Sidney Nolan - Kelly and Horse
Kelly and Horse 1946
Ripolin enamel on masonite
In March 1946, Nolan moved on from painting the Ned Kelly series on the smaller sized boards made of compressed paper, to larger boards made of hard masonite that was then a commonly used building material.
He had already been working on that larger scale for the St Kilda series, so it is likely that the smaller series can be regarded as more experimental. With the resolved clarity of the abstracted Kelly mask, Nolan felt confident to progress to the larger size.
The outline of a small Kelly head is visible beneath the large one and Nolan has written two dates in pencil at the bottom of this work, 'March 1946 'and 'September 1946'. This may indicate his process of coming back and reworking the composition as he moved to create larger bolder forms.
The land around the distinctive shape of Glenrowan Hill with its burnt-out stumps and scrubby trees is hard, barely cleared country. Here Kelly and his horse are at one, alert and watchful within the bush landscape they survey.
March
Spk
The Nolan Collection is managed by Canberra Museum and Gallery on behalf of the Australian Government
Sidney Nolan - Kelly and Horse
Kelly and Horse 1946
Ripolin enamel on masonite
In March 1946, Nolan moved on from painting the Ned Kelly series on the smaller sized boards made of compressed paper, to larger boards made of hard masonite that was then a commonly used building material.
He had already been working on that larger scale for the St Kilda series, so it is likely that the smaller series can be regarded as more experimental. With the resolved clarity of the abstracted Kelly mask, Nolan felt confident to progress to the larger size.
The outline of a small Kelly head is visible beneath the large one and Nolan has written two dates in pencil at the bottom of this work, 'March 1946 'and 'September 1946'. This may indicate his process of coming back and reworking the composition as he moved to create larger bolder forms.
The land around the distinctive shape of Glenrowan Hill with its burnt-out stumps and scrubby trees is hard, barely cleared country. Here Kelly and his horse are at one, alert and watchful within the bush landscape they survey.
March
Spk
The Nolan Collection is managed by Canberra Museum and Gallery on behalf of the Australian Government