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John Olsen: career timeline

Australian · 1928–2023 · Works grouped by the decade they were made (the cataloged date, or a date in the signature or title), not by sale date. 412 of 489 lots (84% of works) have a usable creation date; the others are listed at the end by the decade they were sold. Each work is shown once, even when it sold more than once.

John Olsen: works at auction by decade the work was made. Each work counted once; medians use sold works only, in US dollars.
Decade madeWorksSoldMedian sold priceMain medium
1950s44$15kSign upOil
1960s3225$7.2kSign upOil
1970s116101$1.7kSign upEtching
1980s8266$3.3kSign upOil
1990s6451$5.2kSign upWatercolor
2000s8675$2.2kSign upEtching
2010s1210$45.1kSign upWatercolor
2020s33$15.9kSign upDrawing

Where does mine fit?

Enter what you know about a work by John Olsen to see the closest recorded works from the same period, with their auction results. These are past records only, not a valuation: condition, authenticity, provenance and the market all change what a work brings. For an auction estimate of your work, get a free auction estimate.

1950s 4 works

Sold
4 of 4
Median
$15kSign up
Average
$17.8kSign up
Typical size
23.5 × 21.5 in (60 × 54 cm)
Mediums
Oil (4)
Subjects
Harbours & ports (1), Birds (1), Cattle & animals (1)

1960s 32 works

Sold
25 of 32
Median
$7.2kSign up
Average
$45.9kSign up
Typical size
21.5 × 26 in (55 × 66 cm)
Mediums
Oil (14), Pastel (4), Gouache (4)
Subjects
Rivers & marshes (3), Figures & portraits (3), Sunsets & night (2)
Show 12 more (1960s)

…and 8 more works from this group in the full results list.

1970s 116 works

Sold
101 of 116
Median
$1.7kSign up
Average
$13kSign up
Typical size
22.5 × 21.5 in (57 × 55 cm)
Mediums
Etching (36), Lithograph (31), Watercolor (24)
Subjects
Rivers & marshes (13), Birds (9), Landscapes (8)
Show 12 more (1970s)

…and 92 more works from this group in the full results list.

1980s 82 works

Sold
66 of 82
Median
$3.3kSign up
Average
$39.6kSign up
Typical size
29.5 × 28.5 in (75 × 72 cm)
Mediums
Oil (21), Lithograph (20), Watercolor (14)
Subjects
Landscapes (11), Rivers & marshes (7), Sunsets & night (5)
Show 12 more (1980s)

…and 58 more works from this group in the full results list.

1990s 64 works

Sold
51 of 64
Median
$5.2kSign up
Average
$37kSign up
Typical size
36 × 30.5 in (92 × 78 cm)
Mediums
Watercolor (16), Oil (14), Etching (13)
Subjects
Birds (4), Landscapes (4), Figures & portraits (2)
Show 12 more (1990s)

…and 40 more works from this group in the full results list.

2000s 86 works

Sold
75 of 86
Median
$2.2kSign up
Average
$29.9kSign up
Typical size
17.5 × 23 in (44 × 59 cm)
Mediums
Etching (37), Oil (14), Sculpture (13)
Subjects
Rivers & marshes (6), Flowers & still life (3), Harbours & ports (2)
Show 12 more (2000s)

…and 62 more works from this group in the full results list.

2010s 12 works

Sold
10 of 12
Median
$45.1kSign up
Average
$45.6kSign up
Typical size
33.5 × 37 in (86 × 94 cm)
Mediums
Watercolor (5), Photograph (2), Lithograph (1)
Subjects
Rivers & marshes (2), Landscapes (1), Sea & coast (1)

2020s 3 works

Sold
3 of 3
Median
$15.9kSign up
Average
$12.2kSign up
Typical size
25.5 × 31.5 in (65 × 80 cm)
Mediums
Drawing (1), Gouache (1), Watercolor (1)
Subjects
Rivers & marshes (1)

Creation date not recorded

74 works have no cataloged or signed date. They are grouped here by the decade they were last sold, which says nothing about when they were made.

Undated, sold in the 2000s 3 works

Sold
3 of 3
Median
$7.7kSign up
Average
$8.2kSign up
Typical size
13.5 × 10.5 in (35 × 27 cm)
Mediums
Sculpture (2), Drawing (1)
Subjects
—

Undated, sold in the 2010s 45 works

Sold
40 of 45
Median
$1.5kSign up
Average
$13.9kSign up
Typical size
21 × 20 in (53 × 51 cm)
Mediums
Etching (13), Watercolor (11), Oil (5)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (3), Flowers & still life (2), Sea & coast (1)
Show 6 more (2010s)

…and 33 more works from this group in the full results list.

Undated, sold in the 2020s 26 works

Sold
25 of 26
Median
$3.2kSign up
Average
$10.5kSign up
Typical size
23 × 24.5 in (59 × 63 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (6), Watercolor (5), Pastel (4)
Subjects
Flowers & still life (2), Figures & portraits (2), Sunsets & night (1)
Show 6 more (2020s)

…and 14 more works from this group in the full results list.

Medians and averages count sold works only (each work's most recent sale), in US dollars at the sale-date rate. Works cataloged as “attributed to”, “circle of” or similar are left out. All John Olsen auction results →