Up the Cross: Rennie Ellis & Wesley Stacey

It was the ’summer of love’ and Kings Cross was as much a magnet for long-haired pilgrims and avant-garde artists as it was for American servicemen on leave from Vietnam.

Photographers Rennie Ellis and Wesley Stacey spent time in the Cross over the summer of 1970-71, getting to know the locals and delving behind the scenes. Together they captured the sights, sounds and pulsating rhythms of life on the streets and in the clubs and private pads of Sydney’s infamous red-light district.

Celebrities stayed there, Les Girls strutted their stuff on stage, Hare Krishnas danced in the streets, while old-timers met in the park or went about their daily lives. This was the heyday of the famous Yellow House, centre of Sydney's experimental pop-art scene, where 24-hour multi-media 'happenings' took place.

Major Sponsor: Nikon

Sponsor: ILFORD

Ellis and Stacey recorded it all, and their photographs provide a fascinating portrait of the Cross at a unique moment in time.

Past exhibition

  • 20 February 2010 - 8 August 2010