Brett Whiteley: Alchemy

A study of the work, philosophy and artistic process of renowned Australian painter, Brett Whiteley, as he prepares for and then exhibits the extensive panel work, “Alchemy”. The program is also integrated with a discussion of the history and mythology of alchemy in the ancient world and of the practices and beliefs of alchemists which weaves, in an explanatory and complementary way, through the coverage of Whiteley as he paints and discusses his work. Whiteley’s sense of producing different languages in painting, of shifting away from Australian naturalism to seek a balance between the natural and the surreal, is evoked insightfully in the program through the extensive interviews and commentary from Whiteley himself, the view of the artist at work in his studio, and through the thread of the study of alchemy. Along with Whiteley’s comments on his personal philosophies, the focus of the discussion delves into his fascinations and experiences, expressed through the form of his paintings, in terms of the alchemist notion of transmutation, and the ideal of a journey towards bursting through the boundary to dreams. This is exemplified in the work “Alchemy”, where the mind on its meanders, an order lost in detail and an eye to the spiritual is presented in the form of a paneled mural. The program contains footage of the opening of the exhibition of this work with its reception analysed through interviews and sound bytes of Whiteley’s colleagues, friends and family, art critics and curators, providing a close to this meditative outline of Brett Whiteley’s artistic process from original concept to exhibition.