Howard TAYLOR
Australia 1918–2001



Installation view
Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art 2002
Queensland Art Gallery
Photograph: Matthew Kassay

Howard Taylor in his Northcliffe studio, 1994
Photograph: Richard Woldendorp


The late Howard Taylor was one of Australia’s leading modernist painters. He trained in England after World War Two and based his practice in Western Australia, first in Perth and then in the remote forests in the south-western corner of the state. Taylor was remarkably well versed in modern painting but he eventually became independent of it, turning the international style to his own local and personal uses. His practice was characterised by its grounding in nature and by the constant search for perfection. Taylor’s work offers a sense of the beauty of a particular Australian landscape, expressed in refined and simple forms.

More information about the artist



Howard Taylor
Object on the ground 1989
Oil on canvas
90.7 x 120.2cm
Collection: Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
Courtesy: Galerie Düsseldorf, Perth
Photograph: John Austin

Howard Taylor
Space screen 1984
Oil on plywood panel
121.7 x 179.5 x 19.3cm
BankWest Collection
Photograph: Matthew Kassay


For over 30 years, Taylor worked from a studio within the heart of the karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor) forests of Western Australia. This region possesses a unique and ancient natural heritage and has remained one of the purest in the world. Taylor’s practice was based on an incredibly close examination of the forest, and of the effect of light as it filtered through the giant trees. Taylor was obsessed with the refraction of light through trees and foliage, and with the ways in which light transforms, penetrates, bounces off, reflects from, and is absorbed by surfaces. He recorded his observations in drawings, later turning them into monumental sculptural recreations or distilling their essence into reductive, abstract paintings.



Howard Taylor
Light source reverse 1994
Synthetic polymer and oil on plywood
209 x 209 x 9cm
Acquired with funds from the Sir Claude Hotchin Bequest Fund, 1995
Collection: Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
Courtesy: Galerie Düsseldorf, Perth
Photograph: John Austin

Howard Taylor
Sun figure 1989
Oil on canvas
90 x 120cm
Collection: Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Courtesy: Galerie Düsseldorf, Perth
Photograph: John Austin


Howard Taylor
Light figure 1992
Synthetic polymer paint on plywood
Triptych: 119.7 x 269.5cm (overall)
Acquired with funds from the Sir Claude Hotchin Bequest Fund, 1993
Collection: Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
Courtesy: Galerie Düsseldorf, Perth
Photograph: John Austin


Paintings such as Sun figure 1989, Light figure 1992 and Light source reverse 1994 were made using an extended preparatory process that involved the careful layering of pigments and the precise shaping of the materials onto which they were painted. These lyrical, refined works demonstrate the restrained, almost neutral, monochrome palette that is Taylor’s signature style, and recall the experience of looking directly into the sun.


List of works in APT 2002

Artists and Works
Print friendly version