Title

George Haynes.

Author

Gray, Anne

Publication date

2000

Type

Biography

Language

English

Country of context

Australia

Full text

George Haynes

Haynes, George (b. Kisumu, Kenya, Africa, 4 November 1938). Australian painter, draughtsman and printmaker. He studied art at the Chelsea School of Art in Britain where he gained a strong command of drawing together with perceptive powers of observation and an intelligent understanding of the formal traditions in painting. He moved to Perth, Western Australia in 1962 where he taught at various art colleges and had a significant impact on a generation of students. He is a determined colourist, creating paintings that refer to the visible world, or to flickering apparitions from it. He depicts a range of subjects - rural and urban landscapes, interiors and people - and is interested in portraying movement. But within these diverse subjects there is the unifying theme of his delight in the physical world, in people and their interrelation with their (generally prosperous) environment. His varied interests lead him to work in a variety of styles and to experiment with technique. But he is primarily concerned with layering rich, vibrant intense colours in bold strokes, to convey intense light, shade and atmosphere, or to express a sensuous delight in the world around him.

Haynes visited Paris for six months in 1972 under a Power Bequest fellowship. At this time he became fascinated with his materials and particularly the use of pure pigment – exploring the possibilities of chance and coincidence. He remained in Europe in 1973, also visiting Italy, Spain and Britain, and became committed to transcendental meditation. In 1974 he was one of ten Australian artists included in a major exhibition which toured Europe for over two years, and which was accompanied by a television series broadcast on ABC.

He has subsequently spent time in remote localities including the Abrolhos Islands, the Pilbara, Mount Magnet, Kalgoorlie and the Kimberley, making visual chronicles of these experiences.

Haynes's work is represented in main Australian public collections.

Reference: John Stringer, George Haynes: A Survey, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth, 1989.

Anne Gray, 2000.