The Drawing Room

An icon of the art world, and the creator of the now famous Secret Garden at Lavender Bay in Sydney, Wendy Whiteley has led a remarkable life.

The former wife of Brett Whiteley, she inspired and influenced his work and became responsible for his legacy.

But in his new book, A year With Wendy Whiteley, Ashleigh Wilson is interested in Wendy's life and legacy, captured over hours of intimate conversations at her home.

Spencer Tunick's artwork is a mass event, drawing together thousands to pose unclothed in the public space.

And whether it becomes an almost abstract landscape or a very human statement of defiance, the end result is a remarkable collection of photographs that outlive that initial moment and are displayed in galleries across the world.

In the Drawing Room, he talks about his latest work, a collaboration with Skin Check Champions on a beach in Sydney, which is using fine art to draw attention to skin cancer.

What do the objects of our past tell us about Australia and the way in which we saw each other? And how can art change our perspective on those objects and on our shared history.

Tony Albert is a leading contemporary artist, who has used his collection of 'Aboriginalia' as the foundation for much of his work, reclaiming those depictions and engaging with the complications of the past.

Tony was a founding member of the proppaNOW collective, which was recently awarded the Jane Lombard Prize for Art and Social Justice, and his work appears in major galleries across the country.

In the Drawing Room, Tony speaks about his path to art and his latest exhibition, Remark.

The friends we make in childhood can remain with us for life. They become the people who have known us through thick and thin, and lift us up when things are down.

But, in a world of polarised politics, is it possible to hang on to friendships that are based on the innocence of youth?

Best Of Friends, the new novel by Kamila Shamsie follows Zhara and Maryam across two parts of their lives: the end of the dictatorship in Pakistan, when the girls are 14, and the adult women they become in London, decades later.

Bryce Courtenay was one of the most successful writers Australia has ever known, a high-profile ad executive who turned to fiction late and became synonymous with the term best-seller in this country.

But how did a man who grew up struggling and once said, in a letter to his mother, that "Writing to me means mostly slow drudgery and hard work", become a force of fiction?

His wife Christine Courtney is telling his story in a new biography, Bryce Courtenay: Storyteller.

"Whatever feeling Beethoven is expressing, he is expressing it with all of his being."

So says Jonathan Biss about the 'phenomenal intensity' that first drew him to the composer as a young boy.

These days, Biss is a celebrated pianist, performing across the world and commissioning work inspired by Beethoven.

In the Drawing Room, he shares the joys and the tribulations that music has brought him throughout his life.

Between pandemics, politics, inflation and the daily stresses of life, there can be a lot to worry about these days.

But why is a particular situation stressful for some of us, and easier for others?

And how do we look after our mental well-being?

Professor Ian Hickie and James O'Loghlin share their expertise in a new book, Minding the Mind.

From the summits of Australia to some of the remotest peaks in the world David Neilson has spent his life exploring and capturing photos of natural beauty.

His work has appeared in books and museums and even on a set of stamps.

In his latest book, Chasing the Mountain Light, he's taking a look back at his own life and adventures.

From attacks on voters rights to tobacco companies denying responsibility for their products, every controversial lawsuit has one thing in common: lawyers, fighting on their client's behalf.

After all, the right to counsel is a central plank of the legal system. If you are accused of a crime, you will be represented by someone who knows the law.

But as the world's biggest law firms have grown larger and more powerful, has their success changed their relationship with politics and the law?

David Enrich is the business investigations editor at the New York Times, and in his new book, Servants of the Damned, he looks at the power these firms wield and explores how they came to wield it.

Jacob Boehme has been a dancer, a writer, and an artistic director, creating everything from intimate theatre to the opening ceremonies for major sporting events.

But what role does a garden play in his latest work? And how has Australia's appetite for First Nations stories changed during his time in the business?

Boehme is the inaugural director of First Nations programs at Carriageworks in Sydney, and in the Drawing Room he discusses his new event: Party | Protest | Remember.