Clifton Ernest Pugh Australia, 1924-90
Past Sales
Sales by Medium
Where to buy or sell art works by Clifton Pugh
Auction Houses
About Clifton Pugh
Born in Melbourne in 1924, Pugh studied at the Melbourne National Gallery under William Dargie from 1947 to 1950. He spent the next four years living in the bush, developing a style of portraiture based on informality and empathy with the sitter. His reputation as a portrait painter grew, culminating in his winning the Archibald Prize in 1965, 1971 and again in 1972 with his portrait of Gough Whitlam. Pugh's expressionistic, firmly designed landscapes are also widely acclaimed.
Clifton Pugh is one of the most prolific of the artists listed in our database, with the number of works offered for sale by auction since 1969 of 2,134, of which 1,500 (70%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $104,400 for A Feral Cat 1957 sold by Bonhams & Goodman in April 2007. This year 21 works have been offered for sale. Works by Clifton Pugh are held by the Australian War Memorial, National Gallery of Australia and a further eight major public national galleries (see list below).
Clifton Pugh is listed in the following standard biographical references:
- McCulloch, Alan McCulloch, Susan McCulloch, Emily McCulloch-Childs. The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art. 4th Edition, Aus Art Melbourne & The Miegunyah Press, 2006. Page 802
- Germaine, Max. Artists and Galleries of Australia, Volumes 1 & 2, Third Edition. Craftsman Press, Sydney, 1990. Page 561
- Campbell, Jean. Australian Watercolour Painters: 1780 to the Present Day. Craftsman House, Sydney, 1989. Page 356
- Dictionary of Australian Artists Online, an online resource for biographical data about Australian artists, designers, craftspeople and curators.
- Australian Prints + Printmaking, a database listing printmaking artists from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region based on the print collection of the National Gallery of Australia.
Artists' Resale Royalty
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
Yes, eligible, subject to the artist satisfying the residency test. The artist is alive or has been deceased for less than 70 years. Contact the Copyright Agency for information on the residency test.
The Australian Art Sales Digest is a database of over 610,000 works by more than 12,000 artists who are listed as having either lived or worked in Australia or New Zealand, and an additional 36,000 foreign and other artists, offered for sale by auction in Australia and New Zealand from the early 1970s to the present day.
Access to the database is available on either a monthly or annual subscription. During the subscription period you have unlimited access to the site. If you would like to subscribe, please proceed to our Subscription Form.