Biography
Born in Sydney, Australia, Gary Heery studied sociology and psychology at the University of New South Wales. In 1974 he moved to the US where he co-founded India America, a magazine chronicling Native American society and culture in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Two years later he moved to Los Angeles where he photographed album covers for Roy Orbison, Frank Zappa, Ray Charles, B.B. King and Joe Cocker. He also shot portraits of film and music stars for magazines including Life, Esquire, Rolling Stone and Interview. In 1981, Heery moved to New York, opening a studio in Soho where he photographed album covers for Madonna and Paul Simon (Graceland) and advertising campaigns for Swatch, Karl Lagerfeld and Sony.
Since returning to Sydney in 1987, Heery has worked in advertising and fashion with clients such as American Express, Pepsi, Westpac, Telstra, Toyota, Lane Crawford, Qantas and Coca-Cola. He has shot award-winning campaigns for the Australian Wool Board, Trent Nathan, Dove and Sony. He was a three-time finalist in the Citi Bank Portrait Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW, a finalist in the National Gallery Portrait Prize and was selected for the American Photographer Annual. He was the Sony ambassador for the release of the Alpha (D-SLR) 900 camera and is a much sought-after speaker at photographic seminars. His exhibitions and books include Nudes (1994), Zoo (1996), Grandiflora (2000), Twins (2005), Grandiflora Arrangements (2007), Horses (2009), Winged (2011), Undergrowth (2012), Gary Heery: Selected Works (2013), Bird (2015), X Portraits (2018), and Birdscape (2021).
Subjects
Over five decades, Heery has turned his lens on some of the world's most famous — and infamous — names in music, art, film, politics and sport:
Andy Gibb
Andy Warhol
Barbi Benton
B.B. King
Brendan Cowell
Brett Whiteley
Bruce Beresford
Bruno Lawrence
Cate Blanchett
Cheech & Chong
Claudia Karvan
Collette Dinnigan
Cyndi Lauper
Dame Edna
Dawn Fraser
Dolph Lundgren
Eddie Money
Elle Macpherson
Ellen Barkin
Elvis Costello
Ernie Dingo
Ewan McGregor
Frank Zappa
Gene Simmons
Geoffrey Rush
Gladys Knight
Gough Whitlam
Grand Funk Railroad
Greta Scacchi
Heart
Herb Elliott
Hugo Weaving
Jack Charles
James Magnussen
Jessica Mauboy
Jimmy Barnes
Jodie Foster
Joe Cocker
John Bell
Judy Davis
Julie Andrews
K.D. Lang
Kate Capshaw
Kevin Rudd
Larry Hagman
Leif Garrett
Lou Ferrigno
Lou Reed
Lucy Lawless
Madonna
Malcolm Turnbull
Margaret Whitlam
Marty Feldman
Meat Loaf
Michelle Jank
Mink DeVille
Olivia Newton–John
Pat Benatar
Paul Keating
Paul Simon
Pink
Richard Roxburgh
Rick James
Robin Williams
Robyn Nevin
Rod Stewart
Rodney Dangerfield
Roy Orbison
Russell Crowe
Sam Neill
Shelley Winters
Sigrid Thornton
Susan Sarandon
The B52’s
The Roches
Thelma Houston
Timothy Leary
Village People
William Hurt
Books
1996
2000
2005
2007
2012
2013
2015
2016
2018
Zoo — Knopf
Grandiflora — Viking
Twins — Viking
Grandiflora Arrangements — Lantern
One Woman — Self-published
Gary Heery: Selected Works 1976–2013 — Self-published
Bird — Self-published
The Wayside Chapel — NewSouth Publishing
X Portraits — Self-published
Exhibitions
1991
1993
1996
2011
2012
2014
2015
2017
2019
2021
Big Shots — Australian Centre of Photography, Sydney
Nudes — Pod Theatre Gallery, Sydney
Zoo — State Library of NSW
Winged — Shapiro Gallery, Sydney
Undergrowth — Shapiro Gallery, Sydney
Gary Heery: Selected Works — Spitting Image
Bird — Special Group, Sydney
Archives — Black Eye Gallery, Sydney
X Portraits — Olsen Gallery, Sydney
Birdscape — Olsen Gallery, Sydney
Publications
Rolling Stone
Esquire
Life
Playboy
New West
Interview
Phaidon Books
Graphis Art Annual
American Photographer
Film
2015
Heery’s World — Directed by Liz Jones — Prime Video
Awards & Recognition
2003
2004
2005
2007
2009
2013
2016
2021
2023
2025
Citigroup Private Bank Australian Photographic Portrait Prize — Finalist, Art Gallery of NSW
Citigroup Private Bank Australian Photographic Portrait Prize — Finalist, Wayne Roycroft, Art Gallery of NSW
Citigroup Private Bank Australian Photographic Portrait Prize — Finalist, Geoffrey Rush, Art Gallery of NSW
National Photographic Portrait Prize — Finalist, Dad at 93 Years Old, National Portrait Gallery
Head On Portrait Prize — Winner
National Photographic Portrait Prize — Finalist, Robyn Nevin, National Portrait Gallery
Australian Photobook of the Year Awards — Finalist, Bird
Prix de la Photographie Paris (PX3) — Gold, Nature, Birdscape Series
Prix de la Photographie Paris (PX3) — Bronze, Fine Art, Collage Series
Tokyo International Foto Awards (TIFA) — Silver, Fine Art, Jay Malkoun
Speaking
2018
2019
2021
Aperture Australia
Bank of America
FUJIFILM Australia
Ambassaborship
Former Ambassador — Sony Australia
Former Ambassador — FUJIFILM Australia
The Unseasonal
