Robert McFarlane
1942–2023
Robert McFarlane, Grandmother Lily McFarlane (née Gelsthorpe Brimage) at a dinner for her 77th birthday at our family home at Downing Street, Brighton, Adelaide, 1964 prtd 2005, National Gallery of Australia, Kamberri/Canberra, purchased 2005
It is with sadness that we remember the Australian photographer Robert McFarlane.
Robert saw the blockbuster traveling exhibition Family of Man in Tarntanya/Adelaide when he was a teenager. As it was for many, the experience of Family of Man was a defining one for Robert – it gave him the sense of the power of photography, and sealed his own lifelong humanist concerns.
'I believe … that essentially you don't take pictures you receive them, as in ‘received moments’. So the picture actually comes to you from the subject.'
Robert moved to Gadigal Nura/Sydney in 1963 and worked as a freelance photojournalist, then honed his skills working in London in the early 1970s. He returned to Australia in 1973 and became known for his work with major film directors, including Bruce Beresford, Gillian Armstrong and PJ Hogan. His sensitive, gentle and inquisitive nature also made him a fine portraitist. An accomplished writer and journalist, Robert was photography critic over many years for the Sydney Morning Herald.
Robert was a much loved and important contributor to the Australian arts scene, a deep thinker and a generous friend across generations. His presence will be missed.
Vale Robert McFarlane, 1942–2023
Shaune Lakin, Senior Curator, Photography and Anne O'Hehir, Curator, Photography
