Sidney Nolan's Inferno on display at Canberra Museum and Gallery, and as relevant as ever

It was just a year after he was awarded a residency at the Australian National University - one of the first to receive the scholarship - and the time saw the artist take to painting his works behind the notable hotel's reception desk.

During this time he painted Inferno, a nine-panel artwork that from Saturday can be viewed at the Canberra Museum and Gallery, on loan from the Estate of Lady Nolan.

"Nolan was clearly a very engaging person, so he's negotiated this right of having the reception desk as a studio," gallery director Sarah Schmidt said.

As the name suggests, the work is inspired by Dante's Inferno. However, there is more to the work than just a representation of the Italian text.

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Nolan immersed himself in Greek mythology, as well as taking the time to read Homer's epic poem Iliad, and visited Gallipoli, which is close to where Troy was. The artist started to see parallels between Homer, Greek tragedians Aeschylus and Euripedes, as well as Dante's 'Inferno' and others, which inspired the work.

The artist even included elements from his own life in the work, as well as more recent historical events.

"Nolan is known as a painter who brings many different influences together in the one work, and this is one of the best examples I've seen in this regard," Dr Schmidt said.

"This work looks at Auschwitz, Gallipolli, the mythology of the Trojan War. It has elements of his personal life, his paintings are often autobiographical, and the story of Nolan and his affairs with Sunday Reed are possibly within this painting.

"He's also painted characters like Patrick White, who he was having a skirmish with at the time - they were having a duel between letters and painting. That's known to us as art historians, although it might not be visible immediately to the public - it's not a literal portrait. But it is known that he was warring with Patrick White at the time and has included him in this series."

However, it is the references to war and violence against women that Dr Schmidt said made the work particularly relevant today.

At the time of painting, Nolan was still grappling with the tragedy of war, with the horrors that happened in Auschwitz, in particular, contributing to his vision for the series of panels.

Nolan himself had spent time in the military during World War II, stationed in Australia guarding emergency food supplies. However, when it looked like he was going to be sent to the front lines in Papua New Guinea he absconded in 1944.

"It is a painting that also reflects war and the tragedy of war. And, of course, with what is happening in the world right now with Russia invading Ukraine, this is a very relevant picture, because, in a non-literal way, Nolan is grappling with the tragedy of war," Dr Schmidt said.

Sidney Nolan's Inferno is on display at Canberra Museum and Gallery until July 9.

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