Following a two-year renovation, the Brett Whiteley Studio in Surry Hills has reopened, inviting visitors to rediscover the iconic artist’s former home and studio.
The space where Whiteley lived and worked in the final years of his life has been managed by the Art Gallery of NSW since 1995. The renovation dealt with structural and accessibility issues but from a visitor’s perspective, not a lot has changed.
Whiteley’s studio upstairs remains as it was when he left it in 1992, with unfinished paintings, brushes and paints on the floor, quotes scribbled across the wall and his books and records in place.
To celebrate the re-opening, there’s a new exhibition in the gallery space downstairs. Coming Home looks at Whiteley’s work after his return from ten years living in London and New York. He returned to Sydney via Fiji, and the exhibition features pieces created during that time as well as works made as the family resettled in Lavender Bay.
Coming Home also features the massive 17-metre work Alchemy, a masterwork of a self-portrait displayed across two walls.
Not only is the Brett Whitely Studio a must visit for all art lovers, it’s free to enter. Now that’s a winning combination.
FOR MORE INFO:
BRETT WHITELEY STUDIO
@brettwhiteleystudio
artgallery.nsw.gov.au/visit/brett-whiteley-studio
