Collection Statement:

Brett Whiteley is renowned for his organic depiction of the Australian landscape. Through fluid use of line, iconic imagery and a highly stylised palette, Summer at Carcoar 1977 conveys the radiating Australian heat, the starkness of the landscape and the hidden treasures that reside within.

The sensual contours of the river winding through the length of the painting, parallel with the curvature of road in the upper right hand corner. Whiteley’s signature use of collage and interplay of materials such as stones in the painting, underpin the hidden dimensions of the landscape.

Summer at Carcoar was commissioned by Newcastle Art Gallery benefactor Sir William Bowmore in 1977 and was awarded the Wynne Prize for landscape painting in the same year.

Samuel Cutcher
Chatswood High School
Rivers (detail) (2011)
Collection of works

ARTEXPRESS Artist Statement:

I have lived my whole life in sight of the river, around which lives a spirit: the old man of the river. The banksia is a symbol of this spirit, gnarled and bearded. This also describes my father - as old as men get - who walks and wades in the rocky mountain rivers. Through my chosen media I have attempted to explore the character of these old men.

Curriculum Linkages
Frames:
Both Whiteley and Cutcher use the organic qualities of a curving river as a device with which to construct their images their images. Using the frames discuss the effect this has on the structural and emotive reading of this work.

Conceptual Framework:
Analyse how both works capture the essence of a landscape painting without being photo realistic renderings of a specific location.

Practice:
Assess how effective Whiteley’s choices of colours, tones and techniques are in representing the experience of the Australian landscape. Describe how these choices may have influenced Cutcher’s work.

Download ARTEXPRESS 2012 Conversation with the Collections.