Experience the astounding creativity and poetic power of Sidney Nolan’s art in this in-depth survey of the artist’s formative years in Australia. From indelible visions of the outlaw Ned Kelly to epic portrayals of Central Australia, Nolan redefined perceptions of place and nation in Australia’s cultural imagination.
Including his infamous series of paintings on bushranger Ned Kelly (1946–47), the exhibition brings together around 100 major works produced before Nolan relocated to the United Kingdom in 1953 – years in which he forged a reputation as one of this country’s most distinctive modernist artists.
Nolan: Origins examines the artist’s engagement with the places he painted as he evolved his singular, enigmatic visual language, including St Kilda, Wimmera, K’gari (also known as Fraser Island), Central Australia and the landscapes of Ned Kelly’s story in north-eastern Victoria. The exhibition also tells of how Nolan interrogated the idea of ‘Australia’, invoking a sense of place through myths, histories, people and creatures imbued with his own personal inner meanings.
Event Details:
Dates: 3 October 2026 – 7 February 2027
Location: Art Gallery of New South Wales - Naala Nura building - Lower level 2