Evan Hughes has been an art dealer for 20 years beginning his career with the Mayor Gallery in London following an art history degree at the University of Cambridge. For many years he ran his late father’s gallery in Sydney, Australia, The Hughes Gallery.
Established in 1969 by Ray Hughes, it was one of the pioneering galleries in contemporary African and later Chinese contemporary art through the 90s and 00s, as well as dealing for five decades in a mix of eclectic self-taught artists. Evan Hughes forged a working friendship with Colin Rhodes when the latter was based at the University of Sydney, who the former had by chance encountered during his time at Cambridge. The two shared an interest in the work of Southern US vernacular artists including an important early showing at the Hughes Gallery when Evan Hughes worked with Bill Arnett on an exhibition of the works on paper of Thornton Dial, the first major showing outside the USA.
In 2023-4 Evan was appointed by the Minister for the Arts in the State of NSW, Australia to forge the first arts, culture and creative industries policy for the nation’s most populous state. Upon leaving Government, in 2024 Hughes commenced a partnership with one of Australia’s leading contemporary art galleries, OLSEN to head an international department focusing on the work of self-taught and non-traditional background artists.
Exhibitions in 2024 alone included the work of INGÉNIEUR VANCY, CJ PYLE and SCOTT DANIEL ELLISON and EUGENE VON BREUNCHENHEIN.
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Driven by Human Intelligence
Hughes at Olsen May 1, 2024Tim Olsen and Evan Hughes, whose fathers were heavyweights of the Australian art world, are collaborating on a provocative new project. Olsen and Hughes intend to put the heartbeat back... -
Obituary
Ray Hughes, highly respected figure in the Australian art world December 26, 2017With the death of someone truly unique it seems the only words that leap to mind are cliches. I'm already counting the number of times I've heard that Ray Hughes,... -
The Son Also Rises
Dust-ups, deals and the delicate art of succession at Ray Hughes Gallery July 14, 2012For a quarter of a century, Ray Hughes has been charming and offending the Sydney art scene with equal aplomb. Now son Evan is taking over, short fuse, flashy neckwear... -
The DNA of Success
January 22, 2011PERSPECTIVE The strong gravitational pull of a parent means a professional passion is often passed on to the child. Story Brook Turner Two years ago the Sydney art dealer Ray... -
The Last of the Larrikins
The artful life and times of Ray Hughes March 5, 1994The Art of the Dealer - Story by Janet Hawley, photography by Brendan Read HE IS THE ENFANT TERRIBLE OF THE ART WORLD WITH AFLAMBOYANT STYLE THAT CURLS CURATORS'...
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