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Hans and Nora Heysen:
Two Generations of
Australian Art
National Gallery of Victoria
‘Hans and Nora Heysen: Two Generations of
Australian Art’ chronicles the practices of both
artists through captivating images depicting
people, still lifes, interiors, and nature as
well as lifelong correspondence displaying
an artistic syncretism and generative
relationship between father and daughter.
Written contributions by Angela Hesson, Allan
Campbell, Anne Gray, Tracey Lock, Catherine
Speck, and Chris Heysen highlight their
work methods, inspirations and concerns of
20th-century Australian art and society, while
paintings, sketches and studies demonstrate
consistency and deep connection to place, and
a shared reverence for the natural world. Their
stories, individual and intertwined, provide
a framework to chosen composition and
motif while two photographs epitomise their
passion for artmaking: Hans painting in the
fieldandNorasketchingawayinherstudio.52 Artists 52 Actions:
Small Acts of
Disobedience
Artspace
Thames & Hudson‘52 Artists 52 Actions’ is the substantial
printed outcome of a year-long project
initiated by Artspace, Sydney, who harnessed
the digital platform of Instagram with artists
in Asia to address the urgent, personal and
political genuine crises of our day. The
large format title makes the jump from the
small screen with confidence and depth. As
Larissa Hjorth writes, each post ‘represents a
different action, gesture and intervention, that
have meaningful affect not just in digital but
also material and social worlds.’ Artists moved
beyond the # in the experiment online and
in this title are given an ample showcase with
biographies, interviews, artist statements and
reproductions. It’s a yearbook of dissent and
forward thinking, which makes it an enjoyable
and important archive.