Warren 'made his mark' in a full and giving life: City pays tribute to artist

Warren, an Archibald winning artist and recipient of numerous awards, died in Sydney, aged 103, on Friday, June 14.

Born in Goulburn in 1921, he studied art in Sydney and London and was one of the nation's most prolific artists.

But former Goulburn Art Gallery director, Jennifer Lamb, said this city always remained close to his heart.

She first met him in 1987 when the art gallery was in Sloane Street.

"I knew of him but he came to the gallery with his wife, Joy. He was lovely and we hit it off straight away," she said.

"He always wanted an exhibition in his hometown and his was one of the first when we moved into the new gallery in 1990. His friend, (actress) Ruck Cracknell opened it.

"Guy was very fond of Goulburn and always so supportive of everything we did."

Warren lived in Goulburn until about age six. His father played the organ for silent movies at Goulburn's Empire Theatre and his mother played the organ at Saint Saviour's Cathedral. The family lived with his great aunt, Fanny.

When the family moved to Sydney and at times endured "tough times," Guy and his brother would return to Goulburn.

Ms Lamb said her longtime friend was a great storyteller whose life experiences inspired his art. This included a 1939 hike with his brother from the Badgerys Lookout near Tallong into the Shoalhaven Gorge. His brother cut his leg and both had to hike back out for medical treatment. Nevertheless, the pair later hiked back down to the river. The adventure was manifested in his oil canvas work, The Boatman.

"He was an inspiration, taught so many artists and encouraged them," Ms Lamb said.

At the gallery's Icarus touring exhibition, he and other "significant" artists challenged themselves with new works.

Warren is perhaps best known for his 1994 work, The Fall of Icarus. The sky drawing, using a Cessna, depicted a figure from Greek mythology that escaped from Crete. It flew too close to the sun and its wax wings melted.

Ms Lamb said Warren had to wait for perfect weather conditions. But when he rang media on April Fools Day, telling them about the artwork, they didn't initially believe him.

"It was a huge drawing that gradually dissipated into the sea on a a lovely sunny day," she said.

"But his work was so much more. His art was pretty much of its time but he also experimented with other things."

She recalled his series of 'car drawings,' in which his wife drove him around roads surrounding Lake George. Perched in the back seat, he drew what he saw.

Ms Lamb said Warren had often spoken about one's limited time on earth and the importance of "making a mark."

She often visited him in his spacious Leichhardt gallery.

He initially worked in advertising but later studied art at Sydney's Julian Ashton School and in London. Unable to relate to the landscape there, he tapped into his memories of World War Two service in Papua New Guinea.

Ms Lamb said the drawings depicting prisoners of war, PNG people and Japanese soldiers, were beautiful.

"You could see they came from someone with a gentle soul. There was never anything damning in his work," she said.

The drawings were featured in Goulburn War Memorial Museum exhibition in early March.

Warren was lauded for his work throughout his career. He won the 1985 Archibald Prize with his portrait of good friend, Bert Flugelman, received an OAM in 1999 and the Australia Medal in 2013, among many other honours.

In 2021, artist Peter Wegner won the Archibald Prize with a painting of Warren, marking his 100^th birthday. It was also the Prize's 100^th anniversary. Ms Lamb said it accurately depicted Warren with a twinkle in his eye and a wicked smile."

Two years earlier, she held an 'in conversation with Guy Warren' at the Goulburn gallery about his works, Wingman as Icarus (1999) and his 1992 car drawings around Lake George.

He returned to Goulburn for her play, Miles Franklin. One of the characters was Warren's great-uncle, William Wilkie, a Goulburn builder and former mayor.

"He had a wonderful and he made the most of it...He would regard himself as having led a blessed life," Ms Lamb said.

"He kept in touch with the Goulburn Art Gallery and was always so giving. He's left an incredible legacy."

Current gallery director, Yvette Dal Pozzo, said Warren was one of the region's most influential and successful artists.

"Warren was not only a significant artist but also an important teacher, mentor and collaborator contributing meaningfully to the arts landscape in Australia as a senior lecturer at the Sydney College of the Arts (1976 to 1985) and as the director of the University of Wollongong Art Collection (1993 to 2005).

"(He) was a close friend of the Goulburn Regional Art Gallery throughout his life, featured in solo and group exhibitions. His iconic work Wingman as Icarus (1999) held in the Gallery's collection fittingly expresses Warren's passion and exuberance for creativity and life. Warren's practice, energy and humour had a huge impact that will continue to be felt into the future."