Victorian watercolours
2 Jun – 3 Dec 2017
Over 80 magnificent but seldom-seen watercolours made between the 1830s and 1900 from the Gallery’s collection are presented in a Victorian-style display in the historic Grand Courts.
Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship 2017
13 Oct – 19 Nov 2017
Brett Whiteley Studio, Surry HillsBegun in 1999, this scholarship for young Australian painters is now in its 19th year. Its inspiration was the profound effect international travel and study had on the artist Brett Whiteley.
Brett Whiteley
west of the divide
19 May – 19 Nov 2017
Brett Whiteley Studio, Surry HillsShowcases Brett Whiteley’s affinity with the land west of Sydney – encompassing Bathurst, Oberon, Sofala and beyond.
Australian art and the Russian avant-garde
29 Jul – 29 Oct 2017
Coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution, this small collection display offers contemporary Australian perspectives on some of the defining moments of Russian avant-garde art.
Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes 2017
29 Jul – 22 Oct 2017
The Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes is an annual exhibition eagerly anticipated by artists and audiences alike.
Mervyn Bishop
24 Jun – 8 Oct 2017
A celebration of a central figure in Australian photography and his contribution to art and photojournalism over half a century.
Sentient lands
4 Jun 2016 – 8 Oct 2017
Drawn from the Gallery’s collection, this exhibition considers the diversity of ancestors who inhabit and enliven country and the complex, ongoing attachments to country held by Aboriginal people.
O’Keeffe, Preston, Cossington Smith
making modernism
1 Jul – 2 Oct 2017
Discover how these three renowned artists championed a new way of picturing the world as trailblazers of a shared modernist vision.
Primary structures and speculative forms
15 Oct 2016 – 6 Aug 2017
Works by artists associated with 1960s minimalism are displayed alongside contemporary works that question or expand upon the minimalist tradition.
David Stephenson
human landscapes
15 Apr – 23 Jul 2017
One of the most important Australian photographers of his generation subverts traditional approaches to landscape photography and alters the way we look at the world and consider our place within it.
The National 2017
new Australian art
30 Mar – 16 Jul 2017
This is the first of three biennial surveys of contemporary Australian art – a collaboration between the Gallery, Carriageworks and the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.
Our lands
21 Jan – 18 Jun 2017
Works from the Gallery’s collection that explore the tensions, conflicts, suspicions and political struggles that are central to any discussion about rights to land in Australia.
John Olsen
the you beaut country
10 Mar – 12 Jun 2017
Surveying the remarkable, seven-decade career of one of Australia’s most distinguished artists, this is the most comprehensive exhibition ever mounted on John Olsen’s work.
Memory and belonging
the archive of Katthy Cavaliere
Tue–Sat only 28 Mar – 9 Jun 2017
Research library and archiveSelections from the personal archive of performance/installation artist Katthy Cavaliere, reflecting the recurring themes of her childhood and family in her art.
Adman
Warhol before pop
25 Feb – 28 May 2017
The most comprehensive exhibition dedicated to Andy Warhol’s early career in more than 25 years.
Time, light, Japan
Japanese art 1990s to now
17 Dec 2016 – 14 May 2017
Bask in and interact with Japanese art exploring time and light through video, photography, sound and installation from the 1990s to now.
Brett Whiteley
naked
18 Nov 2016 – 14 May 2017
(See exhibition page for exact dates)
Featuring Wendy Whiteley in various poses in the bath, these intimate works, a celebration of love, are both erotic and sensual in form and subject.
Beyond words
calligraphic traditions of Asia
27 Aug 2016 – 30 Apr 2017
Explore 1000 years of the beauty, power and spirit of calligraphy in Asian art, with works in different mediums from the ancient to the contemporary.
ARTEXPRESS 2017
26 Jan – 25 Apr 2017
A dynamic and popular exhibition featuring a selection of outstanding student artworks developed for the artmaking component of the HSC examination in Visual Arts 2016.
Barbara Cleveland
Bodies in time
26 Nov 2016 – 2 Apr 2017
Sydney collective Barbara Cleveland explore the life and legacy of their namesake: the mythic performance artist Barbara Cleveland, who they have recovered from the margins of Australian art history.
Signs and symbols to live by
16 Jun 2016 – 16 Mar 2017
Does the art of our time still offer signs and symbols to live by? From Colin McCahon to Cy Twombly, the artists in this exhibition all respond to this question in different ways.
New matter
recent forms of photography
10 Sep 2016 – 26 Feb 2017
Drawn from the Gallery’s collection, this exhibition features recent work by Australian and international photographers who expand the limits of photographic representation.
Manifesto
28 May 2016 – 19 Feb 2017
In this video installation, German artist Julian Rosefeldt works with Australian actor Cate Blanchett to give new life to some of the most famous and provocative writings by artists of the modern era.
Yes yes yes yes
graphics from the 1960s and 1970s
22 Dec 2016 – 19 Feb 2017
Discover the playful spirit, visual energy and political thrust of graphic art from the 1960s and 1970s.
Eko Nugroho
Lot lost
25 Jun 2016 – 19 Feb 2017
With its distinctive fusion of styles and influences, the art of this acclaimed Indonesian artist defies categorisation.
Nude
art from the Tate collection
5 Nov 2016 – 5 Feb 2017
Over 100 major representations of the nude, including paintings, sculptures, photographs and prints by renowned artists such as Pablo Picasso, Lucian Freud, Henri Matisse and Louise Bourgeois.
Art from Milingimbi
taking memories back
12 Nov 2016 – 29 Jan 2017
Presents the Gallery’s exceptional collection of exquisite bark paintings and sculptural forms from the small island community of Milingimbi in Arnhem Land.
Yuendumu
of fire and water
4 Jun 2016 – 8 Jan 2017
Drawn from the Gallery’s collection, this exhibition showcases prints and paintings from the community of Yuendumu, most of which refer to the elements of fire or water or both.