Bernard Ollis
“I want to step beyond the conventional viewpoint because this for me is dull and obvious and I want to excite and challenge the viewer.”
- Bernard Ollis
Bernard Ollis OAM is a celebrated British-Australian painter renowned for his vibrant and whimsical compositions, which blend expressionist, realist and surrealist traditions. His richly layered works explore imagined and real environments, from the streets of Paris to exotic locales such as Cairo and Marrakesh, crafted with candy-bright colours, playful distortions and dreamlike perspectives.
Having studied at Cardiff School of Art and the Royal College of Art in London under mentors including David Hockney and Sir Peter Blake, Ollis migrated to Australia in 1976. There, he quickly became a key figure in art and arts education. As Director of the National Art School in Sydney from 1997 to 2008, he left a lasting legacy in Australian visual culture.
Having held over 80 solo exhibitions worldwide, with works held in major collections such as the National Gallery of Australia and the Royal College of Art, Ollis was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2023 in recognition of his contribution to the arts. Currently dividing his time between Sydney and Paris, he continues to create immersive visual worlds that blur the line between fantasy and reality.
About the Artist
-
Born 1951 in Bath, UK. Lives and works in Sydney and Paris
-
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2020
Artists' Gardens (Part 1), Harvey Galleries, Sydney, NSW2019
Recent Works, Linton & Kay Subiaco Gallery, Perth, WA
A Tale of Two Cities, Victoria Art Gallery, Bath, UK
The Traveller, Mitchell Fine Art Galleries, Brisbane, QLD
Departures, Aarwun Gallery, Canberra, ACT2018
Being There, Harvey Galleries, Sydney, NSW
Traveller's Tails, Paris and Morocco, Linton & Kay Subiaco Gallery, Perth, WA2017
Paris and Other Stories, Aarwun Gallery, Canberra, ACT
Observations, Mitchell Fine Art Galleries, Brisbane, QLD
Favourite Places, Harvey Galleries Seaforth and Mosman, Sydney, NSW2016
Run Ya, Artspace, Linyi, China
Cultural Exchange of Australia and China, Linyi Arts Centre, Shandong, China
Storytelling about China, Shanghai Cultural Centre & Art Gallery, China
Open Studio, Travel Paintings, Linton & Kay Galleries, Perth, WA
Travels to Paris, Trevor Victor Harvey Gallery, Seaforth, Sydney, NSW2015
Brisbane and Beyond, Mike Mitchell Fine Art Gallery, Brisbane, QLD
Bernard Ollis: 54 Works, Michael Reid Gallery, Berlin, Germany
Observations of Paris, NG Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Theatre of Life, Buratti Fine Art, Perth, WA
Antarctica, Shackleton, Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney, NSW2014
Bernard Ollis, Kenthurst Galleries, NSW
Le Regard de deux Australiens, L’Espace Beaujon, Paris, France
Traveller’s Tales, Tweed River Regional Gallery, NSW2013
A Town Like Paris, Muk Muk Fine Art, touring to Alice Springs, Darwin, Brisbane, QLD
Paris Work, Buratti Fine Art, Perth, WA2012–13
Modern Living: Bernard Ollis, A survey of the work of Bernard Ollis, Manly Art Gallery and Museum, Sydney, NSW2012
Paris Considered, NG Art Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Parisian Reflections, Letham Galleries, Auckland, NZ2011
Paris Revisited, NG Art Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Major Works, Buratti Fine Art, Perth, WA2010
Italy, 19Karen Contemporary Artspace, Gold Coast, QLD2009
The Grand Tour, United Galleries, Perth, WA
Journeys through Italy and Egypt, NG Art Gallery, Sydney, NSW2008
Urban Myth, United Galleries, Perth, WA
Incognito, NG Art, Chippendale, Sydney, NSW2006
The St Peters Suite, Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney, NSW2002
Stella Downer Galleries, Sydney, NSW2001–2000
Michael Nagy Fine Art, Sydney, NSW1998
Mary Place Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Sydney Theatre Company, Sydney, NSW1997
Hot Bath Gallery, Bath, UK1996
Australian Galleries, Melbourne, VIC1994
Bendigo Art Gallery, VIC1993
Botanical Gallery, South Yarra, VIC1992
Retrospective Paintings and Pastels, Macquarie Gallery, Sydney, NSW1991
Powell Street Gallery, South Yarra, VIC1990–1989–1988
Macquarie Gallery, Sydney, NSW1988
Roz McAllen Gallery, Brisbane, QLD1987
Macquarie Gallery, Sydney, NSW1986
Powell Street Gallery, South Yarra, VIC1984–1986
Visual Arts Board, Bernard Ollis, The Australian Tour
Undercroft Gallery for the Perth Festival
University of Western Australia
Hawthorn City Art Gallery, VIC
Warrnambool Art Gallery, VIC
Ararat Gallery, VIC
Mildura Arts Centre, VIC
Shepparton Regional Art Gallery, VIC
Muswellbrook Art Gallery, NSW
Bathurst Regional Gallery, NSW
Orange Art Gallery, NSW
Benalla Art Gallery, VIC
Wagga Wagga Art Gallery, NSW
Bendigo Art Gallery, VIC (extended survey exhibition)1984, 1982, 1981
Macquarie Gallery, Sydney, NSW1978
Warehouse Galleries, South Melbourne, VIC1976
The Africa Centre, Covent Garden, London, UK
The Royal Commonwealth Society, London, UK1974–75
Commonwealth Institute Gallery, London, UK1972–73
College of Art Gallery, Cardiff, Wales
Selected Group Exhibitions
2020
Primaveral, Mitchell Fine Art Galleries, Brisbane, QLD2019–20
Elsewhere: Travels through Morocco, Syria, Iran & Central Asia (with Wendy Sharpe), touring regional galleries, NSW2019
Connections: Art & Collaboration, Blue Mountains Cultural Centre, NSW2018
The Art of Friendship, Gallery Lane Cove, Sydney, NSW2017
Salon des Refusés, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW2016
Blue Mountains Cultural Centre, NSW2015
Three Australians, Gallery 12, Auckland, NZ
New Romantics (with Wendy Sharpe and Johnny Romeo), Penny Contemporary Gallery, Hobart, TAS
Private Lives: Collections, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW2014
Le Regard de Deux Australiens, L’Espace Beaujon, Paris, France2011
Dobell Prize, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW
IN[TWO]ART, Maitland Regional Art Gallery (touring)2010
Salon des Refusés, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Tales from the City (with Wendy Sharpe), Orange Regional Art Gallery, NSW2009
Every Dog Has Its Day, Letham Gallery, Auckland, NZ2008
United Galleries, Perth, WA
Contemporary Drawing, University of the Arts, Wimbledon, London, UK
Vernissage, Oxford Street Gallery, Melbourne, VIC
Drawcard, National Art School Gallery, Sydney, NSW2007
Fragile Planet, NG Art Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Salon des Refusés, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, NSW
SCEGGS Redlands Art Prize, NSW
Mosman Art Prize, NSW
There is No Place Like Home, NG Art Gallery, Sydney, NSW2006
Hong Ik University Gallery, Seoul, South Korea2005
Drawcard, Cell Block Theatre, National Art School, Sydney, NSW
Dog Trumpet, Michael Nagy Gallery, Sydney, NSW
Drawing the Line (academic staff exhibition), Cell Block Theatre, National Art School, Sydney, NSW
Art Space, Bendigo, VIC
Lake Macquarie Invitation Prize, University Gallery, Sydney, NSW
-
Awards and Prizes
2023
Awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to the visual arts, and to education2015
Artist Residency in Zhouzhuang, China2014
Mawson’s Hut Foundation artist-in-residence, Antarctica voyage2008
Australian Embassy, Artist-in-Residence Studio, Cairo, Egypt2005
Conrad Jupiter Art Prize, Gold Coast City Art Gallery, Queensland2000
Olympic Arts Festival1992
Selected by Melbourne Theatre Company for season’s brochure1989
Selected for Sydney Children’s Choir catalogue1988
Heritage Arts Festival Award, Queensland1984
Visual Arts Board, Australia Council Grant1983
Commissioned series of paintings for Napoleon Brandy advertising campaign1982
Gold Coast City Art Awards, Queensland1977
Sir Fredrick Richards’s Travelling Scholarship (Drawing), UK1976
John Minton International Painting Prize, London, UK1975
Artist-in-residence, Maltese Studio, International Youth Arts Festival, British representative
Artist-in-residence, Paris Studio, Cité Internationale des Arts, France
153 x 130cm