Portraits of a city

Living among a community of artists and friends in Lavender Bay, artist Peter Kingston was stirred by Sydney’s beautiful harbour and environment. In a similar way, Sydney artists Michael Kelly, Reg Mombassa and Vanessa Berry have all found inspiration in the Harbour City for their own work.

Hosted by Peter Kingston exhibition curator Mathilde de Hauteclocque, this illuminating conversation will examine depictions of the Emerald City in art and illustration.

Michael Kelly graduated from the Victorian College of the Arts in 1987 and has worked as an artist and teacher ever since, with 14 solo shows and appearances in numerous group exhibitions in Australia and overseas. His work is held in public and private collections.

Reg Mombassa, also known as Christopher O’Doherty, is an Australian musician and artist best known for his bands Mental as Anything and Dog Trumpet, and for working closely with Mambo Graphics designing T-shirts and posters. He has exhibited paintings, drawings and prints at Watters Gallery since 1975. His diverse range of projects also includes taking part in solo and group art shows around the world, designing for the Closing Ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000, and joining the blues band The Pinks. His artwork is included in the permanent collections of the National Art Gallery, Canberra; the National Portrait Gallery, Canberra; the Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney; Powerhouse Museum, Sydney; and the University of Sydney Union.

Vanessa Berry is a writer, artist and zinemaker who lives and works on Gadigal land. She is the author of books including Gentle and Fierce and the award-winning Mirror Sydney, an essay and hand-drawn map collection which examines urban environments, change, and marginal and overlooked places. In 2025 her new book Calendar, a collection of 365 essays on objects, will be published by Upswell. Vanessa is a lecturer in creative writing at the University of Sydney.

Mathilde de Hauteclocque (host) works in the Library’s Collection Acquisition & Curation branch. With a background in cultural studies and writing, she has worked in galleries, archives and the Library’s Reader Services branch. She has a special interest in the Library’s rich literary collections and items that give insight into creative processes, such as sketchbooks, scrapbooks, notebooks and letters.

Host or Publisher State Library of New South Wales