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An image of The balcony 2

Brett Whiteley

(Australia, England 07 Apr 1939–15 Jun 1992)

Title
The balcony 2
Other titles:
Sydney by night [title used at acquisition]
Year
1975
Media
Painting
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
203.5 x 364.5cm stretcher; 210.9 x 372.2 x 6.3cm frame
Signature & date
Signed and dated l.l. corner, white oil "1975 brett whiteley".
Credit
Purchased 1981
Accession number
116.1981
Copyright
© Wendy Whiteley
Location
Upper level
Further information

'Windsor and Newton Deep Ultramarine oil colour has an obsessive, ecstasy-like effect upon my nervous system quite unlike any other colour.'
- Brett Whiteley 1975

'The paintings ... begin from the ... highest point of affection - points of optical ecstasy, where romanticism and optimism overshadow any form of menace or foreboding ... Almost all the works have been rendered in a lyrical and personal style where colour ... has this time been used in saturation.'
- Brett Whiteley 1974

Encapsulating key elements of Whiteley's art - his beloved harbour, fluent draughtsmanship, an erotically charged curvilinear line and ability to invest minimal brushstrokes with multiple associations - 'The balcony 2' is one of his most poetically evocative paintings.

Whiteley's return to Australia in 1969 heralded a new preoccupation with colour and beauty. Inspired principally by Matisse, but also by the tranquil ambience of his house at Lavender Bay on Sydney Harbour's north shore, he created a series of spectacular paintings: expansive interiors and views evoking the sumptuousness of the harbour's liquid presence.

Bibliography (36)

Brett Whiteley: Connections (2010), Jane Scott (Author), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Wendy Whiteley (Australia) (Author), TarraWarra Museum of Art (Australia, estab. 2002), Healesville, Victoria, Australia.

9 Shades of Whiteley (2008), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Alec George (Australia) (Author), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Look (Oct 2006), Jill Sykes (Australia) (Editor), 10pm [print management] (Australia), Newtown, New South Wales, Australia.

The new McCulloch's encyclopedia of Australian art (2006), Susan McCulloch (England; Australia, b.1949) (Author), Alan McCulloch (Australia, b.1907, d.1992) (Author), Emily McCulloch Childs (Australia, b.1976) (Author), The Miegunyah Press (Australia), Carlton, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Whiteley & Rees: More affinities (2005), The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994) (Author), The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Art and Australia (Vol. 40, No. 3) (Mar 2003-May 2003), Laura Murray Cree (Australia) (Editor), Fine Arts Press Pty Limited (Australia), St Leonards, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Look (Feb 2001), Jane Hampson (Editor), Fiona Hardie (Australia), South Yarra, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Affinities: Brett Whiteley & Lloyd Rees (2001), Lou Klepac (Australia; Croatia, b.1936) (Author), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Australian art (2001), Andrew Sayers (Australia, b.1957) (Author), Oxford University Press (England), Oxford, England.

Sydney: an Oxford anthology (2000), Richard Hall (Australia) (Editor), Oxford University Press (Australia), South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Australian art: in the Art Gallery of New South Wales (2000), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Red, black and Whiteley (2000), Margaret Clarke (Australia) (Director), Macquarie University (Australia), North Ryde, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Art Gallery of New South Wales handbook (1999), Bruce James (Australia) (Author), Edmund Capon (England; Australia, b.1940) (Director), Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia), Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Departures (Sep 1998-Oct 1998), Gary Walther (United States of America) (Editor), American Express Publishing Corporation (United States of America), New York, New York, United States of America.

Eyewitness travel guides: Australia (1998), Zoë Ross (Editor), Dorling Kindersley Limited, London, England.

Sun-Herald (29 Jun 1997), Unknown (Australia) (Editor), John Fairfax & Sons (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Look (May 1997), Wendy Symonds (Australia) (Editor), Mount Eagle Publications Pty. Ltd. (Australia), Victoria, Australia.

The Art Gallery of New South Wales Bulletin (May 1997-Jun 1997), Jonathan Cooper (Australia) (Editor), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Big Blue - The painted harbour (1997), The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994) (Editor), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Big blue: the painted harbour (list of works) (1997), The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994) (Editor), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Members Magazine of the National Gallery Society of Victoria (Jul 1996), Jennifer Phipps (Australia) (Author), National Gallery of Victoria [St Kilda Road] (Australia, estab. 1968, closed 1999), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Daily telegraph mirror (09 Sep 1995), Col Allan (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Thames and Hudson (England), London, England.

Philosopher ((1995-1996)), David Shteinman (Author), David Shteinman, Cammeray, New South Wales, Australia.

Brett Whiteley education pack (1995), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Liz Gibson (Australia) (Author), Barbara Konkolowicz (Australia) (Author), Jennifer Keeler-Milne (Australia, b.1961) (Author), Nike Savvas (Australia; England, b.1964) (Author), Jo Foster (Australia) (Author), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Ken Done: The Art of Design (1994), Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences (Australia) (Author), Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The Encyclopedia of Australian Art (1994), Alan McCulloch (Australia, b.1907, d.1992) (Author), Susan McCulloch (England; Australia, b.1949) (Author), Allen & Unwin (Australia), St Leonards, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The Sydney Morning Herald (07 Jul 1992), Max Prisk (Australia) (Editor), John Fairfax & Sons (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Art-i-facts, Book One: An exploration of art and design for junior secondary students (1991), Rhana Devenport (Author), Vaughan Rees (Author), McGraw-Hill Book Company Australia Pty Ltd (Australia), Roseville, New South Wales, Australia.

Art Gallery of New South Wales Handbook (1988), Annabel Davie (Editor), Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia), Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sydney Theatre Company Limited Ninth Annual Report 1987 (1987), Richard Wherrett (Author), Playbill, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Two centuries of Australian painting: a selection from the Art Gallery of New South Wales (1986), Deborah Edwards (Australia) (Author), Orange Regional Gallery (Australia, estab. 1986), New South Wales, Australia.

Portrait of a Gallery (1984), Edmund Capon (England; Australia, b.1940) (Editor), Jan Meek (Australia) (Editor), Capel Court Corporation Pty. Ltd., Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The Australian financial review (24 Aug 1981), Editor Unknown (Editor), John Fairfax & Sons (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Three years on: a selection of acquisitions 1978-1981 (1981), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874) (Author), Trustees of the Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Art and Australia [vol. 13, no. 3] (Jan 1976-Mar 1976), Mervyn Horton (Australia, b.1917, d.1983) (Editor), Fine Arts Press Pty Limited (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Exhibition history (23)

9 shades of Whiteley, (01 May 2009–14 Jun 2009), at Bathurst Regional Art Gallery (Australia, estab. 1989), 70-78 Keppel Street Bathurst New South Wales Australia 2795.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (02 Jul 1996–26 Aug 1996), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain Sydney New South Wales Australia 2000.

9 shades of Whiteley, (02 Jul 2009–23 Aug 2009), at Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery (Australia, estab. 1971), Civic Reserve Dunns Road Mornington Victoria Australia 3931.

Whiteley & Rees: more affinities (2006), (03 Dec 2005–09 Apr 2006), at The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994), 204 Raper Street Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2010.

Australian icons: twenty artists from the collection, (04 Aug 2000–03 Dec 2000), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Brett Whiteley - Connections (2010-2011), (06 Nov 2010–19 Mar 2011), at TarraWarra Museum of Art (Australia, estab. 2002), 311 Healesville - Yarra Glen Road Healesville Victoria Australia 3777.

Blue (2011), (09 Jul 2011), at The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994), 204 Raper Street Surry Hills Sydney New South Wales Australia 2010.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (09 May 1996–16 Jun 1996), at Art Gallery of South Australia (Australia, estab. 1881), North Terrace Adelaide, South Australia, Australia 5000.

Affinities: Brett Whiteley & Lloyd Rees (2001), (10 Feb 2001–08 Jul 2001), at The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994), 204 Raper Street Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2010.

9 shades of Whiteley, (12 Jul 2008–07 Sep 2008), at Gold Coast City Art Gallery (Australia, estab. 1986), 135 Bundall Road Surfers Paradise Queensland Australia 4217.

Iconic Whiteley (2009-2010), (12 Sep 2009–Aug 2010), at The Brett Whiteley Studio (Australia, estab. 1994), 204 Raper Street Surry Hills Sydney New South Wales Australia 2010.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (13 Dec 1995–28 Jan 1996), at Museum and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory (Australia), PO Box 4646 Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia 0801.

9 shades of Whiteley, (13 Sep 2008–15 Nov 2008), at Lismore Regional Art Gallery (Australia).

9 shades of Whiteley, (14 Feb 2009–26 Apr 2009), at Newcastle Region Art Gallery (Australia), Laman Street Newcastle New South Wales Australia 2300.

Three years on: Acquisitions 1978-81, (15 Oct 1981–01 Dec 1981), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (16 Sep 1995–19 Nov 1995), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (18 Sep 1996–17 Nov 1996), at Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (Australia), GPO Box 1434 Hobart, Tasmania, Australia 4001.

Two centuries of Australian painting, a selection from the Art Gallery of New South Wales, (19 Apr 1986–15 Jun 1986), at Orange Regional Gallery (Australia, estab. 1986), Civic Square Byng Street Orange, NSW Australia 2800.

Big Blue - the painted harbour (1997), (21 Jun 1997–29 Mar 1998), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Brett Whiteley Art & Life (1995-1996), (22 Feb 1996–08 Apr 1996), at Art Gallery of Western Australia (Australia), 47 James Street Perth, Western Australia, Australia 6000.

9 shades of Whiteley, (22 Nov 2008–08 Feb 2009), at New England Regional Art Museum (Australia, estab. 1983), Kentucky Street Armidale New South Wales Australia 2350.

Thirty-six looks at four sights on three themes: recent paintings, drawings and carvings, (24 Oct 1975–15 Nov 1975), at Bonython Art Gallery [Sydney] (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Whiteley & Rees: more affinities (2006), (29 Apr 2006–02 Jul 2006), at New England Regional Art Museum (Australia, estab. 1983), Kentucky Street Armidale, New South Wales, Australia 2350.