TV mogul killed in boating accident leaves giant mark in Sydney
A towering bronze sculpture of a woman’s head at Circular Quay marks the first instalment of an art series honouring Neil Balnaves.
The family of businessman and philanthropist Neil Balnaves has found a suitably monumental way to honour the memory of a man who was so much larger than life.
A glowing bronze sculpture of a woman’s head, three metres tall and occupying a prime spot at Sydney’s Circular Quay, is the first instalment of the Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission, unveiled on Thursday.
“You wouldn’t be able to walk past and miss it – that very much reflects the man,” said Hamish Balnaves, Neil’s son.
“His love of sculpture, bringing art to the people, out on the front lawn – it’s the best real estate in Sydney.”
The sculpture by British artist Thomas J Price, called Ancient Feelings, is the first in a commission series funded the Balnaves Foundation with a $3m grant across three years to the Museum of Contemporary Art.
Neil Balnaves was a powerhouse of TV production and entertainment whose Southern Star Group (later Endemol Australia) produced shows including McLeod’s Daughters, Big Brother and Bananas in Pyjamas.
He died in February 2022 in a freak boating accident in the Marquesas Islands while on holiday with his wife, Diane.
The MCA had already been a beneficiary of the Balnaves Foundation, and the museum was the venue for Neil’s memorial service.
Hamish Balnaves, the foundation’s chief executive, said the family spoke to several organisations about launching an art project in Neil’s memory.
“The MCA really stood out for us,” he said. “We agreed on criteria which reflected Neil – and that was that the artwork should be bold, statement-making, of scale.”
Price produces large-scale public sculptures of people of colour, based on composites of different individuals, 3D scans and found images.
By working with fictional characters, Price said he wanted viewers to think about who and what is represented in public sculpture, and to “critique our desire to tell certain stories”.
“The scale was really inspired by the commission, by being on that lawn, being able to look across the harbour to really shine in that space,” he said.
The sculpture will be seen by potentially millions of people during the six-month free exhibition at Circular Quay, and the MCA – which this year introduced a $20 entry fee – hopes it will also draw visitors into the museum.
Neil’s daughter Victoria Balnaves said Ancient Feelings would stimulate discussion about art and public sculpture, which her father would have enjoyed.
“We are super-excited about this grant, and doing something in memory of Dad,” she said.
“He was very passionate about art not being behind closed doors – he was very much about bringing it to the people.”
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