About

Sir Sidney Nolan was a leading artist of the 20th century who settled permanently in the UK from 1953 becoming a major name in British art. A key figure in the development of Australian modernism, he is especially celebrated for his iconic paintings of the bushranger outlaw Ned Kelly but never ceased to innovate, experiment and challenge in his practice which spanned paint, print, photography, theatre design and more.

Nolan travelled widely and his ideas and paintings became increasingly occupied by the turbulence of world events: the legacies of colonialism, war and conflict, globalisation, and animal extinctions.

The brief for this new prize recognises Nolan’s ambitious and restless curiosity and concern, and commitment to art as a way to address acute and current questions of human experience, and how we relate to one another and our world.

Nolan founded the Trust in his name in 1985 to further his vision of a rural centre for the arts in the beautiful landscape of the Welsh Marches. Based at his final home The Rodd, a 400-year old manor house and estate, the Trust works to enable inspiring encounters with the arts, heritage and our environment - for artists, children and adults of all ages and backgrounds. The charity also cares for, and enables access to, an internationally significant collection of Nolan’s art, his extensive archive, his only surviving studio, and little-altered Jacobean house Rodd Court.