BRETT WHITELEY (1939 - 1992), MAGPIE ON A BRANCH

• Lot Sold $4,500 (Hammer Price)
• $5,400 (Hammer Price with Buyer's Premium)

lithograph,
signed 'Brett Whiteley' lower right
edition no. 42/60,
74.5 BY 43CM

PROVENANCE
Australian Gallery

Collection of the Late Gloria Staley. Gloria Staley was hailed as Australia's "Grande Dame" of fine dining and stylish hospitality; she is widely recognised as one of the great pioneers of our now famously rich and diverse food culture. With the establishment of "Fanny's", in Lonsdale Street, Melbourne in the 1960s, Gloria challenged not only historic Anglo-Celtic culinary horrors, but also the Escoffier-based traditions of haute cuisine. "Fanny's" is legendary as one of the city's first high-end French-style restaurants, with Gloria's exquisite food and her great flair for design fundamentally altering the conservative tastes of the dining public.
The Staleys were inveterate travellers who spent a lot of time in London, Paris and New York, investigating and embracing contemporary trends in food and style. The home in which Gloria lived during the latter part of her life reflects both this cosmopolitanism and her own uncompromising and individual take on how one should live; her world was one of passion, panache and splendid colour.