Australian Artists: The Angry Penguins To The Antipodeans

It is sometimes said that Australia doesn't have any culture. This is very unfair and untrue, given the number of Australian artists who have contributed greatly to the art world. They have the best of both worlds, being able to absorb influences from the outside but also being gloriously isolated in view of their position on the map. The result is a distinctive tradition of its own with its own cultural references. The landscape of Australia is unique and its inhabitants feel a strong sense of personal identity. From the Aboriginal art of the past through to the contemporary works of today, these artists have a lot to offer.

Sidney Nolan is probably the most well known, in international terms, of all the Australian artists. He had a very long career and lived from 1917-1992. He was one of the most distinguished members of the influential Heide Circle, a group of painters who promoted the modernist movement. He was also involved in an organization devoted to surrealism and expressionism called The Angry Penguins. Nolan's pictures were very stylized and he painted the outback and famous Australian people from history, including several paintings of the notorious Ned Kelly and the explorers Burke and Willis. He also designed sets for theatre productions and illustrated books.

John Brack also had a long, eventful career and lived from 1920-1999. He was a figurative artist who began to be noticed in the 1950s. His style was to paint in neutral browns and grays, giving a melancholy feel to his work. He supported the Antipodeans Group, who campaigned against abstract expressionist painters who tried to suppress figurative art. In the 1970s, he painted a series of everyday objects. His most famous painting is The Bar, painted in 1954. It is a tribute to A Bar at the Folies-Bergere by the impressionist artist, Manet. This painting broke the record for an Australian painting sold at auction, when it was bought for $3.1 million in 2006. The National Gallery of Australia honored Brack as one of the most important Australian artists by mounting a retrospective of his work in the year of his death.

One of the artists who greatly contributed to modernism in Australia was Joy Hester. She was famous for her complicated personal life as well as her art. Born in 1920, she died in 1960 from Hodgkin's Lymphoma, robbing the artistic community of one of the most interesting of the Australian artists. Her paintings were often the result of stream of consciousness and were usually done in black ink and wash. They were stark and highly emotional works, often depicting children. She has also been recognized as a significant member of the Australian artists with many exhibitions.