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Lot Essay
In 1964 the Whiteleys were living in London and Brett was enjoying phenomenal critical and commercial success. The Tate Gallery had acquired Untitled Red Painting for its collection in 1961, making Whiteley the youngest artist ever to be included in this prestigious collection. In 1964 he was awarded the International Drawing Prize in Germany.
Although Listening to Nature is dated '1964' it is probable that the work was executed during the late 1960s and later dated incorrectly by the artist. In 1964 Whiteley was exhibiting his lyrically beautiful Bathroom series, which was influenced by Bacon and Bonnard and was to decisively influence his decision to abandon pure abstraction. Listening to Nature, on the other hand, is far more closely aligned, both visually and thematically, with works that were yet to come, rather than with the series of works such as the Bathroom and Christie paintings that Whiteley was best known for during the mid 1960s.
Listening to Nature reveals the artist's fascination with materials and his experimentation with the devices of Pop Art; in particular the device of attaching to the painted canvas found objects such as stones or feathers. The outstanding characteristic of Listening to Nature is its sheer materiality; the viscous paint and varnish which project forth into three-dimensionality, the smoothness of stone and the elegance of line.
While landscape, and especially Sydney Harbour, was obviously a dominant force in Whiteley's work, Nature was to inform his art in other ways throughout his life; especially during the 1970s which saw a succession of variations on this theme including the Waves series, the Fijian birds and the still-lifes. Interestingly however, Listening to Nature, has a closer relationship visually with the explosive, organic shapes that characterise the New York alchemy series. The repetition of flower imagery, the whorl-shaped ear and the ambiguous arrow at the base of the work are all found in more explicit form in alchemy 1972 - 73. (Collection of the New South Wales Government.)
Listening to Nature is both plea and revelation, an enigmatic commentary on the relationship between nature and humanity. As McGrath noted: "While Whiteley always has one eye cocked on nature he has the other cocked on man. The interaction between the two is often behind some of his most powerful works" (S McGrath, Brett Whiteley, Sydney, 1979, p.106)
We are grateful to Barry Pearce for his assistance with dating this work.
Although Listening to Nature is dated '1964' it is probable that the work was executed during the late 1960s and later dated incorrectly by the artist. In 1964 Whiteley was exhibiting his lyrically beautiful Bathroom series, which was influenced by Bacon and Bonnard and was to decisively influence his decision to abandon pure abstraction. Listening to Nature, on the other hand, is far more closely aligned, both visually and thematically, with works that were yet to come, rather than with the series of works such as the Bathroom and Christie paintings that Whiteley was best known for during the mid 1960s.
Listening to Nature reveals the artist's fascination with materials and his experimentation with the devices of Pop Art; in particular the device of attaching to the painted canvas found objects such as stones or feathers. The outstanding characteristic of Listening to Nature is its sheer materiality; the viscous paint and varnish which project forth into three-dimensionality, the smoothness of stone and the elegance of line.
While landscape, and especially Sydney Harbour, was obviously a dominant force in Whiteley's work, Nature was to inform his art in other ways throughout his life; especially during the 1970s which saw a succession of variations on this theme including the Waves series, the Fijian birds and the still-lifes. Interestingly however, Listening to Nature, has a closer relationship visually with the explosive, organic shapes that characterise the New York alchemy series. The repetition of flower imagery, the whorl-shaped ear and the ambiguous arrow at the base of the work are all found in more explicit form in alchemy 1972 - 73. (Collection of the New South Wales Government.)
Listening to Nature is both plea and revelation, an enigmatic commentary on the relationship between nature and humanity. As McGrath noted: "While Whiteley always has one eye cocked on nature he has the other cocked on man. The interaction between the two is often behind some of his most powerful works" (S McGrath, Brett Whiteley, Sydney, 1979, p.106)
We are grateful to Barry Pearce for his assistance with dating this work.