Lot 47

The Estate of Robert Jacks

Robert Jacks On Paper 1958-1990, Ian Potter Gallery, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, 14 February - 24 March 1990, cat. no. 85 (then touring)

Robert Jacks On Paper 1958-1990, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, 1990, cat. no. 85

A pioneer of Australian abstract art, Robert Jacks produced an extraordinary body of work that explored abstraction in paintings, sculpture, drawing and printmaking, and placing him at the forefront of twentieth-century Australian art.

In 1976 Jacks moved to Texas, as artist-in-residence with the Hot Sun Foundation. The distinctive terrain of the region and the unexpected inspiration that this provided for his art prompted Jacks, for the first time in more than a decade, to work directly from the landscape. He created abstract drawings and etchings based on the Texan theme notions of the landscape suggesting the aerial view of mountain ranges, ancient fissures and cacti outlines.

He had moved away from minimalist art, and had progressed to a more vigorous linear theme, stating that "I think my work has always been minimal and abstract because when I was being taught sculpture, it was expressed in abstract terms. Form in space, mass and volume - that sort of thing … it is an extension of sculptural ideas." (1)
It was this body of works that influenced Robert Jacks to create some of his most widely celebrated and important pieces.
Hannah Ryan, Prints & Multiples Specialist

(1) McGregor, K., Past Unfolded Robert Jacks, Fine Art Publishing, Sydney, 2001, p. 32

© Robert Jacks/Copyright Agency, 2023