Showing 633 items matching "australian interior"
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Ballarat Heritage Services
Photograph -Colour, Clare Gervasoni, Interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Building, 2019, 31/03/2019
The Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is a flower show held annually since 1995 in early April each year, in Melbourne, Australia. It is located in the World Heritage Site of Carlton Gardens and the Royal Exhibition Building.[1] It is the largest horticultural event in the southern hemisphere, attracting over 100,000 visitors. It is rated among the top five flower and garden shows in the world. (Wikipedia)Colour photograph of the interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Buildings during the 2019 Melbourne Flower and Garden Show.melbourne international flower and garden show, carlton gardens, melbourne exhibition building -
Ballarat Heritage Services
Photograph -Colour, Clare Gervasoni, Interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Building, 2019, 31/03/2019
A competition was announced to design a suitable building for the proposed Melbourne International Exhibition in December 1877. Eighteen entries were received. The winner of 300 pounds was Joseph Reed of the architectual firm Reed and Barnes. The foundation stone was laid by Governor Sir George Bowen on 19 February 1879. Prominent Melbounre builder David Mitchell, father of Dame Nellie Melba, won the tender to construct the main building. Exhibitors were able to move in by May 1880. On 01 October 1880 the Melbourne International Exhibition opened, when over 6000 people entered the main hall to see the Governor, the Marquess of Normanby open the show. Thirty three nations participated and ofver 32,000 exhibits were displayed. At the close of the exhibition on 30 April 1881 over 1.3 million people had visited the exhibition. In 1881 Victoria's population was just over 250,000. The management of the Exhibition Building and eight hectares of the Carlton Gardens was handed to the Exhibition Trustees by the Melbourne International Exhibition Commissioners on 01 OCtober 1881. The Trustees maintained the building for 'future public exhibitions and ... general public instruction and recreation' until 1996 when management of the building was transferred to Museum Victoria. In 1901 when the Australian colonies federated there was no capital and no federal parliament building. The Federal Parliament moved into the Victorian State Parliament building, and the State Parliament moved into the Western Annexe of the Exhibition Building for 26 years. After World War One, on 04 February 1919, the exhibition Building was turned into a hospital to treat Melbournians struck down with the Spanis 'Flu'. Initially housing 500 beds, the hospital grew to accomodate 2000 patients. Femals were located between the concert platform in the western nave and the done; male patients occupied the spaces beyond. The basement was used a a morgue. With the departure of the State Parliament in 1927 the western annexe became home to the Country Roads Board. In 1932 it was joined by the MOtor Registration Branch, and the Transport Regulation Board in 1934. They co-existedin cramped offices until the 1960s. In 1949 the oval at the rear of the ExhibitionBuilding was leased to the Commonealth Government for the establishment of the Migrant Reception Centre. When it closed in 1961-62, the centre comrised 29 bungalows over 1.4 hectare. The centre provided temporary accomodation for thousands of new arrivals from Britain. On 01 July 2004 the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens were inscribed on the World Heritage List. It is the only 19th century Great Hall to survive largely intact, still in its original landscape setting, and still used as a palace of industry. The Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is a flower show held annually since 1995 in early April each year, in Melbourne, Australia. It is located in the World Heritage Site of Carlton Gardens and the Royal Exhibition Building.[1] It is the largest horticultural event in the southern hemisphere, attracting over 100,000 visitors. It is rated among the top five flower and garden shows in the world. (Wikipedia)Colour photograph of the interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Buildings during the 2019 Melbourne Flower and Garden Show. Four mottoes are painted under teh windows of the dome: Dei Grecia (By the grace of God), Carpe diem (Make the most of the day), Aude sapere (Dare to be wise) and Benigno numine (With benighn power)melbourne international flower and garden show, carlton gardens, melbourne exhibition building, royal exhibition buildings -
Ballarat Heritage Services
Photograph - Photograph -Colour, Clare Gervasoni, Interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Building, 2019, 31/03/2019
A competition was announced to design a suitable building for the proposed Melbourne International Exhibition in December 1877. Eighteen entries were received. The winner of 300 pounds was Joseph Reed of the architectual firm Reed and Barnes. The foundation stone was laid by Governor Sir George Bowen on 19 February 1879. Prominent Melbounre builder David Mitchell, father of Dame Nellie Melba, won the tender to construct the main building. Exhibitors were able to move in by May 1880. On 01 October 1880 the Melbourne International Exhibition opened, when over 6000 people entered the main hall to see the Governor, the Marquess of Normanby open the show. Thirty three nations participated and ofver 32,000 exhibits were displayed. At the close of the exhibition on 30 April 1881 over 1.3 million people had visited the exhibition. In 1881 Victoria's population was just over 250,000. The management of the Exhibition Building and eight hectares of the Carlton Gardens was handed to the Exhibition Trustees by the Melbourne International Exhibition Commissioners on 01 OCtober 1881. The Trustees maintained the building for 'future public exhibitions and ... general public instruction and recreation' until 1996 when management of the building was transferred to Museum Victoria. In 1901 when the Australian colonies federated there was no capital and no federal parliament building. The Federal Parliament moved into the Victorian State Parliament building, and the State Parliament moved into the Western Annexe of the Exhibition Building for 26 years. After World War One, on 04 February 1919, the exhibition Building was turned into a hospital to treat Melbournians struck down with the Spanis 'Flu'. Initially housing 500 beds, the hospital grew to accomodate 2000 patients. Femals were located between the concert platform in the western nave and the done; male patients occupied the spaces beyond. The basement was used a a morgue. With the departure of the State Parliament in 1927 the western annexe became home to the Country Roads Board. In 1932 it was joined by the MOtor Registration Branch, and the Transport Regulation Board in 1934. They co-existedin cramped offices until the 1960s. In 1949 the oval at the rear of the ExhibitionBuilding was leased to the Commonealth Government for the establishment of the Migrant Reception Centre. When it closed in 1961-62, the centre comrised 29 bungalows over 1.4 hectare. The centre provided temporary accomodation for thousands of new arrivals from Britain. On 01 July 2004 the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens were inscribed on the World Heritage List. It is the only 19th century Great Hall to survive largely intact, still in its original landscape setting, and still used as a palace of industry. The Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is a flower show held annually since 1995 in early April each year, in Melbourne, Australia. It is located in the World Heritage Site of Carlton Gardens and the Royal Exhibition Building.[1] It is the largest horticultural event in the southern hemisphere, attracting over 100,000 visitors. It is rated among the top five flower and garden shows in the world. (Wikipedia)Colour photograph of the interior of the Melbourne Exhibition Buildings during the 2019 Melbourne Flower and Garden Show. Four mottoes are painted under teh windows of the dome: Dei Grecia (By the grace of God), Carpe diem (Make the most of the day), Aude sapere (Dare to be wise) and Benigno numine (With benighn power)melbourne international flower and garden show, carlton gardens, melbourne exhibition building, royal exhibition buildings -
Ballarat Heritage Services
Image - Black and White, Interior of the Australian Aircraft and Engineering Company's at Mascot, New South Wales
... Interior of the Australian Aircraft and Engineering... Australia's first aircraft factory at Mascot Airport. Interior ...Black and white image of the first Australia's first aircraft factory at Mascot Airport.flight, aeroplane, mascot airport, australian aircraft and engineering company -
Ballarat Heritage Services
Photograph - Photograph - Colour, Former Barkly Street Uniting Church, Ballarat, 2015, 07/04/2015
The World War One windows in the Barkly Street Uniting Church resulted from a request made in 1919 from the Barkly Street Young Men's Club who raised money to pay for the project. The window was designed by the Fisher Company, and was unveiled on 14 March 1920 at a total cost of 171 pounds 10 shillings. The windows are considered to be one of the most remarkable war memorial windows in Victoria, and the 1800s English Gothic-style front facade is believed to be protected by a City of Ballarat heritage overlay. Historical experts believe the windows were designed by renowned stained-glass window-maker William Montgomery. The centre window depicts a young soldier bearing an Anzac badge underneath the British and Australian flags. The image of the solider is surrounded by 24 crosses, a single dove and a bugle. A number of colour photographs of the interior of the Barkly Street Uniting Church taken while the church was offered for sale.barkly street uniting church, barkly street methodist church, world war one, world war one memorial, stained glass, soldier, religion, church -
International House, The University of Melbourne
Photograph (Item), Cliff Bottomley, Australian News and Information Bureau, Warden Brian Jones shaking hands with Dr Ang Kok-Peng, from the University of Malaya
Dr Ang Kok-Peng was in the first group of twenty-one international students at International House in 1957, originally from the University of Malaya. Brian Jones was the first Warden of International House, selected in 1956, and leaving the position in 1959, taking a position representing the British Council in Cyprus.brian jones, interior -
Ballarat Heritage Services
Photograph - Image - Black and White, The Entrance Hall, Fortuna, c1918, c1918
Fortuna was built by George Lansell.Black and white image of George Lansell an interior room of George Lansell's Fortuna,george lansell, bendigo, fortuna -
RMIT Design Archives
Booklet - Documents, Interior Design: Melbourne Technical College Correspondence School, Papers 10-12, c.1948
Emigre Frederick Sterne set up a four-year Interior Design program for the Melbourne Technical College c. 1948. It was the first program of its kind in Australia, On the cover the hand-written words ‘Interior Design’ have a sense of pride in their hand and the drawing of an interior – probably Sterne’s – emerging from the drawing board illuminated by artificial light that projects a future. Suzie Attiwell, 2017interior design, rmit university -
Robin Boyd Foundation
Drawing - Interior Perspective, Robin Boyd, Stegbar Windowalls, Springvale
Project: Stegbar Windowalls, Springvale drawn by Robin Boyd of Romberg and Boyd; two interior perspectives. In 1952-53, Robin Boyd designed the Stegbar ‘Windowall’ - a prefabricated, structural framing/glazing system - to create a wall of windows. These ‘Windowalls’ were used extensively in domestic architecture across Australia from the 1950s to the 1970s. Boyd also designed the factory and showrooms for Stegbar Limited. The Walsh Street Archive holds exterior and interior perspectives of the building. Interior perspectives, watercolour on board.windowall, robin boyd, stegbar, ohm2022, ohm2022_35 -
Robin Boyd Foundation
Drawing - External Perspective, Robin Boyd, Stegbar Windowalls, Springvale
Project: Stegbar Windowalls, Springvale drawn by Robin Boyd of Romberg and Boyd; external perspective. In 1952-53, Robin Boyd designed the Stegbar ‘Windowall’ - a prefabricated, structural framing/glazing system - to create a wall of windows. These ‘Windowalls’ were used extensively in domestic architecture across Australia from the 1950s to the 1970s. Boyd also designed the factory and showrooms for Stegbar Limited. The Walsh Street Archive holds exterior and interior perspectives of the building. External perspective, watercolour on board.windowall, robin boyd, stegbar, ohm2022, ohm2022_35 -
Robin Boyd Foundation
Document - Invoice, Stegbar Windowwalls Pty Ltd, 19.08.1958
Two invoices to Robin Boyd for the windowalls and additional door frames at 290 Walsh Street. The three windowwall items are drawn with specifications. In 1952-53, Robin Boyd designed the Stegbar ‘Windowall’ - a prefabricated, structural framing/glazing system - to create a wall of windows. These ‘Windowalls’ were used extensively in domestic architecture across Australia from the 1950s to the 1970s. Boyd also designed the factory and showrooms for Stegbar Limited. The Walsh Street Archive holds exterior and interior perspectives of the building. Two foolscap pages. stegbar, windowall, ohm2022, ohm2022_35 -
Ballarat RSL Sub-Branch Inc.
Africa Star
This object relates to Edward LE MARSHALL. He was born on 16/09/1914 in Steiglitz, VIC. Edward served in the Army (VX28243) enlisting on, 18/06/1940 in Mount Egerton, VIC before being discharged from duties with the 3 LIGHT ANTI AIRCRAFT REG RAA as a Army Non-Commissioned Gunner (GNR) on 29/05/1941. Edward LE MARSHALL was not a prisoner of war. His next of kin is Ernest LE MARSHALL. Edward LE MARSHALL was awarded the 1939-1945 Star, Africa Star, Australia Service Medal 1939-1946, War Medal 1939-1945.Six pointed star-shaped medallion in dark golden colour, attached by a ring to a ribbon of mustard yellow, navy, red and light blue stripes of varying thicknesses. Ribbon ends are frayed and not attached to a bar. The cast medallion features a circle with text around the circumference and a monogram in the interior, topped with a crown motif. Further inscriptions are stamped into the reverseAround front circle: “THE AFRICA STAR” Stamped into the reverse: “VX28243, J. E. LE MARSHALL”second world war (ww2), 1939 - 1945, medals, ballarat rsl, ballarat -
Ballarat RSL Sub-Branch Inc.
Jacket, 1961
Navy blue, waist length jacket with 4 buttons down centre front, 2 shoulder buttons. Two embroidered patches on each arm.Corporal rank patch and Air Force manufacturer's label on interior.air force, royal australian air force, uniform, military, short jacket -
Moorabbin Air Museum
Document (Item) - A Report On Meteorological Conditions Affecting Aviation Over The Sydney To Vancouver Air Route
... Commonwealth Of Australia Department Of The Interior... Moorabbin melbourne Commonwealth Of Australia Department ...Commonwealth Of Australia Department Of The Interior Meteorological Branch -
Ballarat Tramway Museum
Negative - Set of 2, Geoff Grant, 2/04/1955 12:00:00 AM
Yields information about the interior appearance of the Geelong depot.Negative No. 263 and colour print made by colour laser printer (stored in folder ) of the general view of the car barn from the inside by Geoff Grant on 2/4/1955 while on an Australian Electric Traction Association tour. AETA special tram in background. 1545.1 - black and white image, made by Bill Scott on AGFA Prestige Digital paper, correct way around. Image on 1545 is reversed. Added 17/7/2009 Original negative scanned at hi res 18/5/2020 and image updated. 1545.1 - in ink "38)" in top left hand corner. Along bottom "Geelong depot Car 39 in background 2.4.1955 on a AETA tour Geoffrey Grant pic" and "William Scott" address label.trams, tramways, geelong, aeta, depot -
Ballarat Tramway Museum
Magazine, Jack Richardson, "Tram Tracks - The Electric Traction Monthly", Jan to June 1947
Six issues of "Tram Tracks - The Electric Traction Monthly" of the Australian Electric Traction Association. Each issue has a standard cover, of the magazine name etc, featuring "Wee Folks Productions" models but are in different colours, all have been saddled stapled with two staples, except No. 6. The Volume and date details have been over printed. Back covers inside back covers have the same advertisements but the font varies vary. The six issues contain advertisements for the Wee Folks productions, Hartleys Sports store, Hearns Hobbies, Wattle Park, Johnson's Variety Store, Barnes Tennis Centre, The Model Dockyard, Robilt Models, Meadmore Model Engineering and Austral Bronze Pty Ltd, Hearns Hobbies, Christie Scale Model Railway and Equipment, Herbert Small (Meccano), the American Subscription Agency, Manufacturers' Mutual Insurance Ltd. 2465.1 - Vol. 2 No. 1 - 16 pages, Jan 1947, with cover printed in red. Has articles on the tram / car debate, Dunedin Tramways, Overlapping fare sections, type of trucks under Sydney tramcars, Brisbane Electric Railway (Power station), The Balmain Counterweight and Trolley buses in Australia. News items include Brisbane, Newcastle, Sydney, Melbourne, SEC, Hobart, VR, Adelaide, Kalgoorlie, Broome, electric trains in Melbourne and Sydney, and AETA notes. Photos include Sydney O, OP and P, VR PERM 63 and interior photo of a MMTB W4 class tram. 2465.2 - Vol. 2, No. 2 - 16 pages, Feb. 1947, with cover printed in dark blue. Has articles on Brisbane 400 class tramcar, Adelaide to Glenelg Brighton - Le Sands tramway, Melbourne Suburban railways, Diesel Electrics on the Southern Railway (US)and Birney Safety Car. News items include Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, VR, Fremantle and AETA notes. 2465.3 - Vol. 2, No. 3 - 12 pages, Mar. 1947, with cover printed in brown. Has articles on why NSW trams lose money, Duncan and Frazer, new trams in Johannesburg, Melbourne Suburban railways, and Sydney New Railway (Eastern Suburbs). News items Sydney, Melbourne, SEC, VR and Adelaide and AETA notes. 2465.4 - Vol. 2, No. 4 - 16 pages, Apr. 1947, with cover printed in green. Has articles on Duncan and Fraser (continued), In search of Ancient Warriors (old trams), Brisbane Electric Railway and some unusual fares arrangements. News items include Brisbane, Newcastle, Melbourne, Sydney, SEC, Launceston, Kalgoorlie, overseas, and AETA notes. Editorial looks at claims that the SW6 cars are the finest in the world, back numbers (notes that Tram Tracks started with a mimeographed club news sheet and now have circulation of nearly 200), costs of production etc. Has photographs of the interior of a SW6 850, a plan for Melbourne underground railway, the VR power operations room at Flinders St., Hobart trolley bus and a cartoon about Sydney traffic. 2465.5 - Vol. 2, No. 5 - 16 pages, May 1947, with cover printed in red. Has articles on Australian Light railways, Sydney's relief lines and the start of an article on NSWGT 600/1200V tramcars. Has news items on Brisbane, Sydney, MMTB, VR, Geelong, Ballarat, Launceston, Hobart and AETA notes. Editorial notes the first anniversary of the magazine and has a number of letters regarding this, content and the tram/car debate. 2465.6 - Vol. 2, No. 6 - 20 pages, June 1947, with cover printed in blue. Has articles on Cremorne bridge replacement (with photos), Neutral bay line and Tramcar transmission gears. News items include photos of MMTB track replacements, crowded trams, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and a photo of a Sydney tram passing under the new bridge work for Circular Quay station. 2465.7 - Vol. 2, No. 12 - pages 1-12, cover has an advert for Hartley Sporting Goods. Has cartoon on fares on Sydney trams by Peterson, not regarding retirement of Mr. H. Bell of MMTB, Melbourne Latrobe St and bus construction, Sydney tram cartoons from Emile Mercier, electric trains and other tramway news. (Item added 24-3-18 - from consolidation of Melbourne Tram Museum and BTM collections) trams, tramways, electric traction, aeta, models, australian tramways, duncan fraser, cartoons -
Ballarat Tramway Museum
Uniform - Cap, Commonwealth Government Clothing Factories Melbourne, early 1960's?
Demonstrates uniform cap manufacture. Appears to be unworn.SEC Motorman/Drivers/Conductors cap - green cloth exterior, grey cotton interior lining, brown leather internal hat band, black cotton hat band on exterior with a plastic band at the front half of the cap terminating in two small SEC metal buttons on either side, black plastic peak. Sewn on the inside is a label "Commonwealth Government Clothing Factories Melbourne" and stamped "6 1/2". On the right hand side of the inside of the brown band, stamped in gold is the Australian Coat of Arms and the words "A quality product / made in Australia / by the Dept. of Supply". Appears never to have been used.tramways, trams, ballarat, uniforms, cap -
Ballarat Tramway Museum
Functional Object - Tramcar, Meadowbank Manufacturing Co. Sydney, SECV Tram No. 11, 1915
One of a number of this type of tram still in working order in Australian tramway museums. Has no motors. Interior one of the few given a paint finish by SEC, others are varnished. Has timber panelled sides.Single truck (4 wheels), drop ends, modified open California combination to closed car, with 4 doors, 2 at either end, longitudinal seats, sliding internal doors, air brakes. - electric motors removed. Acquired from the Daylesford Historical Society. For an article on the tram see the Oct. 2018 issue of Fares Please! and the Museum Fleet page on the website. See Fares Please - Oct. 1977, Destination City, Destination Eaglehawk, BTPS Annual Reports and March 1980 Fares Please!trams, tram 11 -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Goanna, c. early 1950s
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Mosaic, c. 1962
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Tiger Stripe, c. 1939
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Crete, 1948
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Plum Blossom, 1948
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Jungle, 1945
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Harlequin, c. late 1950s
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Staccato, c.1962
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Staccato (brown-gray), c.1962
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Tiger Lily, 1951
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Pacifica, 1954
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs. -
Ararat Gallery TAMA
Textile, Frances Burke, Magnolia, 1938-1942
Frances Burke: Designer of Modern Textiles Australia’s most influential and celebrated textile designer of the mid-20th century, Frances Burke (1904-1994), employed Australian native flora, garden flowers, marine subjects, Indigenous culture and increasingly, abstract motifs in her stunning modern fabrics. A confident, determined designer and businesswoman; Burke made the shift from fine art to design in 1937. While she began by designing dress fabrics for Melbourne’s fashionable Georges Department store, printing them on linen using lino blocks, she was an early adopter of the screen-printing process and during the war years began printing on cotton. Burke’s furnishing fabrics took their place in influential modern buildings Australia-wide through collaborations with leading architects and interior designers. They included Robin Boyd’s 1949 House of Tomorrow, Roy Grounds’ Quamby flats, Guilford Bell’s Royal Hayman Island Resort for Ansett Airlines, and Yuncken, Freeman Brothers, Griffiths and Simpson’s Canberra Civic Centre Theatre. In the post-war period, Burke made regular trips to the United States and Europe, on her return advising homeowners and manufacturers on the latest trends in products, colours and home design in lectures and interviews. At New Design her fabric showroom and interior design consultancy Burke introduced furniture by emerging designers Clement Meadmore and Grant Featherston in the early 1950s and presented local and imported homewares, mostly from the United States. She was enthusiastic about the convenient and comfortable lifestyle experienced by ordinary American women. Her fabrics and advice were regularly featured in Australian Home Beautiful, Australian House and Garden and the newspapers of the day. Some of Burke’s designs had remarkable longevity. Tiger Stripe (1938) for example, continued to be produced in a wide range of colours until 1970 and Crete (1946) remained a popular choice for interiors into the 1960s. Drawing from a rich variety of sources including Indigenous culture in Goanna (c.1954) and Pacific Island tapa cloth designs in Bird and Tree (1940), Burke also looked to Japan in designs such as Plum Blossom (1948) and Zen (1965). She loved exploring the potential of native flora, seen in designs including Waratah (1955) and Flannel Flower (1955), while garden flowers were the source for many other designs including Belladonna (1940), Periwinkle (n.d.) and Rose (1947). Burke’s clever interplay of a single striking printed colour with lively gestural lines revealing the white base fabric, gave her designs a vibrancy that characterised the optimistic post-war era. This can be seen in Burke’s fabrics for Hayman Island including Angel Fish and Seapiece (both 1949) which expressed the freshness and excitement of the luxurious new tropical resort and led to further commissions. Burke’s three decades in business (1937-1970) were an unparalleled success in the story of Australian design. Her fabrics have been collected by the NGA, the Powerhouse Museum, NGV, RMIT Design Archives and Sydney Living Museums in addition to Ararat Gallery TAMA. Written by Nanette Carter and Robyn Oswald-Jacobs.