FOR PRESS 13 APRIL 1978
NOLAN GALLIPOLI EXHIBITION
There are few tasks I enjoy more as Prime Minister than
accepting on behalf of the Australian people valuable works
of art which will be cherished and loved by generations
to come, especially when our acquisition does not enlarge the
deficit by a single cent.
Sidney Nolan is of course one of the greatest artists this
country has produced and in donating this famous series of
paintings and drawings to the trustees of the Australian War
Memorial, he has demonstrated wonderful gene rosity to
his country.
Mr. Nolan's works have often sparked controversy in the past,
and there will be those who will still prefer the more literal.
depictions of battle which are to be found in many of the
other paintings in the War Memorial's collection of over
12,000 works of art. But of course it is the very originality
and creativity of Sidney Nolan's works that make them such a
valuable addition to the collection.
Mr. Nolan had originally, I understand, intended to create a
series of works on the ancient struggle which took place at
Troy, almost within sight of Gallipoli, but the impact of the
ANZAC legend proved to be stronger and the result of years of
labours has been this magnificent Gallipoli Series.
There is a haunting emotional impact of this series which in
some way enlarges our understanding of what happened in that
terrible theatre of war just over 60 years ago.
These paintings and drawings differ greatly from the documentary
records of Australia's official artists of the 1914-1918 War,
yet both are complementary, for Sidney Nolan's Gallipoli Series
captures the emotional response of a whole generation of
Australians to the sacrifices made by the ANZACS.
The 252 works which make up this exhibition cover two decades
of the artist's activity and document his changing responses to
a national legend which he first started to paint while serving
in the army in 1942. Sidney Nolan has been adding to the series
ever since most recently in February this year and this
exhibition is the first public viewing of the entire series. ./ 2
Last year, the Chairman of the Memorial's Trustees,
Sir Thomas Daly, approached the artist to find out more
about his plans for the Gallipoli series. Sidney Nolan's
prompt and generous response was to announce that he
would donate the entire series to the nation through the
War Memorial in memory of his brother, Raymond, who
drowned accidentally at Cooktown in 1945 while returning
from service in the Pacific.
Both my Government and the Memorial Trustees are deeply
grateful to Sidney Nolan for making such an extensive and
important series available. We have been given an excellent
opportunity to enrich the nation's collections and by doing
so enriching the lives of Australians and our many overseas
visitors who visit the War Memorial.
It gives me great pleasure in declaring the Memorial
Exhibition of Sidny Nolan's Gallipoli Series open.