The Bar (painting)

The Bar
Artist John Brack
Year 1954
Type oil on canvas
Dimensions 96.4 cm × 140.0 cm (38.0 in × 55.1 in)
Location National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
URL http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/col/work/85242

The Bar is a 1954 painting by Australian artist John Brack. The subject of the painting is a direct reference to Édouard Manet's 1882 work A Bar at the Folies-Bergère.[1] It depicts a barmaid working in an Australian pub at the time of the "six o'clock swill". As in Manet's work, the patrons of the bar are shown in a reflection behind the barmaid. The work is considered a companion piece to Brack's later work Collins St., 5 pm.[2]

The painting was first sold to a Melbourne art collector for 90 guineas in 1954.[1] In 2006, the painting sold for $3.12m, a then record for an Australian work of art at auction.[1] The National Gallery of Victoria acquired the painting in 2009.[2]

The painting is part of the National Gallery of Victoria's Australian art collection and exhibited in the Ian Potter Centre in Federation Square in Melbourne.[3]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Record price for painting, bar none". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax). 12 April 2006. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Gallery buys The Bar". ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). 19 March 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
  3. National Gallery Victoria Acquisition 2009