Brett Whiteley’s former home and studio has now reopened with Coming Home, a new exhibition that explores the artist’s return to Australia after a decade overseas.

Great artists invite a curiosity not just about their work, but about the person behind it. Brett Whiteley was one of those artists. His studio, a former T-shirt warehouse that he renovated with his then-wife, Wendy, offers a glimpse into the man behind the canvas.

After two years of closure, the Sydney studio where Whiteley lived and worked during the final four years of his life has reopened to the public, managed by the Art Gallery of NSW. To mark the reopening, the Brett Whiteley Studio presents Coming Home, a new exhibition that explores the period when Whiteley returned to Australia after a decade spent in New York, London and Fiji.

Coming Home brings together more than 80 paintings, drawings, sculptures, ceramics, prints, photographs and sketchbooks from the collections of the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Brett Whiteley Studio.

A living artifact

“There’s nothing else like [the studio] in Australia," says Beatrice Gralton, the studio’s senior curator. “People get a real surprise when they go [in] and see the archive of possessions, books, records and newspaper clippings. The studio can explain something about the artist that helps people feel closer to the work."

The studio is less a traditional museum than a living artefact: the space has remained largely unchanged in the three decades since Whiteley’s death, from paintbrushes left in situ to handwritten graffiti on the walls and paint splattered across the floor. Browsing the artist’s unfinished works and personal items while listening to a soundtrack drawn from his 600-strong vinyl collection offers visitors a glimpse into the mind behind some of Australia’s most celebrated works of modern art.

Restoring a Sydney landmark

Preserving this inner-city landmark required a painstaking restoration. The upgrades included installing climate-controlled air conditioning, a new staircase and replacing the roof – all while protecting the studio’s original features. “The building was without a roof for around six months," says Gralton, “so to preserve the upstairs painting studio we had to construct a weatherproof micro-chamber. When [the chamber] was removed, it was a wonderful feeling to see Whiteley’s handwritten graffiti completely unchanged."

Improving accessibility was a key priority for the upgrades – the renovations introduced a new lift and ambulant bathrooms, ensuring more visitors can experience the studio for themselves. “The most important aspect of the restoration was to preserve what is essential to the Brett Whiteley Studio," says Gralton, “the unique energy and character the building offers, while ensuring access for future generations".

Inside the new exhibition, Coming Home

Coming Home brings together works Whiteley created after he and his young family returned to Sydney in 1969. The city wasn’t just a backdrop for Whiteley’s work; it was one of his defining subjects. He returned to paint Sydney Harbour again and again, depicting it in the rain, beneath overcast skies and in spring with the jacarandas in full bloom.

“Coming Home [reflects] Whiteley’s connection to the landscape and birdlife that would become so important in his Australian works," says Gralton. “Initially, the Whiteleys thought they would move back to London, but they fell in love with Lavender Bay – the harbour, the light, the birds, boats and natural beauty."

Lavender Bay is where Whiteley’s former wife and muse, Wendy Whiteley, created her much-loved ‘secret garden’ on a stretch of abandoned railway land. It was also where they lived, and the vantage point from which Whiteley painted Balcony 2 (1975), a sweeping view across Sydney Harbour rendered with his signature gestural lines. Balcony 2 is one of the key works on display in Coming Home, as is his Archibald-winning Self-portrait in the studio (1976) and Alchemy (1972–73), Whiteley’s monumental 17-metre abstract masterpiece, which stretches throughout the downstairs studio.

“Alchemy is a metaphysical self-portrait," says Gralton. “A deep dive into life, death and the journey between." It’s a work that, like the studio itself, offers a glimpse into the mind of the artist whose vision helped reshape the face of modern Australian art.

Details

Coming Home is on now at the Brett Whiteley Studio. Entry is free.

Location

2 Raper St, Surry Hills, Sydney

Opening hours

10am-4pm, Thursday to Sunday

Accessibility

The studio is wheelchair accessible, with lift access and ambulant bathrooms.