Flashback: Mr. Nolan Goes to Glenrowan [Sharon Hollingsworth]

Here is yet another blast from the past from the now defunct glenrowan1880 site which was run by Dave White. This was written by me and originally published back in May of 2004. I put it here because there have been discussions at kellylegend.blogspot.com that are relevant to this.

Nolan in Glenro MR. NOLAN GOES TO GLENROWAN Nearly everyone worldwide is familiar with Sir Sidney Nolan and his paintings of Ned Kelly featuring the iconic black square helmet. I had been under the impression he had only done the 27 paintings known as 'The Ned Kelly Series' which were first shown publicly in 1948 and are still drawing crowds today as the exhibition travels around the country and the globe. Come to find out he had done dozens of major paintings of Ned Kelly starting in 1945 and right on up into his later decades of life, as well as an incalculable number of Ned Kelly drawings and sketches. Not all featured the familiar black helmet either. A few showed us Ned's face, most notably "Death of a Poet" completed in 1954. I recently acquired the book SIDNEY NOLAN by T. G. Rosenthal (Thames & Hudson, 2002). Mixed in among the hundreds of illustrations of Nolan's major works is information on his life which gives insight into what shaped him and his art. It seems that Sidney Nolan's grandfather was in the Victorian Police Force in the 1870s and took part in the Kelly hunt. Certainly he must have regaled his grandson with stories of his bushranger chasing days. Something surely lit Nolan's wick as regards Ned Kelly. By 1945 when he was in his late 20s, Nolan had done his first Ned Kelly painting. Later that year, he and a mate, Max Harris, decided to visit Kelly country and began planning a visit to Glenrowan. Certainly the Glenrowan then was a far cry from the Glenrowan of now. Tourists were not welcome at all. In preparation for the trip, Nolan read J. J. Kenneally's "The Inner History of the Kelly Gang and Their Pursuers" (which had been newlsy revised in 1945) and the 1881 Royal Commission. Thus armed, the two young men took a "road trip." They arrived in Glenrowan and soon the game was in full swing. Strike one: Nolan and Harris go to the nearest pub and loudly declare free drinks for anyone who will talk to them about Ned Kelly. Dead silence. They drink alone. Strike two: The pair make their way next day to the police station in all anticipation to ask about any Kelly records/archives available to view. After a brief exchange of words, the last being "leave...town immediately", they have their third strike: they cross paths with Jim Kelly (well into advanced age, he would die the following year). When Nolan asked if he was Ned's brother, Jim retorted with "Yes I am, but it is none of your business!" Thus somewhat chastened and practically chased (though not literally!) they headed back to Melbourne. Even with all the stonewalling and rejection, Nolan must have picked up something there in Glenrowan to inspire him and to keep the wick burning bright. Within less than two years he had painted 45 Ned Kelly paintings, parts of which formed the aforementioned 1948 gallery showing. Ned Kelly inspired Sidney Nolan  and, through his paintings, Ned lives on recognised by many around the world who have no clue as to his story and what he did, but thanks to Sidney Nolan they at least know that such a man lived! And what a man! And thus, thanks to Ned Kelly we all know who Sidney Nolan was too. Legend begets legend!