- 546 pages
- English
- PDF
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
Dick Watkins belongs to the generation of artists whose careers were launched at the high-flying end of American-based Abstraction. Almost immediately he faced up to the abrupt end of the Modern era. Culture was no longer to be framed by 'progress'. In 1970, taking stock of the situation, he announced that he was a copyist, there being no such thing as a new creation in art, shaped as it was by visual languages. Nor did he intend to limit his curiosity about the relation of art to life by restricting himself to a 'personal' style. There followed a long and passionately adventurous exploration into many subjects and styles, during which Watkins was often the first to signal changes taking place in Western culture. The result is that for half a century he has been a major, if controversial figure in Australian art.
Frequently asked questions
- Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
- Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Information
Table of contents
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1. Birth of an artist: Sydney, 1937–1959, and London, 1959–1961
- 2. Sydney, 1961–1965
- 3. The movers and shakers: Watkins, the Contemporary Art Society, and Central Street Gallery, 1966–1968
- 4. 1968 and breaking away from the field
- 5. Pouring leads to Pollock, 1970–1971
- 6. Pollock, 1971–1973 and forever
- 7. A year in France, then on to Hong Kong: Embracing traditional landscape and dipping into Picasso, 1975–1976
- 8. Hong Kong, Italy, and ‘Plan B’: 1977–1978
- 9. Hate–love for image, 1980–1983
- 10. A line of great works beyond Picasso: 1984 onwards
- 11. Landscape as a cultural analogue? 1984, 1993–2006
- 12. The media as subject and style: 1988–2009
- 13. Texts by Dick Watkins
- 14. The pendulum, 1989–2000
- 15. ‘The result of intense mental collectedness and concentration’: 2005–2020
- Conclusion
- Chronology
- Select bibliography
- Index of works
- Index