John Kelly In West Cork

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John Kelly in South Reen; photo by John Minihan

John Kelly in South Reen; photo by John Minihan

John Kelly in South Reen; photo by John Minihan
John Kelly has been described variously as an awkward bugger (Fergal Gaynor, 2007) and a free radical (Guangzhou Triennale, 2008), and whilst these observations are no doubt true his awkward radical behaviour leads to some interesting results.

John Kelly was born in 1965. His father, from Cork, and mother from Bristol, the family immigrated to Australia the same year. Due to his birth, heritage and circumstance John now holds three passports and therefore is an Englishman, an Australian and an Irishman. Kelly has lived in all three countries and for the past two decades has resided in west Cork, Ireland. His work has been collected into the Yale Center for British Art, USA, the National Gallery of Australia, the Crawford Gallery, Ireland and the Guangdong Museum in Guangzhou China, MONA,  Tasmania, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery of New South Wales, etc.

In 1985 Kelly obtained a Bachelor of Arts (Visual Arts Painting) from RMIT University, Melbourne, where he also completed his Masters of Arts in 1995. As a winner of the 1995 Anne & Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship, he travelled to London to study as an Affiliate Student at the Slade School of Art from 1996 to 1997. In the UK he exhibited regularly with the prestigious Piccadilly Galleries in Cork Street, London and then Agnews Gallery, the Redfern Gallery Galleries, and is now represented by Smith and Singer (formerly Sothebys Australia).

As a painter, sculptor and printmaker Kelly engages across mediums and also writes, having written for Art Monthly (Australia & UK) and Circa magazine (Ireland), The Jackdaw (London) and Daily review (Australia). In 2017 he was nominated for a Walkley Award for Arts Journalism.

Wish came true article from Sunshine Western Suburbs Advocate 21 December, 1982

Wish came true article from Sunshine Western Suburbs Advocate 21 December, 1982

Wish came true article from Sunshine Western Suburbs Advocate 21 December, 1982
Telegram in 1982 notifying John’s mother that she had won the Puramilk Wishathon, which enabled John to remain at art school in Melbourne

In Australia Kelly is well known for his paintings and large sculptures of William Dobell’s cows, papier-mâché creations used during WWII in an attempt to confuse enemy aircraft as to the location of the Australian airbases. His sculptures of these cows have been exhibited on the Champs Elysées, Paris, in Les Champs de la Sculpture, 1999, Monte Carlo, in La Parade des Animaux, 2002, the MAMAC in France, The Hague, 2007, Glastonbury (2006 and 2007), London (Goodenough Trust in Mecklenburgh Square, 2005), Cork city, 2011, and Melbourne Docklands (2001 to the present). His bronze monumental Man Lifting Cow is exhibited in Sunshine, Melbourne (2016 to the present).

More recently, Kelly’s work has taken various turns and adventures that have seen him tackle contemporary issues – such as branding in contemporary culture, and museum politics – in places such as the Guangzhou Triennale, 2008, and the Göteborg Biennale, 2011. In 2005 Kelly’s work was commissioned by David Walsh (Museum of Old and New Art, MONA) in Hobart to create work for his Moo Brew beer labels. Kelly referenced the logo of the Australia Council for the Arts, who themselves had advocated a “branding the Arts” strategy. In what was a successful anti-branding branding campaign the award winning labels have become iconic Australian beer labels.

Kelly’s work is held in many museums and galleries in Australia and also the Guangdong Museum in China. His most recent exhibitions in 2022 have been in Paris (Sothebys) and Melbourne with the Lazarus Series (Smith and Singer)

Irish Arts Review article by John O'Sullivan, 2021

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Irish Arts Review 2021 Man on a Mission

Biography

1965Born in Bristol, family moved to Australia
1985Obtained a BA from RMIT University, Melbourne
1995Obtained a MA from RMIT University, Melbourne
Won the Anne & Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship
1996-97Studied as an Affiliate Student at the Slade School of Art
1988First show at the Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
2000Dobell cow sculpture displayed in 'Les Champs de la Sculpture', Paris
2002Dobell cow sculpture displayed in 'La Parade des Animaux', Monte Carlo

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  • Solo Exhibitions
    1988Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    1990Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    The Essoign Club, Owen Dixon Chambers, Melbourne
    1993Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    1995Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK
    1996Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    Masters Exhibition, RMIT, Melbourne
    1997Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK, 'Painting the Dead Horse'
    1998Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    2000Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 'More Fucking Cows!'
    Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK
    L'espal centre culturel, Le Mans, France, 'John Kelly'
    2002Niagara Galleries, Melbourne
    Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK, ‘Culture Jam’
    2003Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, 'The Nice Paintings – From The Top Paddock’
    2004Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘The Irish Rover’
    The Essoign Club, Owen Dixon Chambers, Melbourne, 'John Kelly'
    The Drawing Room: A Work by John Kelly, RMIT, August / September 2004
    2005Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK, ‘Incorrect Usage’
    Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, ‘Australian Cultural Product’
    Goodenough College, London, ‘Three Cows in a Pile’
    Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Project x 2’
    2006Piccadilly Gallery, London Dolliver Design Studio, Cork, Ireland, ‘There was an Australian, an Englishman and an Irishman...’
    Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Sun of Moonboy’
    McClelland Gallery + Sculpture Park, Melbourne, ‘Deconstructing Australia’
    2007The Room, Brighton, VIC, ‘John Kelly’
    Piccadilly Gallery, London Dolliver Design Studio, Cork, Ireland, ‘There was an Australian, an Englishman and an Irishman...’
    Musée d’Art Moderne de Contemporaine, Nice, France, ‘Cow up a Tree’
    2008Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, ‘Self Portrait from Afar’
    2009Salamanca Arts Centre, Battery Point, TAS, ‘Self Portrait from Afar’, third project from Kelly’s Garden curated series
    2010Agnews Gallery , London, UK, 'Probe'
    2011Michael Koro Gallery, Melbourne, ‘Enterprise’
    2013Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, ‘Look and Put (Irish Landscapes)’
    Oliver Sears Gallery, Dublin, Ireland, ‘Sticks and Stones’
    2014Australian Galleries, Derby Street, Melbourne, ‘From under my mother’s bed’
    The Doswell Gallery, Cork, Ireland, ‘Castlehaven’
    2015Australian Galleries, Roylston Street, Sydney, ‘From under my mother’s bed including recent etchings and steel cut outs’
    2016Oliver Sears Gallery, Dublin, Ireland, ‘Out There’
    Bett Gallery, Hobart, ‘The Moo Brew Etchings’
    Australian Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Hanging Rock’
    Australian Galleries, Melbourne, ‘The Moo Brew Etchings’
    Sotheby’s, Sydney, ‘John Kelly: Sculptures’
    2021Singer&Singer, Melbourne, ‘John Kelly: Painting and Sculpture’
    2022Singer&Singer, Melbourne, ‘John Kelly: The Lazarus Series’
  • Selected Group Exhibitions
    1988-94Various group exhibitions in Australia
    1995Linden Gallery, Melbourne, ‘St Kilda Postcard Show’
    Dobell Drawing Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Sulman Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Benalla Visual Arts Festival, Benalla, VIC, ‘Australian Felix’
    Piccadilly Gallery, London, UK, ‘Piccadilly Gallery at Art ‘95’
    Geelong Art Gallery, Geelong, VIC, ‘Deakin University: Recent Acquisitions’
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Piccadilly Gallery, London
    London, UK and Edinburgh, UK, ‘Royal Overseas League Exhibition’
    Access Gallery, Sydney
    The Herald Sun Art Prize, Melbourne
    1996Royal College of Art, London, UK, ‘20th Century British Art Fair’
    London, UK and Edinburgh, UK, ‘Royal Overseas League Exhibition’
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Wynne Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, Mornington, VIC, ‘12th Biennial Spring Festival of Drawing’
    Fifth Australian Contemporary Art Fair, Melbourne
    1997Halle Saint Pierre, Paris, France and Strausborg, France, ‘Oh La Vache!’
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Musée Municipal A.G. Poulain, Normandie, France, ‘Vaches du XXe Siecle et Droles de Bovides’
    Glasgow Art Fair, Glasgow, Scotland
    Wynne Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    London, UK and Edinburgh, UK, ‘Royal Overseas League Exhibition’
    1998Sulman Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Wynne Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Salon des Refusés, SH Ervin Gallery, Sydney
    Sixth Australian Contemporary Art Fair, Melbourne
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Access Gallery, Sydney
    Hill-Smith Gallery, Adelaide
    Virgin Airlines, Gatwick Airport, London
    Hammerson, 100 Park Lane, London, UK, ‘Figuring it Out'
    Galerie Luc Queyral, Paris, France, ‘Proposition Australiennes’
    Gallerie Commercio, Zurich, Switzerland, ‘Kuhkunst’
    1999Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Blue Chip II: The Collectors’ Exhibition’
    Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery, Mornington, VIC, ‘Horses for Courses’
    Espace Eiffel, Paris, France, ‘Salon Grands et Jeunes d’Aujourd’hui’
    Paris, France, ‘Les Champs de la Sculpture II’
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Royal Academy of Arts, London, ‘Summer Exhibition’
    2000Royal Academy of Arts, London, ‘Summer Exhibition’
    Sulman Prize Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Foundation Coprim, Paris, France, 'Paysage'
    l’Espace, Adamski Designs, Paris, France, ‘Accents Australiens'
    2002Monte Carlo, Monaco, ‘Parade des Animaux’
    Ipswick Global Arts Link, Ipswick, QLD, ‘Ready, Set, Go! Sporting Life and Australian Art’,
    Basel Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
    Royal Academy of Arts, London, ‘Summer Exhibition’
    2003Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Blue Chip V: The Collectors’ Exhibition’
    National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, ‘Fair Game: Art & Sport’
    McClelland Gallery, Langwarrin, VIC, ‘A Modelled World’
    2004Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Blue Chip VI: The Collectors’ Exhibition’
    Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat, VIC and touring, ‘Imaging the Apple’
    Melbourne Art Fair, Melbourne
    The Triskel, Cork, Ireland, 'Taking Stock'
    2005Glastonbury Festival, Glastonbury, UK, ‘The Green Fields’
    The Triskel, Cork, Ireland, 'Taking Stock'
    McClelland Gallery, Langwarrin, VIC, ‘McClelland Contemporary Sculpture Survey and McClelland Award Exhibition’
    2006Melbourne Art Fair, Melbourne
    Belfast Print Workshop, Belfast, Ireland, ‘Cork-Belfast Printmakers Exchange’
    The Triskel, Cork, Ireland, ‘Fetish in a Box’
    Belfast Print Workshop, Belfast, Ireland, ‘10 x 10 Identity in Contemporary Ireland’
    Sculpture by the Sea: Tenth Annual Exhibition, Sydney
    2007Montalto Sculpture Prize: Finalist Exhibition, Red Hill, VIC
    The Hague, Netherlands, ‘Den Haag Sculptuur 2007’
    Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat, VIC, ‘How Now Cow’
    Agnew’s, London, UK, ‘Looking forward – 25 British Artists’
    Glastonbury Festival, Glastonbury, UK, ‘The Green Fields’
    Sirus Arts Centre, Cork, Ireland, ‘Death and Desire’
    Toorak Festival of Sculpture, Toorak, Melbourne
    Auckland Art Fair, Auckland, NZ
    Hawkesbury Regional Gallery , Hawkesbury , NSW, ‘Bloodlines: Art and the Horse’
    2008Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Blue Chip X: The Collectors’ Exhibition’
    The Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award 2008, Werribee Park, Melbourne
    Yarra Sculpture Gallery, Melbourne, ‘Ship of Fools, Ship of Hope, One World’
    Melbourne Art Fair, Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne
    The Third Guangzhou Triennial, Guangzhou Museum of Art, Guangzhou, China, ‘Farewell to Post Colonialism’
    2009Cork Printmakers and Tristel Arts Centre, Cork, Ireland, ‘Today I joined a gang in the woods’, curated by Emma Mahony
    Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, ‘Summer exhibition’
    2010Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, ‘Blue Chip: Collectors’ Exhibition’
    National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taiwan, ‘At the Crossroads’
    2011Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art, Göteborg, Sweden
    Crawfort Art Gallery, Cork, Ireland
    2014Australian Galleries, Derby Street, Melbourne, ‘Australia Day 2014 Celebratory Exhibition’
    Australian Galleries, Derby Street, Melbourne, ‘one of each’
    2015Void Gallery, Derry, Ireland, 'Horse'
    2016Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art, Adelaide, ‘Fleurieu Art Prize’
    Australian Galleries, Melbourne, ‘Conjuring, Alchemy and Allure’
  • Collections
    Yale Center for British Art
    Artbank, Australia
    Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
    Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
    Baker and McKenzie, London, UK
    Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat, VIC
    Benalla Art Gallery, Benalla, VIC
    Bendigo Art Gallery , Bendigo, VIC
    City of Yarra Collection, VIC
    Deakin University Art Collection, VIC
    Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou, China
    Gold Coast City Art Gallery, Gold Coast, QLD
    Gallery of Sport, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
    Holmes a Court Collection, Cowaramup, WA
    La Trobe University Collection, VIC
    Leeuwin Estate, Margaret River, WA
    Maharam Collection, New York, USA
    McClelland Sculpture Park and Gallery, Langwarrin, VIC
    Murdoch Collection, Australia
    Musée Municipal A G Poulain, Normandie, France
    Museum of Old and New Art, Moorilla, Hobart
    National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
    National Sports Museum, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
    Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, TAS
    Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane
    Tasmania Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart
    Trinity College Collection, Melbourne
    Western Mining Collection, Australia
    Numerous private and corporate collections in Australia, Europe and USA
  • Commissions, Grants, and Awards
    1988Project Grant, Visual Arts Board, Australia Council
    1992The Melbourne Theatre Company 1992-1993 Season Programme, I Hate Hamlet
    1993City of Richmond Acquisitive Art Award
    John Storey Memorial Scholarship, The Queen’s Trust Grant, RMIT
    1994Barcelona Studio, Visual Arts/Craft Board, Australia Council
    1995Anne and Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship Award
    St Kilda Postcard Show
    2001Project Grant, South East Arts
    2002Professional Development Grant, Visual Arts/Craft Board, Australia Council
    2005‘Moo Brew’, paintings for Moorilla Estate, TAS
    2015‘Man lifting cow’ for Brimbank Council
    2016Fleurieu Art Prize (Finalist), Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art, Adelaide
  • Catalogues, Books, and Films
    Moet et Chandon (exhibition catalogue), 1988
    John Kelly (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 1993
    Neville Drury, Images 2 – Contemporary Australian Painting, Craftsman House Press, 1994
    Moet et Chandon (exhibition catalogue), 1994
    Australian Arts Diary, illustrated, 1995
    Australia Felix (exhibition catalogue), Benalla, 1995
    Royal Overseas League (exhibition catalogue), London, 1995
    John Kelly (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 1995
    Barry Humphries, The art of John Kelly (exhibition catalogue), The Piccadilly Gallery, London, 1997
    Anne and Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship (exhibition catalogue), University of South Australia, 1996
    Royal Overseas League (exhibition catalogue), London, 1997
    John Kelly (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 1998
    Basel Art Fair (exhibition catalogue), 1998
    Cow up a Tree, Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 1999
    John Kelly – New Paintings and Sculpture (exhibition catalogue), The Piccadilly Gallery, London, 200
    More Fucking Cows! (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Galleries, Melbourne, 2000
    Laura Murray Cree, Awesome! Australian Art for Contemporary Kids, Craftsman House, Sydney, 2002
    The Nice Paintings – From the Top Paddock (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Publishing, Melbourne, 2003
    Australian Cultural Product (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Publishing, Melbourne, 2004
    Sun of Moonboy (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Publishing, Melbourne, 2006
    Sun of Moonboy (exhibition catalogue), Niagara Publishing, Melbourne, 2006
    Australian Art Pack Animals 1788 – 21st Century, The Creative School Supply Company, 2007
    Robert Lindsay, Deconstructing Australia (exhibition catalogue), McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park, Melbourne, 2006
    Sonia Payes, Untitled: Portraits of Australian Artists, Macmillan Publishing, Melbourne, 2007
    The Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award at Werribee Park 2008 (exhibition catalogue), The Helen Lempriere National Sculpture Award, Melbourne, 2008
    Self Portrait from Afar (exhibition catalogue), Liverpool Street Gallery, Sydney, 2008
    John Doggett-Williams, Deconstructing John Kelly, Fine Eye Productions, Melbourne, 2008
  • Articles and Reviews
    Alison Barclay, “Cow of a job for a talented artist”, Herald Sun, 8 June 1993
    Anna Clabburn, “Laughing at national sacred cows”, The Melbourne Times, 23 June 1993
    Openline, RMIT “John Storey winner milks memories of wartime cows”, RMIT University, 16 June 1993
    Chris Johnston, “Painting a cows tale”, Western Independent, Melbourne
    Robert Nelson, “Moet has depth and seduction”, The Age, 4 January 1995
    Anna Clabburn, Asian Art News (Australian Supplement), May 1995
    John Russell Taylor, "john kely", Galleries/UK, July 1995
    Andrew Block, “Cudding Edge”, Herald Sun, 1 March 1996
    Susan McCulloch, “Metaphorically Phar-fetched”, The Australian, 4 November 1997
    “The weekend’s best: Art”, The Age, 28 November 1998
    Gary Catalano, The Age, 17 February 1988
    “Kelly: London to Brighton”, Artlink, volume 18, No. 4, 1998
    “John Kelly L’Australie Aux Champs”, Connaissance Des Arts, No 561, May 1999
    Rachelle Unreich and Dietlind Lerner, "Up and Udder", 1999
    “John Kelly dans le cadre des Champs de la Sculpture 2000”, press book, comprehensive collation of international media coverage, Agence Hymann, Renault Associees, Paris, 2000
    Anna Clabburn, “Stripes and squares animate landscape carnival”, The Australian, 10 November 2000
    Robert Nelson, “Shock of the moo”, The Age, 8 November 2000
    Jeff Makin, “Suspended animation”, Herald Sun, 20 November 2000
    “Docklands is out on a limb for art”, Melbourne Yarra Leader, 12 February 2001
    Susan McCullock-Uehlin, “Packing art and leaving home”, The Weekend Australian, 2 June 2001
    Jeff Makin, “Roses all the way”, Herald Sun, 4 February 2002
    Alison Harper, “Market perspective”, The Australian Art Market Report, Issue 4, 2002
    “Market perspective”, The Australian Art Market Report, Issue 5, 2002
    Louise Bellamy, “Bull market for Niagara”, The Age, 24 April 2003
    Bob Hart, “In the bid time”, Herald Sun, 3 May 2003
    Georgina Safe, “Painter mocks arts council bull”, The Australian, 20 June 2003
    John Kelly, “Letters”, Art Monthly Australia, August 2003
    John McDonald and John Kelly, “Branding time at the oz co. corral”, Australian Art Review, November 2003
    Alison Harper, “Interview with John Kelly”, The Australian Art Market Report, Issue 10, 2003
    Terry Ingram, “Merger streamlines art market”, The Australian Financial Review, 14 November 2003
    Patricia Anderson, “Apparitions and metaphors”, The Australian, 15 November 2003
    Geoff Maslen, “Gavel fails to fall for most vendors”, The Age, 1 December 2003
    Harbant Gill, “Having a cow of a time”, Herald Sun, 28 January 2004
    Louise Bellamy, “A gain for the galleries”, The Age, 25 June 2005
    Harbant Gill, “So who’s a silly moo?”, Herald Sun, 28 June 2005
    Jeff Makin, “Pun in the moonlight”, Herald Sun, 20 November 2006
    Harbant Gill, “Now it’s three cows up a tree”, Herald Sun, 26 Marh 2007
    Ailin Quinlan, “Artist brings animal attraction home”, Irish Examiner, 2 April 2007
    Brian O’Connell, “Pull the udder one”, The Irish Times Magazine, 7 April 2007
    Harbant Gill, “Peril vaults back”, Herald Sun, 18 February 2008
    “It’s a date: Helen Lempriere Centenary Exhibition at Werribee Park”, Royal Auto, April 2008
    Fergal Gaynor, “Crawford Open 2007 – the sleep of reason”, Circa 123, Spring 2008
    John P O’Sullivan, “Enjoy the View”, The Sunday Times, 03 August 2014
    James Cockington, “Art to Adore for Heifer and Heifer”, Sydney Morning Herald, ‘Money’, 22 October 2014
    Alesha Capone, “Artist John Kelly begins work on Man lifting cow statue for Sunshine”, Brimbank Leader, 11 November 2015
    Kylie Northover, ”Cow-up-a-tree-artist John Kelly - Australia's most famous artist you never knew”, The Age, December 2015
    Aidan Dunne, "'Out There' – John Kelly, Oliver Sears Gallery, Dublin"; The Irish Times, March 2016
    Margaret Burin, “Australian artist John Kelly brings cows home to mark humble beginnings”, ABC News, 20 August 2016
    Sally Glaetzer, “How a beer label led to Leigh Carmichael’s brilliant new career”, The Mercury, 29 October 2016
    Tom Wright, "Cow up a Tree behind a temporary cafe ... for three years", The Age, 22 June 2017 →
    Julian Tompkin, “The Art of Beer”, Weekend Australian, October 2020 →
    Emma Froggatt: "Risk and adventure in the most remote place on earth: John Kelly's Antarctic paintings – gallery", The Guardian, 17 June 2015 →
  • Writing by the Artist
    “In advance of the Crawford open”, Circa Art Magazine, 2007 →
    “Making a meal of sculpture”, Circa Art Magazine, 2008 →
    “If I were you I wouldn’t start from here – The way things go”, Recirca.com, 2008
    “The spectacle of expectation in public”, Circa Art Magazine, 2008 →
    “An Open Letter From John Kelly to the PM”, The Art Life blogspot, 2008 →
    “Wotif, Wotif...”, The Artlife, 2008 →
    “Sean Lynch”, Circa Art Magazine, 2008 Summer →
    “The impossibility for shopping in the mind of a stuffed d’oh eyed panda”, Circa Art Magazine, Winter 2008 →
    “First Past the Post-Colonial”, Art Monthly Australia, November 2008
    “Prayer for the Potato Crop”, Art Monthly Australia, March 2009
    “The Beauty of Distance”, Art Monthly Australia, July 2009
    “Is that your dog”, A Biennale Romance, Circa Art Magazine, 2009 →
    “Grin and bear it”, Circa Art Magaine, Summer 2009 →
    “On the beach – a letter from Nice”, Circa Art Magazine, 2009 →
    “Not exactly about cricket”, The Art Life, 2009 →
    “Letter from an Australian”, originally published in Art Monthly, Issue No 322, December 2009/January 2010, p 38
    “Bacon ‘n’ Eggs”, Art Monthly Australia, March 2010 →
    “From Melbourne to Monaco (via Princess Grace boulevard)”, The Art Life, April 2010 →
    “Thingamajig, the secret life of objects”, The Art Life, May 2010 →
    “The Caretaker and the Guesthouse”, The Art Life, June 2010 →
    “William Dobell, An artist’s life, Book review”, Art Monthly Australia, November 2010
    “Close Examination, Fakes, Mistakes and Rey Mysterio – A year in review”, The Art Life, December 2010 →
    “Flying High I & II: Airplane, the Terminal Convention and Sirius Matters”, The Art Life, February 2011 →
    “Memory Places”, Art Monthly Australia, April 2011 (here; full text reprinted here)
    “The Golden Thread: Hany Armanious at the Venice Biennale“, The Art Life, July 2011 →
    “Art, Branding and Camouflage Cows”, The Art Life, August 2011 →
    “Artist and the State and the State of the Arts”, Paper Visual Art, September 2011 →
    “PAN DEMON i UM: The Goteborg International Biennale of Contemporary Art”, Circa Art Magazine, September 2011 →
    "Artists and the State and the State of the Arts, The Jackdaw, September / October 2011 →
    “The Garden Shed”, Visual Arts News, November-December 2011
    "An artist returns to Sunshine", Daily Review, 10 November 2015 →
    "Where does Gareth Sansom sit in the batting order?", Daily Review, 24 September 2017 →
    "Artist John Kelly says reports of the death of painting have been greatly exaggerated", Daily Review, 19 September 2016 →
    "The network of connections behind Australia’s Venice Biennale choices", Daily Record, 18 March 2018 →
    "OzCo opens entry to Venice Biennale to everybody – but what strings are attached?", Daily Record, 31 October 2017 →
    "Tracey Moffatt at the Venice Biennale: memories are made of this", Daily Record, 13 May 2017 →
    "The Venice Biennale and the Australian Pavilion’s history of repetition", Daily Record, 30 April 2017 →
    "Do artists deserve their own tax regime?", Daily Record, 1 July 2016 →
    "John Kelly asks the Australia Council to fund a project critical of the Australia Council", Daily Record, 20 March 2016 →
    "John Kelly’s proposal for ‘Team Australia’ at Venice Biennale 2019", Daily Record, 24 November 2017 →
    "Artist John Kelly on Mullaghmore, Sidney Nolan, Father Ted and losing an artist's pride", Daily Record, 9 March 2015 →
  • Other Articles and Essays on JK
    Lyndon's Roo, Re:collection
    Will OzCo fund a project critical of OzCo? An artist finds out, Crikey, 2016
    Ben Eltham references John Kelly
    Artist John Kelly says reports of the death of painting have been greatly exaggerated, Daily Review, 2016
    John Kelly’s proposal for ‘Team Australia’ at Venice Biennale 2019, Daily Review, 2019
    The Beauty of distance, Circa Art Magazine, 2009
    If I were you I wouldn’t start from here – ‘The way things go’, Circa Art Magazine, May 2008
    Australia: Curatorial Apartheid and the Duty to Disappoint, The Art Life, November 2013
    John Kelly Wants Your Money, The Art Life, November 2014
    1988: Year Zero, The Art Life, September 2012
    John Kelly: Enterprise, The Art Life, May 2011
    An Open Letter From John Kelly to the PM, The Art Life, August 2008
    Memory Places, The Art Life, June 2011
    Antarctica, where blue ice buckles and cracks, and mountains float in the sky, The Guardian, November 2013
    Blinded by the white of Southern Ocean's majestic icebergs, The Guardian, October 2013
    Beautiful Antarctic landscapes belie a hard edge to life lived on the ice, The Guardian, December 2013
    Capturing a continent: a painterly journey to Antarctica, The Guardian, October 2014
    Artists and the State and the State of the Arts, Paper Visual Art, September 2011

Catalogues

Hover a catalogue to view and page through it.

Smith & Singer catalogue, 2024

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly - 2024 (Smith&Singer)

Smith & Singer catalogue, 2022

Smith & Singer catalogue 2022

Smith & Singer catalogue, 2021

S&S_John Kelly CATALOGUE_08.02.21

Redfern Gallery catalogue, February – March 2018

Redfern Kelly online 5 combined

Sotheby’s Australia, 2016 • John Kelly: Sculptures

AUEX016 ART John Kelly Sculptures 20160915

From under my mother’s bed – invite / catalogue, 2014

From under my mothers bed both

Probe catalogue, Agnews, October – November 2010

probe catalogue

Self-portrait from Afar, 2010

John Kelly CAT08 Text

Deconstructing Australia, 2006–07

deconstructingAus

Incorrect Usage, 2005

IncorrectUsage2005

The McClelland, 2005 (one page)

mcClelland2005

The Nice Paintings, 2003

theNicePaintings2003

Parade des Animaux, 2002

paradeDesAnimaux2002

Culture Jam, 2002

culture jam 2002

New Paintings and Sculpture, 2000

Piccadilly Gallery catalgue 2000

John Kelly, 1998, Niagara Gallery

John Kelly, 1998, Niagara Gallery

John Kelly, 1998, Niagara Gallery

John Kelly, 1998, Niagara Gallery

Painting the Dead Horse, The Picadilly Gallery, 1997

Painting the Dead Horse full catalogue Design: iCulture • Privacy and cookies

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