About

Grahame Sydney KNZM has become one of New Zealand’s most significant and enduring artists.  Awarded an ONZM in 2004 and then knighted in 2021 for services to the Arts, his work spans over 4 decades and encompasses oils, watercolours, egg tempera, lithographs, etching and photography. Rarely exhibiting, Grahame’s works are held in private collections through-out the world and represented in the collections of New Zealand’s major galleries and museums. Only occasionally collaborating with dealers, he mainly paints for a private client list. Always a meticulously slow worker, he generally produces no more than six works a year.

Since 2003 he has lived and worked in a remote corner of Central Otago, close to his recurrent subject matter.  He lives with his wife Fiona and their two dogs Teddy and Tinks.

Grahame has travelled twice to Antarctica as guest of the New Zealand Government. Unable to use his usual media due to the extreme temperatures he turned to the camera, which resulted in a resurgence of his long-standing love of photography and the book ‘White Silence, Grahame Sydney’s Antarctica’ (2008).

Always a willing writer, Sydney is the author or significant contributor to several other books including: ‘Landmarks’ published 2020 (a companion piece to ‘Timeless Land’ written in collaboration with Brian Turner and Owen Marshall), ‘Grahame Sydney Paintings: 1974 – 2014’ published 2014, ‘Grahame Sydney’s Central Otago’ (photographs) published 2011, ‘Promised Land’  (gold history of Central Otago) published 2009, ‘The Art of Grahame Sydney’ published 2000 and the much loved ‘Timeless Land’ 1995 [now in its fifth reprint]).’

To learn more about the artist we recommend ‘Landmarks’, ‘Grahame Sydney Paintings: 1974 – 2014’ and ‘The Art of Grahame Sydney’: all of which include a significant selection of paintings and detailed essays. Or refer to the list of Resources below.