remembered as one of Australia’s most gifted painters of the 21st century. He won many major art prizes including the Archibald prize (in which he was a finalist 19 times) and a few months ago he won the Wynne prize with his painting ‘Eora’, one of the most complex, immersive landscapes that you will ever see, manipulating impasto paint to represent nature yet still retaining an astonishing abstract quality. He was particularly interested in light; how it came through differently depending on the foliage, how it landed on the ground, how it created various kinds of shadows and how different it was to the light in England where he spent the first nine years of his life. I spoke with him at the Art Gallery of NSW shortly after he won the prize and that conversation is a video (link below) and is included in episode 127 of the podcast. Nicholas has also been recognised for his wonderful drawings and in this episode we talked about works he made from life of well known actors while they were in theatre rehearsals and performances. Those drawings were later published in the book ‘From the Wings’. Nicholas’ works are held in many public institutions including the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of NSW, the National Portrait gallery and the Art Gallery of South Australia. My condolences to Nicholas’ wife Lynne and son Sam. Nicholas was remembered by family and friends a few weeks after this episode was published and I was honoured to be asked by his wife Lynne to film the afternoon where moving tributes were made by Lynne and his son Sam as well as artists, actors and musicians who knew him well. You can see that video below. Vale Nicholas. Thank you for making this world a more beautiful place. Video Links
https://youtu.be/ZcDwuWpE3QI
https://youtu.be/NWezJHrg9P4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfSo9xcFrEQ&t=81s
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| Fred Fowler | 15 oct. 2022 | 00:53:45 | |
You can also see a short video of Fred in his studio here There is something mesmerising about Fred Fowler’s paintings. The multitude of small, colour-filled shapes scattered across a monochrome background raise a lot of questions. Is that a pink cat? A cactus? An alien? Next to a mobile phone tower? Are they related? Other amorphous elements seem purely abstract but still somehow evoke a response; a memory, an emotion. The viewer is taken into an alternate space where objects might be floating or fixed but often not identifiable. Ultimately it’s a sensory experience which demands multiple viewings so it’s not surprising that these works fly off gallery walls in sell-out shows. Fred’s work is held in the National Gallery of Australia and, although his roots are in graffiti art and graphic design, as soon as he began his studies at the Victorian College of the Arts it became clear to him the direction he should take. In this interview he talks about that transition, the artists who have influenced him and the thoughts behind his work, openly sharing the struggles and doubts. It was a revealing and enjoyable conversation. Fred is represented by Sophie Gannon Gallery and Jan Murphy Gallery. To hear the podcast interview click on play beneath the above feature photo. Scroll down to see a short Youtube video of Fred in his Melbourne studio. Photo supplied by the artist Upcoming shows
https://youtu.be/4YLdWEGkcBA?si=Zwrs3g1xCS5DDh-4 ‘Mooloomba Rd, Point Lookout’ (2020), synthetic polymer paint and oil paint on wood panel, 90 x 100cm
‘In this sunset’ (2021), synthetic polymer paint on wood panel, 100 x 90 cm ‘Overgrown’ 2020, synthetic polymer paint and oil paint on wood panel, 100 x 90 cm ‘Tarkine (study)’ (2019), oil paint and gold leaf on wood panel, 70 x 60 cm ‘Above Cylinder Beach’ (2018), oil stick on wood panel, 60 x 70cm Still from ‘Samizdat 4’ 2021, digital, looping See video on Instagram (cropped) here Dimensions: 1078 × 606 ‘Cultural amnesia (Liquid State)’ 2012, spraypaint and synthetic polymer paint on wood panel, 100 x 130cm | |||
| Jacqui Stockdale and ‘Heads of the Family’ | 20 sept. 2022 | 00:44:47 | |
Jacqui Stockdale is a previous podcast guest . I asked her back onto the show after I saw a series of moving portraits she posted on Instagram.
Her stepfather, George Stirling, was nearing the end of his life and Jacqui was painting the portraits of family and friends who were visiting over that difficult time. George passed away in June. The works were swiftly painted alla prima, mostly in one sitting from life or an iPhone image, and the resulting group of over twenty portraits is titled ‘Heads of the Family’. In this episode Jacqui talks with me about the experience of painting those works which include a self-portrait and portrayals of George from life. Jacqui’s work crosses many disciplines which defy description spanning from painting, sculpture, photography, collage and performance and her imagery includes portrayals of Ned Kelly, lots of masks, naked figures and horses heads. She has painted the portrait throughout her career and in 2018 was one of only twenty artists to be commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery to mark its 20th year. Jacqui is represented by Olsen Gallery in Sydney. Current and upcoming shows, as well as images of paintings we talk about in this episode, are listed below. Above portrait photo of Jacqui Stockdale by Ilona Nelson (cropped) Current and upcoming exhibitions
Links
Rick Stirling, George’s brother George Stirling Jacqui Stockdale, Self Portrait Drawings of George Stirling Jacqui Stockdale’s mother, Maree Stockdale George Stirling’s sister Trish Stirling ‘An artist practising’ – self portrait
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| Idris Murphy | 25 août 2022 | 01:44:43 | |
See an edited video version of this conversation on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel here ‘Colour, for me, is the main game’ Idris Murphy tells me as we sit in his studio in Sydney’s southern suburb of Kurnell, a stone’s throw from Botany Bay.On various easels around the room are works in progress. His distinctive energetic brushstrokes, often using metallic paint, the carefully placed collage pieces and thin lines scratched into the wet surface are just part of what makes up his arresting work. And yes, colour takes centre stage – in this case bringing life to the landscape of the Northern Territory’s East MacDonnell ranges which he has visited and revisited. Idris Murphy is one of Australia’s leading landscape painters and his work sits between representation and abstraction. He was inspired from an early age by the work of Matisse but, as he later explored what it meant to paint the Australian landscape, it was the way the Indigenous artists saw the land that influenced him to take into account both traditions. In recognition of his career, the survey show ‘Idris Murphy: BACKBLOCKS’ has just opened at the Drill Hall Gallery in Canberra. Curated by gallery director Terence Maloon, the exhibition includes important works from the last 30 years of more than 50 years of work. The exhibition will also travel to Orange Regional Gallery and S.H Ervin Gallery and a monograph will be available in early 2023. Idris has won the Gallipoli Art prize, has exhibited in 40 solo shows and group shows including a previous major travelling survey exhibition in 2009-2010. His work is held in the National Gallery of Australia, the Art Gallery of NSW and other state and corporate collections. His love of literature, poetry and philosophy also comes through clearly in our conversation and you can find references to the works he mentioned in the podcast episode in the links below. Idris is represented by King Street Gallery on William in Sydney. To hear the podcast interview, click ‘play’ beneath the above feature photo Upcoming shows and talks
https://youtu.be/YlceSOHxf6w?si=Alp_RTOQcEWFxoRd Gallipoli Evening, 2013, acrylic and collage on board, 130 x 120cmWinner Gallipoli Art Prize 2014 Evening Tide 2020, acrylic & collage on aluminium, 141 x 151cm Image courtesy of the artist and King Street Gallery on William Afternoon to Evening Fowlers Gap 2009 acrylic & collage on board 120 x 110cm Image courtesy of the artist and King Street Gallery on William Somewhere in France 2 2017 acrylic & collage on aluminium 151 x 141cm Image courtesy of the artist and King Street Gallery on William Works in progress which we talk about in the podcast episode at about 1hr 12mins Work in progress which we talk about in the podcast at about 1hr 22mins | |||
| Luke Sciberras (uncut) | 25 juil. 2022 | 00:22:09 | |
For over 25 years, previous podcast guest Luke Sciberras has been immersing himself in landscapes across the world, returning to his studio to draw on the smaller works created from life. His paintings are bold and have a commanding presence.
Many of those works, as well as drawings and prints, have been brought together for the first time in two excellent survey shows. The exhibitions, titled ‘Luke Sciberras: Side of the Sky’, are running concurrently at Campbelltown Arts Centre and Bathurst Regional Art Gallery in NSW and include works sourced from public and private collections around the world. A beautiful monograph also accompanies the exhibitions (link below). The shows end on 7 August 2022. I interviewed Luke in 2019 in his studio in Hill End, NSW – an old stone church built in the 19th century – and the conversation we recorded is episode 64 of the podcast. I also recorded video on that day and this episode is the full audio recording from that video. The popular 4 minute YouTube video made from the recording can be seen on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel. Luke has exhibited in over 40 solo shows, his work is held in the collection of the Art Gallery of NSW and many regional galleries and in corporate and private collections. This conversation was recorded in the lead up to Luke’s show with his Sydney gallery, King Street Gallery on William, which was called ‘Rose into View’. To hear this episode click on ‘play’ beneath the above photo. Current exhibitionSurvey exhibition ‘Side of the Sky’ Campbelltown Arts Centre and Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, current until 7 August 2022 Links
oil on board 160 x 244 cm; 162.5 x 246.5 cm framed Image: Art Gallery of NSW website Finalist Wynne prize 2020 ‘North Facing, Belle Ile’, 2018 oil on board 120.00 x 160.00 cm Image: Scott Livesey Galleries website ‘Shelly Beach (Portsea)’ 2020 oil on board 120.00 x 120.00 cm Image: Scott Livesey Galleries website | |||
| Daniel Boyd | 03 juil. 2022 | 00:21:42 | |
Click play for the podcast episode – you can also watch an edited video version of this episode on the TWP YouTube channel. Most artists remember their first show. Maybe they were lucky enough to sell a few works, usually to family and friends. Daniel Boyd remembers his. It was in the year he graduated from university, 2005, but family and friends didn’t stand a chance. The entire exhibition was bought by the National Gallery of Australia.Daniel describes himself in those university days in Canberra as ‘a shy young First Nations man from Far North Queensland’. That reserved nature still comes through even though I was speaking with him at the exhibition ‘Treasure Island’ which celebrates his career with over 80 works in one of Australia’s most important art institutions, the Art Gallery of NSW. Daniel’s First Nations heritage is central to his work. His ancestors were part of the Stolen Generation. Forced to let go of their culture and language, they lived in fear that if they shared it with their children they would be taken away from them. In an interview in the Gallery’s Look magazine Daniel said that that forced withholding of culture meant that he always felt there was something missing and it was at university that he tried to make sense of that. One of the striking aspects of Daniel’s work is the way he both reveals and obscures his subject. Using a pointillist technique, he places a multitude of translucent dots over the image creating a series of convex lenses, as he refers to them, and while you can see the image through these lenses the rest of the image is painted out. Although this creates a visually alluring effect, there’s more to this technique than just the physical use of the material. There are concepts behind it which relate to ways of seeing and perception and which are interestingly explored in the book accompanying the exhibition (see link below). The show has been curated by Isobel Parker Philip, Senior Curator of Contemporary Australian Art and Erin Vink, curator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art, both at the Art Gallery of NSW. Daniel has exhibited in over 30 solo shows, has won the Bulgari Award amongst others, and his work is held in many other public institutions including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria and the Natural History Museum in London. Click play beneath the above feature photo to hear the podcast episode watch the YouTube video of this edited conversation here. Current exhibition‘Treasure Island’, Art Gallery of NSW, current to 29 January 2023 Links
https://youtu.be/IUlMxJOHjSY Untitled 2014 , oil, pastel, archival glue on canvas315 x 224 cm Collection Art Gallery of New South Wales Winner of the Bulgari Art Award 2014 Photo: AGNSW ‘Untitled (FS)’ 2016, 215.0 x 343.0 cm oil, charcoal and archival glue on linen Collection: Art Gallery of NSW ‘Untitled (PI3)’ 2013 Oil and archival glue on linen 214 x 300 cm Private Collection ‘We Call them Pirates Out Here’ 2006 oil on canvas 226 H x 276 W x 3.5 D cm Museum of Contemporary Art Museum of Contemporary Art, purchased with funds provided by the Coe and Mordant families, 2006 Daniel Boyd Untitled (WWDTCG) 2020 Oil, charcoal, pastel and archival glue on canvas 87 x 87 cm Collection of Anthony Medich, Sydney Installation view of the Daniel Boyd: Treasure Island exhibition on display at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, 4 June 2022 – January 2023, photo © AGNSW, Jenni Carter. | |||
| Sam Leach | 13 juin 2022 | 01:08:41 | |
Scroll down to watch two videos of Sam on the TWP YouTube channel. In 2010 Sam Leach won the Archibald and Wynne Prizes, two of Australia’s most famous awards for portraiture and landscape painting, becoming only the third person in the prizes’ history to win both in the same year.The two artists to achieve this rare distinction before him were 20th century greats Sir William Dobell and Brett Whiteley. I remember seeing those two small paintings hanging in the Art Gallery of NSW and being struck by their beauty and exquisite detail. The debate surrounding his Wynne Prize painting that year, which caused a small media storm, is something we dive into in this episode. I’ve been intrigued by Sam’s work ever since then. His art delves into the areas of science and nature, and in more recent years, he’s used Artificial Intelligence and machine learning to initiate his paintings. It was fascinating to hear him talk about this approach. With a distinctly surrealist feel, Sam’s work also reveals his continued interest in the Dutch masters of the 17th century which began in his early career. In his current show at Sullivan+Strumpf in Sydney, moody utopian landscapes team up with incongruous elements such as huge ‘bubbles’ and globular and tubular forms often hinting at or including a human presence. Other works depict animals, particularly polar bears, created from machine learning. These paintings, and the rather comical-looking Polar Bear Detector devised by Sam (where you can test how closely you resemble a polar bear) encourage us to see ourselves and the creatures with which we share the planet from a new perspective. The exhibition, with the unsettling title ‘Everything Will Probably Be Fine’, continues until 16 July 2022. Sam has exhibited in 30 solo shows nationally and across the globe, has won several other awards apart from the Archibald and Wynne, and his work is held by many private and public collections including Australia’s National Portrait Gallery. Scroll down for two YouTube videos of Sam talking about his work. Scroll down for images of the works we discuss in this episode. Press play to hear our conversation and scroll down for images of the works we talk about in this episode. Above feature photo supplied by the artist Current shows
https://youtu.be/li3tAUhvrHY?si=i4M61Sy5IwLa8tve https://youtu.be/H8bZlog0heM?si=-upV2WHstzXFORnD ‘Machine-assisted memory of Harewood Farm, Meadows’, 2022oil on linen, 51 x 51 cm Finalist Wynne Prize 2022, Art Gallery of NSW Image: AGNSW website ‘Tim Minchin’, 2010 oil and resin on wood, 60 x 38 cm Winner of the Archibald Prize 2010 Images: AGNSW website ‘Proposal for landscaped cosmos’, 2010 oil and resin on wood, 32.2 x 29.9 cm Winner of the Wynne Prize 2010, Art Gallery of NSW Images: AGNSW website ‘Large Bubble’, 2022 oi on linen, 240 x 175cm Image courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf ‘Polar Bear With Optimised Bananas’, 2022 oil on linen, 51 x 51cm Image courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf ‘Polar Bear Detection I’, 2022 oil on linen, 51 x 51 cm Image courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf ‘Professor Mandyam Srinivasan’, 2014 oil and resin on plywood (frame: 65.5 cm x 50.5 cm, support: 61.0 cm x 46.0 cm) Collection: National Portrait Gallery ‘Two Bubbles’, 2022, oil on linen, 51 x 51cm. Image courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf | |||
| Blak Douglas, Nicholas Harding, Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro | 25 mai 2022 | 00:23:41 | |
It’s that time of the year!
The winners of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes have been announced at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and in this episode you’ll hear my interviews with each of those artists about their winning works:
The Archibald Wynne and Sulman Prizes exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW runs until 28 August 2022 and will then travel to Victoria and regional NSW until July 2023. Congratulations to all the winners and finalists! Links
Winner of the Archibald Prize 2022 © the artist image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling Nicholas Harding, ‘Eora’, oil on linen, 196.5 x 374.8 cm Winner of the Wynne Prize 2022 © the artist, image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro, ‘Raiko and Shuten-dōji’, acrylic gouache, jute and tape on helicopter shell, 159.5 x 120 cm Winner of the Sulman Prize 2022 © the artists, image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling | |||
| Del Kathryn Barton – ‘the women who fell to earth’ | 11 mai 2022 | 00:40:05 | |
One of Australia’s most significant artists returns to the podcast! Del Kathryn Barton spoke with me the day before the opening of her spectacular exhibition ‘the women who fell to earth’ at Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, showing until 28 May 2022. Internationally renowned, Del is well known in Australia for having won the country’s most famous art prize twice – the Archibald Prize – and her works are held in many private collections and public institutions. This year the National Gallery of Australia acquired her largest single-panel work she has made to date, ‘my heart is blazing 11 hours’, and we talk about the work in this episode. Although difficult to describe in words, Del’s work often depicts a female sensuality which is at the same time beautiful and confrontational – set in an intricately detailed imaginary world. She is also a self-described optimist and the work hanging in this exhibition is a testament to that, with vivid colour bursting from the canvas. We also discuss other art forms she has recently been engaged in, including a major project she has been developing over the last 4 years which has now come to fruition. Del’s first feature film ‘Blaze’, a very personal work which she directed and co-wrote, is debuting at the Tribeca Film festival in June and it’s one of only 10 films selected in the International Narrative competition. It has also been selected for Official Competition in the upcoming Sydney film festival, again one of only ten films selected internationally. You’ll also hear about the origins of her arresting timber sculptures included in the exhibition. Large shell forms inlaid with exquisite materials which reference very personal themes. To hear the conversation press ‘play’ beneath the above feature photo. You can hear the previous 2019 podcast interview where Del talks about her life and art here. Scroll down for a short video of highlights of this conversation and footage of the exhibition on the Talking With Painters YouTube channel. Current exhibition
acrylic on linen 203 x 353 cm Source: Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery website the women who came from the earth, 2022 acrylic on linen 203 x 303 cm her earth nature, 2022 acrylic on linen 243 x 203 cm Source: Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery website of her own nature, 2022 Cambia Ash with Cambia Ash and Rock Maple inlay, Abalone Blue and White Fresh Water mother of pearl inlay, hardwax oil, blackened steel 190 x 100 x 80 cm | |||
| Steve Lopes -‘Encountered’ | 10 avr. 2022 | 00:36:12 | |
See video highlights of this conversation on the Talking with Painters YouTube channel It’s not often that an artist gets to see almost a quarter of a century of their work in one space but in this episode Steve Lopes tells me what that feels like.The impressive survey exhibition ‘Encountered’, curated by Kon Gouriotis and now showing at the S.H.Ervin Gallery in Sydney, brings together 120 of Steve Lopes’ works including over 80 paintings and drawings, sketchbooks, prints and collages. This is a must-see exhibition especially for those interested in figurative painting. In my previous interview with Steve, he expressed the view that to be successful, a painting requires a gritty element – a bit of ‘poison’. When I visited the exhibition a couple of weeks ago, though, it wasn’t only that grittiness that struck me but also the humanity evident in the works, not only in the figures but also in the environments they inhabit. Desolate wartime landscapes hinting at the loss of human life, a dog wandering across a suburban backlot, figures enigmatically positioned on a coastal landscape; these scenes exude an air of melancholy but often also a familiarity. Steve has exhibited in close to 40 solo shows across Australia and in London and Hong Kong. He has won the Gallipoli Art Prize, the Kings School Art Prize and has been shortlisted in many others. His work is held in the National Gallery of Australia, the Parliament House Collection, the State Library of NSW and many other public and private collections. We met at the S.H.Ervin gallery as the exhibition was being installed and we talked about a selection of works (pictured below), the story behind them as well as insights into his practice. The show continues at the S.H.Ervin Gallery until 8 May 2022 and will then travel to Orange Regional Gallery where it will run from 21 May. To hear the podcast episode click ‘play’ beneath the above feature photo. Time stamps for each painting
Gallipoli Club Collection Winner 2018 Gallipoli Art Prize ‘Creek Bed Study’, 2018, oil on canvas, 90 x 90cm ‘Uncommon Figures’, 2020, 152 x 153 cm, oil on canvas ‘Warren Ellis’, 2017, oil on canvas, 180 x 130cm ‘Warren Ellis’, 2017, intaglio etching on Hahnemühle paper, 70 x 50cm ‘Railway Club’, 2020, oil on canvas, 100 x 120cm | |||
| Marikit Santiago | 21 mars 2022 | 00:58:58 | |
Marikit Santiago is one of Australia’s most impressive artists, combining a skilful representational painting technique with powerful imagery.
Mythology, Disney, her Filipino heritage, religion, guilt, motherhood and family are examples of the subject matter she draws from and her upcoming show, ‘For us sinners’ at 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art in Sydney, is set to contain some of the most impactful work she has produced to date. What’s equally striking is the contrast between her painting style and the surface on which she often chooses to paint: found cardboard, typically in the form of flattened packing boxes complete with rips, creases and packing tape! Marikit won the Art Gallery of NSW’s Sulman prize in 2020 with her work ‘The Divine’, a painting of her three children who were also her collaborators. We talk in this episode about how they contribute to her practice and why that collaboration is so important to her work. Apart from winning the Sulman, Marikit has been a finalist in many other prizes including the Archibald prize twice. She has exhibited in 6 solo shows and her upcoming exhibition at 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art is her first institutional show. It is curated by Micheal Do and opens on 26 March 2022. We recorded this conversation in Marikit’s garage studio with her stunning recent work, Thy Kingdom Come, leaning precariously against the easel. Rich with cultural and religious symbolism, as well as quite a few cartoon characters, the complex painting had been finished the day before our interview, after nine months’ work. To hear the podcast episode click ‘play’ beneath the above feature photo. Scroll down for a short video of Marikit in her studio from the Talking with Painters YouTube channel . Current and upcoming exhibition
144.5 x 214 cm Finalist, Sulman Prize, 2019, Art Gallery of NSW Filipiniana (self-portrait in collaboration with Maella Santiago Pearl), acrylic, interior paint, pen and oil on found cardboard 110.5 x 100.7 cm Photo: Garry Trinh Finalist Archibald Prize AGNSW 2021 The divine, acrylic, oil, pen, pyrography and 18ct gold leaf on ply 179.5 x 120.5 cm Winner Sir John Sulman Prize, AGNSW, 2020 The Serpent and the Swan, 2021, interior paint, acrylic, pyrography, oil and Dutch metal gold leaf on found cardboard, 162cm x 77cm x 2cm. Photo: Garry Trinh The Serpent and the Swan, 2021 interior paint, acrylic, pyrography, oil and Dutch metal gold leaf on found cardboard, 162cm x 77cm x 2cm. Photo: Garry Trinh | |||