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The untold story of how Auschwitz seared Sidney Nolan

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Published: 19 January 2021

Last updated: 4 March 2024

ANDREW TURLEY: After visiting Auschwitz, the famous artist was so shaken he was unable to paint it and the encounter shaped his imagery for years afterwards

FEW ARTISTS HAVE CAPTURED our history as forcefully as Sidney Nolan. His most iconic works – from a stylised Ned Kelly to the doomed explorers Burke and Wills – are synonymous with Australian modernism. And yet there are aspects of Nolan’s own history that remain virtually unknown.

One of the most significant but little-known chapters of his life began in January 1962, with a visit to Auschwitz in the company of Al Alvarez, friend and poetry editor of London’s Observer newspaper.

FULL STORY Shaken to the core: the untold story of Sidney Nolan at Auschwitz (Sydney Morning Herald)

Photo: Photo: Sidney Nolan in Western Australia in 1962, the year he travelled to Auschwitz (Collection National Portrait Gallery, Canberra. © Lisa, Michael, Matthew and Joshua Moore)
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