As usual, I did some wandering around Melbourne looking for some new [to me] street art. This was made a we bit easier this year due to the opening of the Outsiders Exhibition on Flinders Lane.
Over the past 15 years, Sandra Powell and Andrew King have amassed the largest collection of street art in Australia, including the largest collection of Banksy artworks in the country. The pair – collectively referred to as āSandrewā – are renowned for their ongoing support of street art. They have curated exhibitions at home and abroad and are passionate in their advocacy of street art. Open to the public for the first time, The Outsiders Melbourne reveals an insider’s view of fabulous, iconic and rare works from this acclaimed private collection.
The exhibition has with over 100 works by street artists, including locals Rone, Adnate, Vexta, Kaff-eine, Fintan Magee, Sofles and MEGGS, as well as internationals such as Banksy, Barry McGee, Vhils, Invader, Swoon, Hush, Shepard Fairey, Ron English and ELLE.
Highlights included an entire room of Banksy artworks, featuring a new work, Firewall, seen for the first time in Australia; Matt Adnateās Echoes of a Teenage Superstar, his portrait of Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns, a finalist in the 2023 Archibald Prize; a never-before-seen canvas by Rone, titled Red Planet; various works by the worldās most accredited female street artist, Swoon; Shepard Faireyās portrait His Holiness, the Dalai Lama; Ron Englishās masterpiece, Kiss and Make Up; E.L.Kās portrait of Saul Williams, which won Australia’s inaugural Stencil Art Prize; and a magnificent, important painting by Barry McGee, painted circa 1990.
Jim's travels 