This volume investigates the artistic evolution and personal philosophy of Australian painter Brett Whiteley through a comprehensive survey of his diverse body of work. Author Sandra McGrath, leveraging a sixteen-year professional and personal association with the Whiteley family, constructs a narrative that balances critical observation with the artist's own voice. By integrating primary source material such as diaries, taped interviews, and informal conversations, the text provides a direct window into the creative motivations and technical methodologies that defined Whiteley's career.

The work serves as a foundational biographical resource, offering a unique, intimate perspective on Whiteley's creative process that is heavily informed by the author's long-standing proximity to the subject. Its reliance on the artist's own words provides a valuable, albeit subjective, primary record for those researching the development of modern Australian painting.