The Sydney Harbour Bridge. Bondi Beach. The Royal National Park. Sydney is known for its beautiful locations - both natural and manmade. In Australia’s biggest city you can also expect to find a flourishing art scene. Home to the modern Museum of Contemporary Art and the historic Art Gallery of New South Wales, as well as a thriving coterie of niche galleries and public masterpieces dotted around town, if it’s art you seek, it is art you will find in abundance. This summer, step away from the bustle and get lost in these exhibitions.

Masters of Modern Art from the Hermitage, Sydney CBD

A convoy of 65 modern art masterpieces have travelled from the world-famous State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, Russia and landed in the Art Gallery of New South Wales for a limited time. Masters of modern art from the Hermitage stars significant pieces from the late 19th and early 20th centuries by some of the most progressive names in the art world, including innovative brush masters such as Monet, Cézanne, Picasso, Kandinsky and Matisse, whose works boast a bold confidence buoyed by the then-dawning of a new century.“Masters of modern art from the Hermitage presents a magnificent selection of works that explores the origins of modern art, from the bold experiments of Cézanne and the impressionists to the radical innovations of artists such as Matisse, Picasso and their contemporaries,” said Peter Raissis, Senior Curator of Historical European Art at the Art Gallery of NSW.

This overturning of conventions in painting by the European and Russian modernists resulted in the revolutionary use of bold colours and original techniques that have become household names today - like impressionism, cubism and abstraction. Once thought of as shocking these developments reflect a need to express the cultural, political and social movements of their time. From Monet’s Poppy field, c1890 and Picasso’s Table in a Cafe, 1912 to Gauguin’s Month of Mary 1899 and Kandinsky’s Landscape near Dünaberg 1913 witness these seismic shifts in art history in their spectacular glory as part of your summer culture calendar.

When: 13 October 2018 until 3 March 2019

Where: Art Gallery of New South Wales

Cost: $28

More info: artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/hermitage

David Goldblatt: Photographs 1948 — 2018, The Rocks

The ability of a photographer to capture real life stories in their truest, unfiltered form can evoke the most powerful emotions from within. The work of photographer, David Goldblatt, is a compelling picture of South Africa over 70 years. Before passing away earlier this year at the age of 87, Goldblatt summed up his idea of photograph best himself, “Photographers, like journalists, should not become propagandists. They should simply reveal the truth.” From his first black and white photo in 1943, to his transition to colour photography following the dismantling of apartheid - an influential topic in Goldblatt’s works - David Goldblatt: Photographs 1948 — 2018 brings together his most iconic images and his lesser-known photographs in one place.

Museum of Contemporary Art Australia Director, Elizabeth Ann Macgregor OBE, says of the exhibition, “Visitors will discover an extraordinary artist whose documentary eye has not strayed from the complexities of his country of birth, but resonates with other global histories (including Australia’s own) through narratives of race and racism, and industry and the land”. Exclusive to Sydney as part of the Sydney International Art Series, this exhibition is the largest presentation of Goldblatt’s work to be seen in the Southern Hemisphere.

When: 19 October 2018 until 3 March 2019

Where: Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

Cost: $24

Walking Street Art Tour, Newtown

Some call it graffiti, others just see an idyllic backdrop for a selfie. But for anyone who appreciates the artistic expression that is street art, Sydney doesn’t disappoint. If it’s raw, free-spirited talent you wish to witness, go to Newtown. Tap into a local’s knowledge of the best artworks on display (remember, urban art is ever-changing so what was there yesterday may be gone today) during a two-hour guided tour of Newtown and Enmore. More than just an art tour, you’ll get a true sense of the community, which is as tight-knit as they come here.

When: Fortnightly on Saturdays

Where: Meet at Newtown train station

Cost: Cost: $59 per person (includes a craft beer)

Self-Guided City Sightings, Sydney CBD

Sydney is sprinkled with artworks in the form of sculptures, murals and installations that many may have passed a million times and never noticed. How many of internationally-acclaimed artist Tracey Emin’s handmade bronze birds have you spotted around the CBD? For those keeping tally, there are 60 in total. Have you seen the two Youngsters in Martin Place shadowed by highrises? You can find pieces of art at almost every turn in the heart of Sydney, from dandelion sculptures that, at a glance, may merely look like a standard water fountain, to luminescent tree-like installations beneath one of Sydney’s busiest roads. You just need to be paying closer attention. Take it upon yourself to uncover these works of art hidden in plain sight, or for a helping hand, check out www.cityartsydney.com.au for a full rundown.

The Sydney International Art Series brings the world’s outstanding exhibitions to Australia, exclusively to Sydney, every summer. Buy an Art Pass and save 20% to see both "Masters of Modern art from the Hermitage" at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and "David Goldblatt: Photographs 1948-2018" at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia. To buy Art Pass and to book great value overnight accommodation packages, visit www.artpass.com.au