The Darlington Arts Festival paid tribute to Richard with a small display of photographs and books at the November 2023 festival.
The Woldendorp family had been Darlington residents since the 1960s and always enjoyed the annual Darlington Arts Festival. Richard had exhibited at the event on several occasions and had been a patron for many years. It was therefore fitting that this tribute was in the place where Richard lived when he first established himself as a professional photographer.
ProPhotograhy WA, who present the annual Ilford Orlof Awards for photography, created ‘The Richard Woldendorp Award’ for landscape photography in honour of Richard.
The award depicts one of Richard’s aerial photographs, the Forrest River in the Kimberley taken in 2003.
The 2023 award went to Tony Hewitt, presented on 14 September. Lyn Woldendorp, presented the award, which was accepted by Tony’s wife as he could not be at the awards in person.
Tony Hewitt’s wife accepts ‘The Richard Woldendorp Award’ from Lyn Woldendorp
In honour of Richard’s life’s work as one of Australia’s most prominent photographers, and as a local of Mundaring area in the Perth hills, the Mundaring Arts Centre had a tribute to Richard in May 2023.
Richard, and wife Lyn, were life-time members of the Mundaring Arts Centre, and Richard had previously exhibited his photographs there.
Sand Dune, Windorah, Queensland 1994
Alasdair Foster is a writer who interviewed and wrote an article about Richard for China’s premier art-photography magazine PhotoWorld. Recently, Alasdair has made all his articles for PhotoWorld available in English on his website ‘Talking Pictures - Interviews with Photographers Around the World’.
‘Richard Woldendorp: Inspired by Perfection’, is a thoughtful article supplemented with a lovely selection of Richard’s photographs, both old and new. The article can be read on Alasdair’s website.
Richard Woldendorp at the ‘Meet the Artist’ opening with CEO of St John of God Hospital, Ben Edwards on his left, and Richard’s long time friend and pilot, Jan Ende on his right.
St. John of God Murdoch Hospital in WA currently have an exhibition of Richard’s work including some recent acquisitions for their public collection, as well as the ‘Abstract Earth’ exhibition. In addition, SJOG had commissioned a film on Richard which is screening at the exhibition.
The opening and ‘Meet the Artist’ event was held on 6th June, and the exhibition is on from 29th April – 30th July 2019.
St John of God Hospital are excited to showcase Richard’s work as they acknowledge the crucial role exposure to the arts plays in the healing process.
CEO of SJOG Hospital Ben Edwards presents Richard with a gift.
Mundaring Arts Centre, 25 May - 4 July 2019
Celebrating 40 years of the Mundaring Arts Centre - pairing emerging artists with established creatives, Richard was paired with Olive Lipscombe.
Conscious of the photographic medium’s inherent relationship to light, Richard Woldendorp & Olive Lipscombe share a curiosity for shadows. Both artists used photography to capture an absence and presence of light in urban and natural landscapes. Their works develop an interplay – a dialogue – between old and new technologies: SLR versus iPhone, analogue versus digital. From here, Woldendorp & Lipscombe navigate limits of time and place presenting encounters with light that signal the distinct parallels in their practice.
Richard’s portrait of Robert Juniper next to some of Juniper’s paintings
Holmes a Court Gallery, Vasse Felix, 17th Feb. – 26th May 2019
Exhibition of recently acquired portraiture photographs of well-known WA artists by Richard Woldendorp, paired with works of those artists from the Janet Holmes a Court Collection. Artists include William Boissevain, Tom Gibbons, Guy Grey-Smith, George Haynes, Robert Juniper, Brian McKay, Kathleen O’Connor and Hal Missingham.
Kathleen O’Conner portrait and works
Tom Gibbons portrait and painting
Woldendorp’s new book ‘The Tree’ published by Fremantle Press, was launched in November 2018. ‘The Tree’ is currently available in leading book stores Australia-wide.
Jacqueline Lang wrote an interesting article on Woldendorp and discusses his book ‘The Tree’. Read it on The Starfish here.
This August and September, the State Library of Western Australia will be showing a collection of Woldendorp's photographs in an exhibition titled 'Un/nature'. This exhibition explores changes to the natural environment, and reflects on the way the Western Australian landscape has been remade over time.
The exhibition will run from 9 August to 23 September 2018. For more information, visit https://www.slwa.wa.gov.au/whats-on/events-exhibitions/unnature
Currently at the Mundaring Arts Centre is the exhibition ‘Woldendorp: A Black and White Retrospective’. Spanning three continents and almost twenty years, this exhibition is a celebration of Woldendorp's early photographic life and career. These rarely seen black and white images - printed by Woldendorp through the 1950’s, 60’s and 70’s – include his first experimental images from 1956, his award-winning portraiture from 1961, and photographs for one of his earliest books, ‘Indonesia’, taken in 1971.
'Woldendorp: A Black and White Retrospective' exhibits from 1 June to 15 July 2018. For more information visit the Mundaring Arts Centre website
Linton & Kay Galleries are proud to present Richard Woldendorp’s ‘Out of the Blue’ Exhibition at their Perth City Gallery.
When: 20 June to 12 July 2015
Where: Perth City Gallery
The Old Perth Technical School
Level One, 137 St Georges Terrace
Perth, WA
Interview in Hong Kong
‘A Different Point of View’ is a joint exhibition with Hong Kong artist Cecilia Ho. It was exhibited at the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre from 2nd - 12th June 2014.
‘A Different Point of View’ was also exhibited in Macau from 9th - 19th October 2014 at the Unesco site, Mount Fortress, Macau.
“Photographer Richard Woldendorp’s amazing aerial images of the Western Australia landscape are an ethereal backdrop to the 2014 Telstra Perth Fashion Festival campaign.
The creative concept was to meld the iconic photographer’s awe-inspiring images with the locally designed fashion featured in the campaign.”
Excerpt from The Sunday Times Magazine (pictured), written by Mel Evans.
The Telstra Perth Fashion Festival runs 17-22 September 2014. Facebook:/perthfashionfestival
The latest issue of ‘f11’ magazine for photographers and aficionados, features an article on Richard and his new book ‘Out of the Blue’. One of Richard’s stunning water shots adorns the cover of the magazine.
To see the latest issue of ‘f11’ and read the article, go to
‘f11’ are also on Twitter @f11magazine and Facebook f11magazine
Richard’s latest book of photographs capturing Australia from the air will be launched next month:
7th November 2013 - Art Gallery of Western Australia
12th November 2013 - National Library, Canberra.
‘Out of the Blue’ is available from leading bookstores.
Woldendorp with his Order of Australia medal, being admired by his wife Lyn.
Woldendorp was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), in the Queen’s Birthday 2012 Honours List – for his contribution to the Arts as an Australian Landscape Photographer.
The Investiture Ceremony was held at Government House, Perth 21st Sept 2012.
Acclaimed West Australian artist Nigel Hewitt painted Richard’s portrait in oils and wax. This insightful work titled ‘Transience - A Portrait of Richard Woldendorp’ won the Black Swan Prize for Portraiture in 2009.
Nigel Hewitt’s other works can be viewed on his website.
Woldendorp speaking to school children in Mandurah, WA as part of Art on the Move
Richard’s long touring Abstract Earth exhibition toured by Art on the Move, is now showing at Lake Grace Regional Artspace from 10 October - 9 November 2013.
Richard will have a public floor talk on Sunday 27 October from 2-4pm, and will talk to local schools at the gallery on Monday 28 October 2013.