Listing Details
Grahame Sydney KNZM, ONZM (1948 –) was knighted for his service to the Arts in 2021.
To many his iconic images of the lower South Island represent a true New Zealand, the vast isolated land.
Sydney lives in a remote part of Central Otago. His home and studio look out to Dunstan mountains and beyond creating a vast every changing TV screen of the grand landscape. This world has been his inspiration for many years.
Self-trained, Sydney’s art practice over the last 5 decades includes work in oils,
watercolours, egg tempera, lithographs and photography. His is a representative painter. His work is characterised by the meticulous detail in the image, indicative or his years developing his craft and his skill with paint. Given this each work takes considerable time to complete and he has been quoted as saying he only manages to complete 6 works a year.
Sydney grew up in Dunedin and early mentors included Ralph Hotere and Michael Smither. While travelling overseas it was the work of the Dutch Masters particularly Vermeer that fascinated him. The surrealism of Salvador Dali left a lasting impression. His work has also been compared to the American painter Andrew Wyeth.
This nude is part of a series of four painting Sydney did from drawings of his model Dee in 2004. Sydney personally regards these works as some of his best, both technically and for the subtle but strong emotive feelings the viewer experiences.
Work Dimensions: 648mm W x 445mm H
Framing: Framed
Framed Dimensions: 745mm W x 540mm H
