A conversation about the research, discoveries and curatorial decisions behind the major Max Dupain exhibition.
Definitive Dupain is the first major retrospective to explore the complete body of work of Max Dupain (1911–1992), Australia’s most famous photographer. Presented alongside a major publication of the same name, the exhibition draws from the State Library of NSW’s extraordinary archive of more than 250,000 commercial and personal negatives and prints to present the most comprehensive portrait yet of Dupain and his remarkable 60-year career.
How do you distill a lifetime’s work into a single exhibition and book? Drawing on five years of research into Dupain’s vast photographic archive, curator and author Avryl Whitnall shares the challenge of balancing the iconic images that defined his legacy with previously unseen and experimental works, with Phillipa McGuinness. The State Library has mounted six Dupain exhibitions since 1991, so what makes this one the ‘definitive’ account of Dupain’s body of work? And what can his visual record tell us about Australian life in the 20th century? Together, Avryl and Phillipa unpack the creative and practical decisions behind curating a landmark exhibition and producing a major publication at the same time.
A red-cover limited edition of the book Definitive Dupain is only available from the Library Shop (from 26 August 2026).
Definitive Dupain is generously supported by the State Library of NSW Foundation and its donors.
Where State Library of NSW / Macquarie Street, Sydney NSW 2000
When Wednesday 23 September from 11am to 12pm
Booking (free) https://whatson.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/events/defining-dupain
Exhibition information
From Mon, 24 August 2026 to Sun, 18 July 2027
Free
Exhibition Galleries / 1 Shakespeare Place, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
| Monday to Thursday | 9 am to 8 pm |
| Friday | 9 am to 5 pm |
| Weekends | 10 am to 5 pm |