Howard Arkley is one of Australia’s most beloved and sought-after artists. Arkley’s work is characterised by an ongoing fascination with the everyday, famous for his psychedelic depictions of suburbia. Across Arkley’s expansive practice, he borrows imagery from human figures, masks and suburban homes that reflect on his childhood spent in the Melbourne suburb of Surrey Hills.

An exceptionally rare, large-scale work on paper, this drawing offers an intimate, highly significant window into Howard Arkley’s creative evolution during a pivotal moment in his career. Closely comparable to major canvases from this period, most notably his landmark 1986 painting The Cacti Succulents, this work explores a similar cluster of hybrid "creatures" interacting within a shared space. However, while his painted compositions often carry a sharp, menacing edge, this drawing reveals a softer, wonderfully humorous side to Arkley's imagination. It is a brilliant testament to his ability to transform the organic and the everyday into a playground of uncanny, psychedelic wonder.

Arkley’s work features in the collections of several major Australian institutions, including the National Gallery of Victoria, the Art Gallery of New South Wales and National Portrait Gallery. During his lifetime he was Australia’s representative at the 1999 Venice Biennale and was recognised across several solo exhibitions and retrospectives. Arkley’s works are rare on the secondary market and remain highly sought-after.

For any avid collector of Australian Popism Howard Arkley’s work is an enviable find.

Howard ARKLEY (1951 - 1999)
'Untitled (Cactoid Composition) ' 1986
fibre tipped pen
Image Size: 48 x 73 cm
Dimensions: 49 x 74 x 2 cm
Signed: Signed and dated lower right: Howard Arkley 86
Comes with Letter of Provenance
Condition: Very Good
(c) The Artist or Assignee