Renowned Australian artist William Robinson offers his personal reflections on Margaret Olley’s life, art practice, and his fond memories of visiting Olley in her home is Sydney. I used to go around and see her at Paddington in Sydney. Her house was more or less just a subject for her continual group of paintings. There…
Continue reading » “Margaret Olley: Her works reflect her personality perfectly”
Margaret Olley yearned for a dog – in the early 1960s Olley’s beloved pug becomes part of her life, Olley reminisces that: ‘One day somebody arrived with a whole carload of pug dogs. They had little faces like pansies and I thought, that’s the dog for me. I arranged to get a pup from the…
Continue reading » “Meet Bonnie Sue: Margaret Olley’s beloved pug”
Christine France offers her personal reflections on Margaret Olley’s life, work and her generous spirit. Margaret was generous in her friendships, extraordinarily generous. Later on in life, when she could afford it, she was generous with gifting things to institutions. She reached out to friends, would pay their fares to places and publish books for…
Watch our time-lapse as Ben Quilty draws portraits of Margaret Olley on the wall of the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA). These large-scale chalk drawings are based on preparatory sketches he made for his Archibald Prize winning portrait of Olley. Quilty has cast in chalk some of the objects she gave him over the years;…
Continue reading » “Watch Ben Quilty draw with Margaret Olley’s teapot cast in chalk”
John Honeywill, offers his personal reflections on Margaret Olley’s work and how her spirit has shaped his practice. I met Margaret Olley once. In 2009 she came to her old school — Somerville House, where I taught art for many years — to be honoured for her contribution to Australian culture. Like most Australians, I…
Continue reading » “Margaret Olley: Woven into consciousness”
Ben Quilty reflects on his friendship with Margaret Olley, and the lasting influence of her support on his practice. Olley was a generous donor, mentor to emerging artists and a firm friend to many. Quilty is in conversation with Simon Wright, Assistant Director, Learning and Public Engagement, QAGOMA. Ben Quilty in conversation Subscribe to QAGOMA…