John Brack

John Brack is renowned as the artist who most succinctly captured the character of twentieth century Australian life. His iconic paintings including The Bar, 1954 and Collins St, 5pm, 1955, together with the ballroom dancing series of the late 1960s, remain eternally popular with successive generations of viewers. As a painter of modern life, Brack found subjects in his immediate surroundings, the suburbs and city of Melbourne, creating images full of acute observations of contemporary living that were primarily motivated by his intense interest in people and the human condition.

In 1968, with the help of a monthly stipend from Sydney dealer Rudy Komon, Brack resigned from his position as Head of the National Gallery School in Melbourne and for the first time was able to paint full-time. This shift proved dramatic, enabling him to embark on ambitious new series. While his imagery was often interpreted as satirical social commentary, Brack explained his true motivation: to understand and illuminate the human condition, using material nearest to hand, the people and things he knew best.