The Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australia, has received a huge gift of works from the John Kaldor Collection, valued at over $35mn AUS. John Kaldor and his family have been building the collection of international contemporary art for the past 50 years and have become one of Australia’s foremost patrons of contemporary art.
The gift comprises some 260 works, including an impressive range of works by Christo and a substantial number of Robert Rauschenberg works. There are excellent examples of conceptual sculpture by Sol LeWitt, Carl Andre and Donald Judd, which complement the Gallery’s exìsting conceptual works by Joseph Kosuth, Ian Burn and others. British art from the 1960s is also represented with the likes of Richard Long and Gilbert & George. Furthermore, Thomas Demand, Andreas Gurksy and Thomas Struth, all of whom have become much sought after and prohibitively priced in recent years, are a welcome addition to the Gallery’s collection from this fruitful generation of German photographers.
John Kaldor commented, “Over the last few years Naomi and I discussed the future of the collection. Understanding my deep love for it, she encouraged me to consider gifting it because of its unique and historical significance. Our aim was to preserve the artistic integrity of the collection built up over 50 years.”
Gallery director Edmund Capon said: “The John Kaldor Collection is the most important collection of late 20th century avant-garde art in Australia. This unique collection is an exemplary vision of one man on behalf of his family. This is a gift that will forever be a milestone in the history of this Gallery.”
