Draw the House with Eliza Gosse, Emily Besser and Emmanuel Asante
29 September – 24 November 2024
Meet at the Welcome Centre
Experiences
Create a range of drawings inspired by one of the world’s most iconic buildings. Once a month join like-minded creative souls to explore the Opera House and its surroundings through the eyes of an artist. Working with a different artist each month, explore various drawing techniques, and perspectives inspired by one of the world's most iconic buildings.
| Date | Artist | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday 29 September 2024 | Emily Besser | 9:45am - 11am 11:30am-12:45pm |
| Sunday 27 October 2024 | Emmanuel Asante | 9:45am - 11am 11:30am-12:45pm |
| Sunday 24 November 2024 | Emmanuel Asante | 9:45am - 11am 11:30am-12:45pm |
A $20 fee will be charged per transaction. It will be refunded after you’ve attended the tour.
Maximum five (5) tickets per person. Tickets registered in excess of the ticket limit may be cancelled without notice.
The only authorised agency for this event is Sydney Opera House. For more information about authorised agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
In English
Wheelchair accessible
There are a number of wheelchair and companion seating locations available.
Social Story
A social story provides information about what to expect when attending a venue or show. It has short descriptions with images. See the Centre for Creativity Social Story.
To book accessible seating contact Box Office via email or telephone on:
+61 2 9250 7777 (Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm AEST)
The tour involves walking throughout the Opera House site to find interesting aspects of the building, so we will be stopping frequently to sit and draw. Please advise us upon booking if you have any particular learning or mobility needs for us to support.
Find out more about accessibility at Sydney Opera House.
Run time
The duration of this event is 75 minutes.
Age
Recommended for all ages and all skill levels.
This class is for all ages and skill levels, from beginners to experienced. Come solo, with a group of friends or a family member.
Please note that the tour route includes indoor and outdoor spaces across the Opera House, so there is a fair bit of walking up and down stairs. There will be moments to stop and sit during drawing activities to get your rest.
The Opera House is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children that visit or engage with us. Read our Child Safety Policy.
What you need to know
Please dress for the weather as we will be working outdoors. Participants must provide their own sketchbooks and pencils. Please keep what you bring to a minimum so it's easy for you to move around and draw quickly.
The tour will meet at the Welcome Centre located on the Lower Concourse. Our Welcome Team will be around to help direct you. We highly recommend bringing sunscreen, a water bottle and wearing a hat.
This walking tour will visit various spaces throughout the Sydney Opera House and will include around 300 stairs. Pease wear flat, comfortable shoes - your feet will thank you! If you have any concerns about the intensity of the tour please contact our Tourism Reservations team on 02 9250 7250 or tourismbookings@sydneyoperahouse.com
What to bring
Please dress for the weather as we will be working outdoors. Participants must provide their own sketch books and materials from a suggested list by our art teacher (this will be emailed to you upon registration).
Where does the group meet?
The tour will meet at the Welcome Centre. Our Welcome Team will be around to help direct you.
What time do I need to arrive before the event?
It’s a great idea to arrive early, grab a drink and soak up the view. Please arrive 15 minutes before your tour to allow sufficient time to cloak all your bags and personal belongings.
This should allow enough time for the mandatory visual inspections and/or cloaking of all bags and personal belongings by Opera House staff before starting your tour. Where possible, please leave bags at home.
Please note we are unable to cloak bags larger than A4 size.
John Berger - Art Critic, Novelist, Painter & PoetDrawing is a way of coming upon the connection between things; just like metaphor in poetry reconnects what has become separated.
Useful information:
Slow down, observe...
You will also learn from an expert guide about the influence of visual arts in the Opera House's history, including the beautiful tapestries that grace our venues and foyer spaces.
Drawing is practical as an architectural and engineering blueprint, but it is also a tool for creative expression and making meaning, visually documenting what we see or imagine on paper, for others to view, interpret and enjoy.
From the very beginning, drawings have played a significant role in the Opera House’s history – a global architectural competition saw entries from all over the world, where a relatively unknown Danish architect, Jorn Utzon, became the winner of a new National Opera House for Sydney. Utzon’s original and somewhat controversial design was an imaginative sculptural response that the judges were convinced would be ‘capable of becoming one of the great buildings of the world’.
Presented by Sydney Opera House
Meet the artists
Eliza Gosse
28 July & 25 August 2024
Eliza Gosse explores life through the lens of architecture – specifically the clean, simple lines of post-war and mid-century design. Drawn to forms produced decades before she herself was born, Gosse creates paired back images that are not so much a depiction as an evocation of an era or place, or the people who may once have lived there. Eliza Gosse is an alumna of the National Art School, Sydney, graduating a Master of Fine Art in 2019. A multiple award recipient, she has won the Mosman Alan Gamble Award (2022), the William Fletcher Grant for Emerging Artists (2018); the John Olsen Drawing Prize, National Art School (2017). Gosse has also been a Finalist in the Archibald Prize (2023, 2022); Wynne Prize (2020); Salon des Refusés at S.H Ervin (2022); Mosman Art Prize (2023, 2022, 2020, 2017); Paddington Art Prize (2021); Ravenswood Australian Women's Art Prize (2020, 2019, 2018). Gosse is currently practicing in Sydney and represented by Edwina Corlette Gallery (Brisbane) and Olsen Gallery (Sydney).
Emily Besser
28 September 2024
Emily Besser is an Australian artist who graduated from Sydney College of the Arts with First Class Honours in 2001 and went on to complete a graduate law degree at the University of New South Wales in 2004. After practicing native title, environmental and planning law for 10 years she returned to her painting practice.
Emmanuel Asante
27 October & 24 November 2024
Emmanuel Asante is a young artist from Ghana in West Africa who currently resides in Fairfield in Western Sydney. Emmanuel arrived in Australia in April, 2015 and graduated from Eagle Vale High School in 2018. He is highly influenced by his culture, Frida Kahlo and his artist-mentor Abdul Abdullah. Self-taught, Asante commenced painting and drawing to deal with depression and personal experiences. He is a board member of the following; Fairfield Arts Advisory Council Committee, We Are Studios and Refugee Art Project. He is a recipient of the Youth Achievement Award in Creative Arts (2019) and has contributed to numerous murals and projects including The Island at Addison Rd Community Centre (2019), Southwest Wall collaboration with Headspace at HJ Daley Library Campbelltown, Big Head holiday collaboration with Abdul Abdullah at C-A-C (2020), Bondi Beach; United To End Racism (2022) and Fairfield High School; Fades and Braides (2023).
Plan your visit
Venue information
Our foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
All Sydney Opera House foyers are pram accessible, with lifts to the main and western foyers. The public lift to all foyers is accessible from the corridor near the escalators on the Lower Concourse and also in the Western Foyer via the corridor on the Ground Level (at the top of the escalators). Pram parking will be available outside the theatres in the Western Foyer.
Getting here
The Sydney Opera House Car Park, operated by Wilson Parking, is open and available to use. Wilson Parking offer discounted parking if you book ahead. Please see the Wilson Parking website for details.
Please check the Transport NSW website for the latest advice and information on travel. You can catch public transport (bus, train, ferry) to Circular Quay and enjoy a six min walk to the Opera House.
Frequently asked questions
The tour meeting point is at the Welcome Centre located on the Lower Concourse of the Opera House.
It’s a great idea to arrive early, grab a drink and soak up the view. Please arrive 15 minutes before your tour to allow sufficient time to cloak any large bags.
This should allow enough time for the mandatory visual inspections and/or cloaking of bags and personal belongings by Opera House staff before starting your tour.
Where possible, please leave bags at home. If you bring a bag, those larger than A4 size will need to be cloaked before you can go on the tour. We're unable to store suitcases or large bags as we have limited cloaking facilities.
If you are going to be late for your tour please call our Reservations team on 02 8188 3734 for assistance.
Where possible, please do not bring bags to the Sydney Opera House. Bags larger than A4 size will need to be cloaked before you can go on the tour. However we can’t store suitcases or large bags as our cloaking facilities are extremely limited.
Cameras are allowed on the tour and there are plenty of photo opportunities throughout the entire tour. Your tour guide will advise you whilst on tour if photographs are not to be taken inside any venues. Please note there is no video filming on the tour.
Mobile phones are permitted on the tour however please ensure they are switched off or on silent for the duration of the tour.
You will have the opportunity to visit some of the Opera House’s many venues and theatres on this tour.
Please note that as we are a busy performing arts centre, venues and theatres are subject to availability at the time of your tour.
You can make a booking for up to 11 people though our maximum capacity per tour is 35 people. For capacity reasons the booking must be made by calling 02 8188 3734. Our Reservations team will assist with your reservation.
We encourage you to purchase your tour in advance online or via the phone where you’ll receive an eTicket. Please bring this with you and present it upon check-in at the Welcome Centre located on the Lower Concourse of the Opera House.
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