Under a Modern Sun: Art in Queensland 1930s–1950s

Thu 14 Aug 2025

‘Under a Modern Sun: Art in Queensland 1930s–1950s’ at the Queensland Art Gallery from 16 August 2025, showcases more than 140 paintings, sculptures, photographs and works of decorative art by Queensland-born artists and those who travelled here in the middle decades of the twentieth century.

The free exhibition includes significant works by Brisbane-based artists William Bustard, Gwendolyn Grant, Vida Lahey, Daphne Mayo, Carl McConnell, Margaret Olley and Leonard and Kathleen Shillam as well as luminaries from the regions such as Kenneth Macqueen on the Darling Downs and Joe Alimindjin Rootsey (Barrow Point people, Ama Wuriingu clan) who captured his Country in North Queensland.

William Bustard Summer haze 1937

Gwendolyn Grant Winter sunshine 1939

Vida Lahey Crocus and sunflowers 1955

Daphne Mayo Olympian c.1946

Carl McConnell Tea-set c.1958

Margaret Olley Allamandas I c.1955-58

Kathleen Shillam Little creature c.1957

Kenneth Macqueen Cloud arrangement c.1945

Joe Rootsey (Wakooka, inland from Barrow Point) 1959

The exhibition celebrates a transformative period in Queensland’s cultural and artistic evolution, during which artists introduced new creative approaches to what was then a very conservative climate. Drawn from the Gallery’s extensive holdings of work by Queensland artists, including influential artworks by Charles Blackman, Sidney Nolan and Max Dupain who made significant contributions to the development of a modernist sensibility in the state.

Charles Blackman (Self-portrait in front of a boarding house, Spring Hill) 1951

Sidney Nolan Escaped convict 1948

Max Dupain Sugar cane, Queensland, September 1952

Presenting a light-filled vision of Queensland, ‘Under a Modern Sun’ reveals the beginnings of more experimental means of expression; offers new insights and stories about Queensland as it was experienced last century; a compelling glimpse into a defining era in the state’s creative history and shares the perspectives of some of Australia’s most revered artists.

‘Under a Modern Sun’ underscores the vital role that women artists played in fostering art in Queensland, as they worked to introduce the concepts they had encountered In Europe. Vida Lahey’s paintings of Brisbane’s Central Station and the Grey Street Bridge under construction foreground their subjects as symbols of a rapidly modernising city; while her highly coloured and patterned still lifes were a vehicle through which Lahey similarly expressed modernist ideas.

Vida Lahey Sultry noon [Central Station, Brisbane] 1931

Vida Lahey Building the bridge 1931

Both Lahey and sculptor Daphne Mayo made extraordinary contributions to art through their work, and advocacy for contemporary practice. Their artworks feature alongside works by their peers, including painters Gwendolyn Grant, Betty Quelhurst and Joy Roggenkamp; photographer Rose Simmonds; textile designer Olive Ashworth and women ceramicists from the Harvey School.

Betty Quelhurst The convenience store, Breakfast Creek 1955

Joy Roggenkamp Church at Sandgate c.1949

Rose Simmonds (Grey Street Bridge, Brisbane) c.1933

Olive Ashworth Textile length: Great Barrier Reef c.1970s

A later group of paintings by Margaret Olley and Margaret Cilento, who returned to Brisbane in the 1950s, and Jon Molvig, who moved to the capital in 1955 and became a leading light in the city’s art scene, point to the expressive directions that art in Queensland followed in succeeding decades.

Margaret Cilento The immigrants 1951

Jon Molvig The cattle grid 1958

Under a Modern Sun: Art in Queensland 1930s–1950s
16 August 2025 – 26 January 2026
Queensland Art Gallery
Brisbane, Australia
Free entry

Go back in time to discover Brisbane’s forgotten landmarks, delve into our historical past, and uncover unique stories through the work of Australian artists in QAGOMA’s Collection.

‘Under a Modern Sun: Art in Queensland 1930s–1950s’ is accompanied by an exhibition catalogue supported by Publication Sponsor the Gordon Darling Foundation.