Peter Tully

Peter Tully (1947-1992), was a jeweller, designer and artistic director, notable for his influence on jewellery design in Australia through the utilisation of found and non-precious materials, as well as his artistic direction of the Sydney Mardi Gras (1982-1986).

Early life and education

Tully was born Peter Graig (a spelling mistake in the birth register) Tutungi in Carlton, Melbourne on 17 December 1947. At the age of five Tully's family moved to the beach resort of Lorne in Victoria. Of Arabic/Egyptian origin, his grandparents had migrated to Australia between the wars and anglicised their name to the more acceptable Tully. At the age of 16, Tully moved to Melbourne, first working as a clerk, but later moving into display, making props for Public Benefit Shoes, and later with a German display company.

Travels

In 1969, Tully, accompanied by the fashion designer Linda Jackson and her partner, the photographer Fran Moore, went to live in Lae in Papua New Guinea. After a year living in Lae the three set out on the hippy trail to Europe, spending much of 1970 and 1971 travelling through South East Asia, including the Philippines, Indonesia, Bali, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. In 1971, Tully arrived in Paris, where he taught English, and undertook trips to the Netherlands and Spain. It was in Paris that Tully became particularly impressed by the collections of African and Oceanic art. In 1972, Tully met up with Linda and Fran in London, before he made his way back to Australia, via Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and India. During this return trip he was particularly impressed by the use of leather and non-precious materials in jewellery in Sudan, and the sale by weight, rather than workmanship, of jewellery in Ethiopia. Meeting up again with Linda and Fran in Thailand, he returned to Melbourne in 1973.

Career

Tully and McDiarmid moved to Sydney in 1975, joining their Melbourne friend and creative collaborators Linda Jackson, and her partner Fran Moore, who had moved there in 1973. This period also saw McDiarmid, Tully and Jackson collaborating with Melbourne fashion designer and retailer Clarence Chai and Sydney-based fashion designer and retailer Jenny Kee. After their move to Sydney with Tully and McDiarmid were soon involved with Kee's fashion store Flamingo Park in Strand Arcade, hand-painting fabrics for Jackson’s dresses. His experience of traditional tribal cultures through many years of travel in New Guinea, Africa and India - along with the vibrant and creative urban sub-cultural 'tribes' he saw New York - stimulated the development of his 'urban tribalwear'.

In 1977, Tully held his second one-man exhibition, exhibiting his Australiana-themed jewellery at Paraphethana Gallery.

Tully was undoubtedly the most influential designer involved with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, through his role as artistic director from 1982-1986 and through the establishment and management of the Workshop. It was in these roles that Tully greatly contributed to the transformation of the Mardi Gras from a political march to cultural event.

He once said of the legendary Paradise Garage disco in New York: 'It was about 85% black and very exciting. They played the best music I'd never heard and the people dressed. Even though they didn't dress expensively, they had lots of style. They could wear a paper bag and look like a million dollars. And they really impressed me. So that was the impetus to get into costume.'

Personal life and death

In 1973, Tully met the artist and activist David McDiarmid, becoming lovers for the following two years, and remaining friends and collaborators till Tully's death in 1992.

Tully died in Paris in August 1992 from an AIDS-related illness, at the age of 45.

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

• "Passion for Plastics" Peter Tully at Aces Art Shop 144 Edgecliff Road Woollahra NSW opened 12 December 1976
• "Passion for Plastics" Peter Tully at Paraphernalia Gallery Melbourne , opened 24 April 1977 -see citation above to Pat von Wolff fashion editor of The Age in her article of 25 April 1977 called Plastic Fashion
• "Living Plastics" Jewellery by Peter Tully (and An Australian Dream Lounge by David McDiarmid ) Hogarth Galleries Paddington NSW 6–24 December 1977
• "New Works " by Peter Tully and David McDiarmid Hogarth Galleries Paddington NSW 11 November -1 December 1978
• "Urban Tribalwear" by Peter Tully Crafts Council of Australia 113 George St Sydney 22 November to 22 December 1980
• "Florescents " by Peter Tully Hieroglyphics Gallery 135 crown St East Sydney 3–17 December 1981
• "Solo Survey" Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery , Launceston , Tasmania. 1982 ( See solo survey linkage project Tasmanian School of Art UTAS )
• "Primitive Futures" by Peter Tully ( with David McDiarmid " New Work " ) Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery 20 May -16 June 1984
• "Treasures of the Last Future" Barry Stern Galleries Paddington NSW 1–23 December 1990
• "Urban Tribalwear and Beyond" Peter Tully retrospective for the Australian National Gallery (now National Gallery of Australia) in Canberra at the Drill Hall Gallery. Curated by John McPhee 6 July - 22 September 1991. The first retrospective by a living artist that the then ANG now NGA ever did.

Group exhibitions

• "An Exhibition of work by Homosexual and Lesbian Artists" 23–24 July 1978 , Watters Gallery, Sydney. The exhibition included a fundraiser for the 4th National Homosexual Conference to be held in August 1978 at Paddington Town Hall, Sydney NSW. Other artists included David McDiarmid, Vivienne Binns, Frances Budden , Sally Colechin, Doug Erskine, Bill Morley and Robert Lawrie.
• "Art Clothes " Art Gallery of NSW ( AGNSW ) 20 December 1980 – 1 February 1981
• "Gay Mardi Gras Exhibition 1985 " Print Source Gallery Oxford St Darlinghurst NSW February -March 1985
• "Nine Artists " Barry Stern Gallery Glenmore Rd Paddington NSW 15 February-19 March 1992 ( for Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras )
• "You Are Here " Martin Browne Fine Art 11 gay male artists for Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival 6–28 February 1993 Curated by Scott Redford and Luke Roberts. Previously shown at Institute of Modern Art (IMA) in Brisbane in November 1992. Artists were Peter Tully, David McDiarmid, Luke Roberts , Scott Redford, Leonard Brown , Peter Cooley, Brent Harris ,Ross Wallace, Hiram To, Matthew Jones and Bashir Baraki.
• "From Eltham to Memphis" Craft Victoria Gallery Melbourne VIC , 7 September 2000 to 14 October 2000.
• Dead Gay Artists, Tin Sheds Gallery, 1–23 February 2002 Curator Robert Lake.
• Sydney Gay Mardi Gras Museum Exhibition to celebrate 35 years of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras , drawing on the extensive holdings of the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives (ALGA). At 94 Oxford St Darlinghurst NSW 2010 from 29 January 2013 to ?.February 2013.
• Mix Tape 1980s: Appropriation, Subculture, Critical Style, National Gallery of Victoria, 11 April–1 September 2013

Further reading

• Adamson, Glenn, and Jane Pavitt. Postmodernism: Style and Subversion, 1970-1990. London: V & A, 2011.
• Gray, Sally. Friends, Fashion & Fabulousness: The Making of an Australian Style. , 2017.