Brett Whitely Australian Hero

Last time I did my series on Australian heroes, I neglected to mention Brett Whiteley. Brett (RIP) was a troubled soul and as eccentric as he was brilliant as an artist. Pictures of him show a Harpo Marx lookalike. I think his paintings are marvellous.

If you've ever seen the Dire Straits album, Alchemy you will have seen Brett's painting titled Alchemy that graces the cover.

Brett is now in the news again because those of us with money are jockeying for positions to bid on his painting "The Olgas". The sad reality is that good art is primarily considered an investment and this is what drives the prices to stratospheric heights. A dead artist is always more valued than a living one so good luck to the seller as he is guaranteed a good return on his investment.

Brett's distortion of the human figure works in the dynamic sense making his paintings seem full of energy as opposed to the usual nude painting that always seems to resemble a still life rather than a living, breathing human being.
His use of paint can be both intricate in detail and bold and dynamic to the point of splashes and drips. Both techniques combined work beautifully in his work.

In the painting titled "Self Portrait" the artists face is a reflection in the hand held mirror at the bottom of the canvas.
The rest of the painting could be something from Matisse.

Brett was dependent on alcohol, addicted to heroin and ultimately died of a heroin overdose in 1992.

In a documentary made for TV, Brett ruminates on the burden of having to live up to his gift of genius. A troubled soul indeed.