Peter Weiss, the celebrated Sydney businessman, philanthropist and arts patron, has died at the age of 84. Recently diagnosed with lung cancer, he had dealt with chronic obstructive lung disease for the past decade.

Peter Weiss

Born in Vienna in 1935, Weiss fled the city with his family for Australia in 1939. He enjoyed a musical upbringing and played the cello as a child, going on to study at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He played with the Australian Youth Orchestra and pursued further musical studies in Europe. He founded his eponymous fashion line in 1975 with his first wife, Adele, and by the 1980s owned more than 40 stores around the country. Weiss would become one of the well-known brands in Australian fashion.

At this time, Weiss also began to focus on the arts, which would become a lasting passion. He became a significant supporter of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. He also supported the Australian Youth Orchestra by providing two annual scholarships and is a Founding Patron of the Australian World Orchestra. In 2015, he purchased...