All was revealed at the NERAM Foundation Dinner last Saturday night, with the announcement of the major appeal and acquisition of Australian Post-Impressionist artist Margaret Olley’s painting: The Yellow Room Triptych.
The imposing oil on hardboard painting, that sits well over one metre high and nearly three metres wide, is described as one of Olley’s most significant pieces and a coup for the New England Regional Art Museum.
The painting is valued at $400,000, with the newly formed Yellow Room Appeal Committee determined to raise the funds in two years.
Philip Bacon, Trustee of the Margaret Olley Art Trust, is confident that Olley would be pleased that her beloved painting has found a home in Armidale where she spent many summer days on her cousin David Wright’s property at Wollomombi. Olley was also a supporter of NERAM, donating some of her own Australian art collection, but never any of her own paintings.
“This is the largest artwork she ever painted and is considered to be her greatest picture,” said Philip Bacon.
“She never wanted it to be sold and eventually wanted it to go to a public gallery.
“She has painted this particular room since 1989 so, for 20 years, she worked on different versions. She suddenly decided, after going to Paris in 2005, after seeing huge paintings of interiors, that she would like to do a huge scale one as well.
“For years she worked on it to try and get it how she wanted it.”
Barry Pearce, who was the Chief Curator of Australian Painting at the Art Gallery of NSW, suggested to the Packsaddle committee, who were initially looking to acquire a Grace Cossington-Smith for NERAM, that they consider Margaret Olley’s painting: The Yellow Room Triptych.
Co-Chairs of the Packsaddle committee, Glenda Kupczyk-Romanczuk and Moira Lloyd, met with Barry Pearce and Philip Bacon in Sydney to discuss the possibility of acquiring the painting.
They later met with the NERAM Board and Foundation to discuss the acquisition.
“The Board was initially quite nervous when we presented our proposal to them,” said Moira.
“However, they came on board with the idea.”
Chair of the NERAM Board, Meg Larkin, believes that the acquisition of the painting is fitting for a regional galley like NERAM, with the Board prepared to take on the agreement with the Margaret Olley Trust.
“It was decided by the Trust that they didn’t want this to go into a private collection; they wanted it to go into a public gallery where it would get lots of exposure and people could come and see it whenever they liked,” said Meg Larkin.
“The Trust had already talked to the Tweed Gallery about reconstituting the actual yellow room from Margaret Olley’s house in Paddington, so this made a nice art trail and was something that we could have that we could manage.”
Last Saturday night’s Foundation Dinner at NERAM was the launch of the Yellow Room Appeal. $195,000 has already been raised. This amount includes $100,000 from founding donor Packsaddle; $25,000 from Philip Bacon; $5000 from the Friends of NERAM and also funds raised at the NERAM Foundation Dinner and pledges from numerous individuals.
Story: Jo Harrison
