Sidney Nolan

(England, Australia 22 Apr 1917–28 Nov 1992)

Title

First-class marksman

Other titles:

First-class marksmen, The Marksman

Alternative title:

Tiratore di classe Tireur de premiere classe

Year

1946

Media

Painting

Medium

Ripolin enamel on hardboard

Dimensions

90.2 x 121.2cm board

Signature & date

Signed and dated l.r. corner, pencil "12.12.46/ N.".

Credit

Purchased with funds provided by the Gleeson O'Keefe Foundation 2010

Accession number

62.2010

Copyright

Location

20th and 21st c Australian art

Further information

Sidney Nolan is considered one of Australia’s most significant painters. His practice developed in Melbourne during the 1940s where he formed part of a group of avant-garde artists who turned with greater emphasis to expressions of inner consciousness. Nolan received little formal training, and pursued a more intuitive approach toward figurative abstraction in his work. In the early 1940s, he became interested in faux-naïf art, and how the mask of seemingly simple forms could act as a direct conduit to a more authentic and psychologically complex expression. These principles where explored in his seminal Ned Kelly series painted between 1946 and 1947 where Nolan rendered the legendary Australian bushranger as an abstract schema of his home-made armour, creating the iconic motif that has become synonymous with the figure of Kelly himself.

‘First-class marksman’ was painted as an individual panel in late 1946, but was originally exhibited in Melbourne as part of the initial series of 27 works in 1948. It refers to the account of the Kelly gang’s shooting practice, when they finessed their marksmanship from their hideout in Victoria’s Wombat Ranges. Nolan paints Kelly as a bold, declamatory figure rising from the painting’s foreground. While pointing his gun assuredly to an unknown target, the figure’s eyes exclaim alarm and suggest a deeper fear lurking beneath his armour. The landscape, scrubby and chaotic, reinforces the psychological tension being played out within it.

The Kelly series crystalised what became Nolan’s enduring concern of how myths are imprinted on the landscape and define the experience of place. The works developed from Nolan’s intense interest in the bushranger’s history, and in Kelly as a symbol of political resistance. Yet he would later claim the works were also ‘an inner history of my own emotions’.1 They were painted when the artist was preoccupied with the idea of violence, as a result of his experiences of war and army training. With its poised rifle, ‘First-class marksman’ figures the anticipation of violence, which merges allusions to the brutal history of Kelly’s demise with the haunting threat of aggression that remained embedded in post-war consciousness.

1 Sidney Nolan in 1984, cited in Andrew Sayers, ‘Kelly’s words, Rousseau and Sunlight’ in Sidney Nolan’s Ned Kelly: the Ned Kelly paintings in the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, 2002, p7

Bibliography (43)

Foundation Newsletter #17 (Dec 2010), Jane Wynter (Australia) (Editor), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The Weekend Australian (27 Nov 2010-28 Nov 2010), Michael Stutchbury (Australia, active post 2001) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

Look (Sep 2010), Jill Sykes (Australia) (Editor), 10pm [print management] (Australia).

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Look (Jun 2010), Jill Sykes (Australia) (Editor), 10pm [print management] (Australia), Newtown, New South Wales, Australia.

50 something: National Seniors Association (Jun 2010-Jul 2010), Sarah Saunders (Australia) (Editor), National Seniors Association Ltd. (Australia, estab. 1991), Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

The Weekend Australian (01 May 2010-02 May 2010), Michael Stutchbury (Australia, active post 2001) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

The Weekend Australian (10 Apr 2010-11 Apr 2010), Michael Stutchbury (Australia, active post 2001) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

The Australian (31 Mar 2010), Michael Stutchbury (Australia, active post 2001) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

The Epoch Times (31 Mar 2010), Unknown (Australia) (Editor), Australia Epoch Times Pty Ltd (Australia, estab. 2001), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The World Today with Eleanor Hall (31 Mar 2010), Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia) (Producer), Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia).

The Sydney Morning Herald (26 Mar 2010), Paul McGeough (Australia) (Editor), John Fairfax & Sons (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The Weekend Australian (26 Mar 2010), Michael Stutchbury (Australia, active post 2001) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

Sun-Herald (16 Feb 2010), Unknown (Australia) (Editor), John Fairfax & Sons (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Menzies, Sydney: Australian, Aboriginal & International Fine Art 25 March 2010 (2010), Menzies Art Brands Pty Ltd [Sydney] (Australia) (Author), Menzies Art Brands Pty Ltd [Sydney] (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sidney Nolan (2007), Barry Pearce (Australia) (Author), Frances Lindsay (Australia, b.1946) (Author), Lou Klepac (Australia; Croatia, b.1936) (Author), Edmund Capon (England; Australia, b.1940) (Author), Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sidney Nolan (2002), T.G. Rosenthal (Author), Thames and Hudson (England), London, England.

Sidney Nolan's Ned Kelly: the Ned Kelly paintings in the National Gallery of Australia (2002), Andrew Sayers (Australia, b.1957) (Author), Murray Bail (Australia, b.1941) (Author), National Gallery of Australia (Australia, estab. 1982), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

Heide I: A guide book (2002), Warwick Reeder (Australia) (Author), Heide Museum of Modern Art (Australia, estab. 1999), Bulleen, Victoria, Australia.

Common Wealth: A tribute to federation (2001), NGV on Russell (Australia, estab. 1999, closed 2002) (Author), NGV on Russell (Australia, estab. 1999, closed 2002), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

The Ned Kelly Paintings: Nolan at Heide 1946-47 (1997), Andrew Sayers (Australia, b.1957) (Author), Museum of Modern Art at Heide (Australia, estab. 1993, closed 1998), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Great Australian paintings from Melbourne Private Collections: Royal Children's Hospital Foundation Fundraiser Exhibition (1997), Deutscher Fine Art (Melbourne) (Author), Deutscher Fine Art (Melbourne), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Sidney Nolan: the Ned Kelly story (1994), Andrew Sayers (Australia, b.1957) (Author), Metropolitan Museum of Art (United States of America), New York, United States of America.

Daily telegraph mirror (30 Nov 1992), Col Allan (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Courier Mail (30 Nov 1992), Editor Unknown (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Queensland, Australia.

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The Weekend Australian (21 Oct 1989-22 Oct 1989), Frank Devine (Australia, active 1988-1989) (Editor), News Limited (Australia), Surry Hills, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sotheby's Melbourne: Fine Australian paintings (14th August 1989) (1989), Sotheby's Australia (Australia), Sotheby's Australia (Australia), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

The Bulletin (16 Jun 1987), Editor Unknown (Editor), Australian Consolidated Press (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sidney Nolan - landscapes and legends: a retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1987 (1987), Jane Clark (Australia) (Author), International Cultural Corporation of Australia (Australia), Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Sidney Nolan: paintings, drawings and theatre design (1983), Charles Osborne (Australia) (Author), Grosvenor Museum, Chester (England), Chester, Cheshire, England.

Sidney Nolan oeuvres d'un grand peintre australien a l'ambassade d'australie (1978), Paris, France.

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Sidney Nolan (1976), Sir Kenneth Clark (United Kingdom, b.1903, d.1983) (Author), Artur Lundkvist (Sweden, b.1906, d.1991) (Author), Moderna Museet (Sweden, estab. 1958), Stockholm, Sweden.

Sidney Nolan: myth and imagery (1967), Elwyn Lynn (Australia, b.1917, d.1997) (Author), MacMillan and Co., Ltd (England), London, England.

Ned Kelly: 27 paintings by Sidney Nolan (1964), Robert Melville (Author), Thames and Hudson (England), London, England.

The 'Kelly' paintings of Sidney Nolan 1946-47 (Jun 1956), John Reed (Australia, b.1901, d.1981) (Author), Gallery of Contemporary Art (Australia, estab. 1956, closed 1958), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

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Una serie di quadri ad olio del pittore australiano Sidney Nolan gentilmente concessi da Mrs.e Mr. John Reed di Melbourne (1950), Jean Cassou (France) (Author), Rome, Italy.

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Exhibition history (14)

Sidney Nolan: landscapes and legends a retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1987, (03 Jun 1987–26 Jul 1987), at National Gallery of Victoria [St Kilda Road] (Australia, estab. 1968, closed 1999), 180 St Kilda Road Melbourne Victoria Australia 3000.

Sidney Nolan (2007-2008), (03 Nov 2007–03 Feb 2008), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain Sydney New South Wales Australia 2000.

Sidney Nolan (2007-2008), (06 Jun 2008–31 Aug 2008), at Queensland Art Gallery (Australia, estab. 1895), Cnr Melbourne & Grey Streets South Brisbane Queensland Australia.

Common Wealth: A tribute to federation (2001-2002), (11 Apr 2001–19 Jan 2002), at NGV on Russell (Australia, estab. 1999, closed 2002), Russell Street (corner Russell and little Lonsdale Street) Melbourne Victoria Australia 3000.

Sidney Nolan: landscapes and legends a retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1987, (11 Aug 1987–27 Sep 1987), at Art Gallery of New South Wales (Australia, estab. 1874), Art Gallery Rd Domain, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2000.

Sidney Nolan: landscapes and legends a retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1987, (15 Dec 1987–31 Jan 1988), at Art Gallery of South Australia (Australia, estab. 1881), North Terrace Adelaide, South Australia, Australia 5000.

Sidney Nolan: The Ned Kelly story (1994), (19 Apr 1994–04 Sep 1994), at Metropolitan Museum of Art (United States of America), Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street New York New York United States of America 10019.

Sidney Nolan: landscapes and legends a retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1987, (21 Oct 1987–29 Nov 1987), at Art Gallery of Western Australia (Australia), 47 James Street Perth, Western Australia, Australia 6000.

Sidney Nolan (2007-2008), (22 Feb 2008–18 May 2008), at Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia (Australia, estab. 2002), Federation Square Corner of Russell and Flinders Streets Melbourne Victoria Australia 3000.

Sidney Nolan: paintings, drawings and theatre design (1983), (22 Jul 1983–18 Sep 1983), at Grosvenor Museum, Chester (England), Grosvenor Street Chester Cheshire England.

Sidney Nolan's Ned Kelly Series (New Zealand Arts Festival) 2002, (23 Feb 2002–19 May 2002), at City Gallery Wellington (New Zealand, estab. 1980), Civic Square PO Box 2199 Wellington New Zealand 6015.

Great Australian paintings from Melbourne Private Collections: Royal Children's Hospital Foundation Fundraiser Exhibition (1997), (30 May 1997–15 Jun 1997), at Deutscher Fine Art (Melbourne).

The 'Kelly' paintings of Sidney Nolan 1946-1947 (1948), (Apr 1948), at Velasquez Gallery (Australia, estab. circa 1938), Tye's Building 100 Bourke Street Melbourne Victoria Australia 3000.

Sotheby's Melbourne: Fine Australian paintings - 14th August 1989, (Aug 1989), at Sotheby's Gallery Melbourne, 926 High Street Armadale Victoria Australia 3143.