Amber Creswell features Abdullah Abdullah , Karen Black, and Vincent Namatjira Namatjira in ‘About Face’ Publication

20 Oct 2024

‘Containing a sublime collection of works, Amber Creswell Bell’s book, About Face: Contemporary Portrait Painting in Australia and New Zealand is a deeply fascinating insight into Antipodean portraiture.’ – Daivd Wenham

In About Face, curator and bestselling author Amber Creswell Bell examines a vibrant new survey of contemporary portrait painters in Australia and New Zealand, featuring profiles on Abdul Abdullah, Karen Black and Vincent Namatjira.

Since the advent of the camera nearly two centuries ago, a portrait is no longer expected to be an exact likeness. From Abdullah’s commanding and finely-grained figures to Black’s intuitive abstractions and Namatjira’s cheeky reimaginings of his subjects, contemporary artists have shed the conventions of traditional portraiture. Published by Thames & Hudson, About Face brings together a diverse array of faces and figures, spotlighting the people who paint them and why.

A book launch to celebrate the publication of About Face will take place on 26 October from 2–4pm with Amber Creswell-Bell in collaboration with The Curatoreum at the National Portrait Gallery. Book your tickets now through The National Portrait Gallery.

Image: Amber Creswell Bell, About Face, published by Thames & Hudson Australia, 2024