oil on boardabstract, painting, robert jacks, garden, geometric

oil on boardabstract, painting, robert jacks, geometric

bronzesculpture, swimmer, female, figure, guy boyd, public art, bayside, bayside city council, australian bicentennial project, guy martin à beckett boyd, bronze, city of sandringham, indigenous resource garden, bluff road, sandringham

brighton, aerial, photograph, newmark aerial photography, streets, brighton town hall, brighton library, brighton court house, court house, library, gardens, wilson street, carpenter street, boxshall street, khyatt's hotel, council chambers, brighton police station

Amy Huxtable was born at Cheltenham in 1918, to Robert Henry Huxtable and Violet A Dagg. Her father was an installer for an oil company and travelled the State. taking his family with him. She completed her education at the Bendigo High School and later attended the Bendigo Business College, becoming an expert shorthand writer. Her first position was as a copy writer with Radio 3BO, in the mid 1930s. She worked with an advertising agency in Melbourne and then with the Age,newspaper. In 1953, Miss Huxtable was appointed temporarily to succeed Miss E B Millane as social editress of the Bendigo Advertiser, during the latter's absence abroad. In 1956, Amy travelled abroad and on her return in 1957 was appointed permanently as Women's editor, a position she held for twenty-three ears. During her early years with The Advertiser she wrote under the name Toora, but in later years her own name became widely known. Miss Huxtable was well known both in her professional capacity and through a interest and involvement in community activites. She was life governor of the Bendigo Hospital, the Bendigo Home for the Aged, and Mirridong Home for the Blind, she was a member of Soroptimist International and the Business and Professional Women's Club. Amy was also a tireless worker for the spastic society and a strong supporter of the YWCA. When Amy Huxtable died at Mt AJvernia Hospital on 16 January 1980 Mayor Campbell ordered the city flag to be flown at half-mast. "Lowering the flag is the least we can do for such a lady" Cr Campbell said. Douglas Lockwood, editor of the Bendigo Advertiser said, "She was a devot d colleague who gave her craft and her newspaper the kind of service which identified a rare and generous spirit." She was a true professional who decided to make Bendigo her home. More than 300 people packed St Paul's Church for her funeral ervice the bell tolled as the casket was carried from the church. At a ceremony in the Conservatory Gardens on No ember 22 1981 The Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee presented to the City of Bendigo, a garden seat in memory of the late Miss Huxtable. This Bendigo manufactured seat was a fitting tribute to one ofBendigo's most loved and esteemed citizens. All Miss Huxtable's Advertiser articles were microfilmed and presented to the Library by the above committee. Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee - Newspaper Articles and letters to the Bendigo Art Gallery 2808.9a First Article: Bendigo Advertiser article 18/12/1985 on "two of Bendigo's noted daughters , Ola Cohn and Amy Huxtable" Describes the restoration of the Ola Cohn drinking fountain in Rosalind Park, and the installation of the Amy Huxtable Memorial Seat in the Conservatory Gardens. Second Article: Bendigo Advertiser Letters to the Editor Column 30/12/1988 paragraph entitled "Credit where it is due: "A special tricentennial council effort would be to restore the paths, kerbs and sculpture by Ola Cohn, J H Curnow Fountain, the Bob Brothers Memorial and the Chain of Ponds" (Rosalind Park) 2808.9b Seven Pages of letters: 1. To Mrs Thelma Dingle from Doug Hall, Bendigo Art Gallery Director 30/1/1986 regards the Amy Huxtable committee funding the restoration of the Ola Cohn Fountain by sculptor Mr Marc Clark. 2. From the Amy Huxtable Committee 24/3/1986 back to the Art Gallery explaining that the committee leftover funds be given to the art Gallery to go towards the restoration of the Oal Cohn Fountain. 3. From the Art Gallery to Miss N D young, Amy Huxtable Committee 3/4/1986 thanking the committee for the funds. 4. From the committee to the Mayor and Councillors, Bendigo City, 4/2/1987 asking for an update on the project. 5. Copy of above letter. 6. From the City of Bendigo to the Committee 17/2/1987, advising of progress on the restoration of the fountain. 7. From Norma Young to the Bendigo Advertiser Letters to the Editor, advising of progress on the Ola Cohn Sculpture and the J H Curnow Fountain restoration. history, amy huxtable, bendigo, amy huxtable memorial committee, bendigo conservatory gardens, ola cohn, j h curnow fountain

Amy Huxtable was born at Cheltenham in 1918, to Robert Henry Huxtable and Violet A Dagg. Her father was an installer for an oil company and travelled the State. taking his family with him. She completed her education at the Bendigo High School and later attended the Bendigo Business College, becoming an expert shorthand writer. Her first position was as a copy writer with Radio 3BO, in the mid 1930s. She worked with an advertising agency in Melbourne and then with the Age,newspaper. In 1953, Miss Huxtable was appointed temporarily to succeed Miss E B Millane as social editress of the Bendigo Advertiser, during the latter's absence abroad. In 1956, Amy travelled abroad and on her return in 1957 was appointed permanently as Women's editor, a position she held for twenty-three ears. During her early years with The Advertiser she wrote under the name Toora, but in later years her own name became widely known. Miss Huxtable was well known both in her professional capacity and through a interest and involvement in community activites. She was life governor of the Bendigo Hospital, the Bendigo Home for the Aged, and Mirridong Home for the Blind, she was a member of Soroptimist International and the Business and Professional Women's Club. Amy was also a tireless worker for the spastic society and a strong supporter of the YWCA. When Amy Huxtable died at Mt AJvernia Hospital on 16 January 1980 Mayor Campbell ordered the city flag to be flown at half-mast. "Lowering the flag is the least we can do for such a lady" Cr Campbell said. Douglas Lockwood, editor of the Bendigo Advertiser said, "She was a devot d colleague who gave her craft and her newspaper the kind of service which identified a rare and generous spirit." She was a true professional who decided to make Bendigo her home. More than 300 people packed St Paul's Church for her funeral ervice the bell tolled as the casket was carried from the church. At a ceremony in the Conservatory Gardens on No ember 22 1981 The Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee presented to the City of Bendigo, a garden seat in memory of the late Miss Huxtable. This Bendigo manufactured seat was a fitting tribute to one ofBendigo's most loved and esteemed citizens. All Miss Huxtable's Advertiser articles were microfilmed and presented to the Library by the above committee. Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee - Correspondence and Newspaper Vale Article Bendigo Advertiser Article 23/10/1993 entitled: "Vale Amy: a rare individual" 2808.13e Photo of Amy from the article 2808.13a, 2808.13b, 2808.13c: The Article describe her life and contributions to Bendigo. 2808.13d - 12 pages of Correspondence and committee records. Page 1 Letter from the the committee to the art gallery 14/9/1993 re event happening (Presentation of the Ola Cohn works as funded by excess money before the committee "winds up" the letter encloses a list of whom the committee consider should be invited to the event). Page 2 List of people as above with adresses Page 3 Invitation to the above event from the art gallery 7/9/1993 Page 4 From the art gallery 29/9/1993 enclosing some factual notes on Amy Huxtable to be confirmed and added to by the committee if need be. Page 5 From the art gallery 20/10/1993 to the committee, a copy of an article written for the Bendigo Advertiser - for comments. Page 6 From the art gallery 29/1/1993 - thanking the Chairperson of the committee Miss Norma Young for her speech at the reception for the Amy Huxtable Memorial - Ola Cohn Works. Page 7 From Norma Young back to the art gallery 3/11/1993, thank you for the combined work of the gallery and the memorial committee Page 8 Another thank you letter to the art gallery committee of management 3/11/1993. Page 9 -12 Speech as given by Norma Young, chairperson of the committee to the reception at the art gallery.history, amy huxtable, bendigo, amy huxtable memorial committee, bendigo art gallery ola cohn works

Bendigo followed much the same pattern as Ballarat, and was not ready for an up-to-date studio until 1880 when the Bartlett Bros. (Francis and Henry) who bad conducted a successful business in Melbourne for many years opened a small studio there. It was such a success that they decided to build large modern premises, and Francis made two trips to England and the Continent for the latest ideas. In 1884 Henry died, and to replace him, Francis secured the services of Robert W. Bugg, then employed by Foster & Martin (both pupils of Batchelder's) in Collins Street, Melbourne. In that studio Bugg made some fine portraits of Anthony Trollope during the novelist's long tour of Australia. Francis Bartlett was a keen business man, and Robert Bugg was a great operator and a fine painter. Together, their success was quite outstanding. Fifteen years later Bartlett retired with a fortune, and Bugg took over the studio. Robert William Bugg, one of our leading Painter-Photographers, was born in London in 1853, and came to Melbourne when he was five years old. He became a pupil of Louis Buvelot and, in 1879, a member of the Victorian Academy of Arts. In Bendigo he gave annual exhibitions of his oils and water colours, a number of his exhibitions being officially opened by his friend Alfred Deakin. There are a number of Bugg's Paintings in the Bendigo Art Gallery. All the portraits, landscapes, buildings, and city views illustrated in "Bendigo and Vicinity, 1897", are from photographs taken by Robert Bugg. He was a clever, genial and popular soul, and his influence on the cultural life of his adopted city was considerable. He retired in 1932 and died in his early eighties.Eleven Photos of Bendigo from Glass Plate Negatives, Campaspe River at Axedale, Axe Creek, Lake Weroona, White Hills Botanical Gardens, Conseratory Gardens, Bendigo Fernery. Slides are ex Bartlett Brother Bendigo. history, bendigo, bendigo conservatory gardens, campaspe river axedale, axe creek victoria, lake weroona bendigo, white hills botanical gardens bendigo, bartlett brothers bendigo, rosalind park bendigo

Amy Huxtable was born at Cheltenham in 1918, to Robert Henry Huxtable and Violet a Dagg. Her father was an installer for an oil company and travelled the State. taking his family with him. She completed her education at the Bendigo High School and later attended the Bendigo Business College, becoming an expert shorthand writer. Her first position was as a copy writer with Radio 3BO, in the mid 1930s. She worked with an advertising agency in Melbourne and then with the Age,newspaper. In 1953, Miss Huxtable was appointed temporarily to succeed Miss E B Millane as social editress of the Bendigo Advertiser, during the latter's absence abroad. In 1956, Amy travelled abroad and on her return in 1957 was appointed permanently as Women's editor, a position she held for twenty-three ears. During her early years with The Advertiser she wrote under the name Toora, but in later years her own name became widely known. Miss Huxtable was well known both in her professional capacity and through a interest and involvement in community activites. She was life governor of the Bendigo Hospital, the Bendigo Home for the Aged, and Mirridong Home for the Blind, she was a member of Soroptimist International and the Business and Professional Women's Club. Amy was also a tireless worker for the spastic society and a strong supporter of the YWCA. When Amy Huxtable died at Mt AJvernia Hospital on 16 January 1980 Mayor Campbell ordered the city flag to be flown at half-mast. "Lowering the flag is the least we can do for such a lady" Cr Campbell said. Douglas Lockwood, editor of the Bendigo Advertiser said, "She was a devot d colleague who gave her craft and her newspaper the kind of service which identified a rare and generous spirit." She was a true professional who decided to make Bendigo her home. More than 300 people packed St Paul's Church for her funeral ervice the bell tolled as the casket was carried from the church. At a ceremony in the Conservatory Gardens on No ember 22 1981 The Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee presented to the City of Bendigo, a garden seat in memory of the late Miss Huxtable. This Bendigo manufactured seat was a fitting tribute to one ofBendigo's most loved and esteemed citizens. All Miss Huxtable's Advertiser articles were microfilmed and presented to the Library by the above committee. Invitation to a Presentation of Works by Ola Cohn from the President, Committee of Management and the Director of the Bendigo Art Gallery and the Amy Huxtable Memorial Committee. Two copies of a printed formal invitation to a reception to celebrate the presentation by Miss Norma Young A.M., Chairman of the Committee at 7.30 pm at the Bendigo Art Gallery.history, amy huxtable, bendigo, ola cohn, norma young bendigo, bendigo art gallery

Extensive history on the foundation of the three Victorian Provincial tramways, operations, tramcar lists and relationship to their private operation and power stations.. Foreword by Professor Weston Bate Yields detailed information about the history of the three SEC Provincial systems, in particular the construction history and their tramcars.Book - 212 pages on art paper with a gloss finish applied to photographs, sewn with glued end papers, folded dust jacket or cover titled "Last Tram at Eleven - Tramways of Ballarat, Bendigo Geelong". Written by William F Scott, published by Full Parallel Productions 2008. Has a cloth book mark. Has a Table of Contents, Index, many photographs, maps, liststramway history, ballarat, bendigo, geelong, tramcars, trams

Features 8 Melbourne Art trams of Oct. 2013. This was the reinvention of the Transport Art programme of 1978 to 1993. Image 2 gives the sponsors details - Arts Victoria, Transport Victoria, Melbourne Festival and Yarra Trams. Artists featured are - SW6 925 - Jon Campbell, Z3 183 Freya Pitt, Z3 209 - Luke Cornish (ELK), Z3 151 - Rose Nolan, Z3 259 Joining Forces, D1 3509 - Brook Andrew, B2 2002 - David Wadelton, C3008 - Bindi Cole.Provides a framed set of photos of Art Trams that were presented to the public in 2013 - 2014.Wood frame, containing 8 photographic prints, label, text regarding the trams, framed with perspex card backing, paper, tape and fitted on the rear with a hanging cord.transporting art, art trams, decorated trams, melbourne, trams, tramways, tram 925, tram 183, tram 209, tram 151, tram 3509, tram259, tram 2002, tram 3008, sw6 class, z3 class, c1 class, d1 class, b2 class, jon campbell, freya pitt, luke cornish (elk), rose nolan, joining forces, brook andrew, david wadelton, bindi cole

Book - titled "The Melbourne Tram Book" - 1st Edition, written by Randal Wilson and Dale Budd - 2003. Covers Melbourne tram history including cable trams, early electric trams, trams in art, historic fleet, colour schemes, tram types, and preserved tramways. Includes notes on the authors. Yields information about Melbourne trams history. Has a close association with two well known authors.Book - 84 pages including card covers, full colour printing on gloss paper, perfect bound with foldout covers containing four postcards that could be removed.melbourne, tramways, trams, history, randal wilson, dale budd

Book - titled "The Melbourne Tram Book" - 2nd Edition, written by Randal Wilson and Dale Budd. Reprint with updates of 2010. Covers Melbourne tram history including cable trams, early electric trams, trams in art, historic fleet, colour schemes, tram types, and preserved tramways. Includes notes on the authors. Yields information about Melbourne trams history. Has a close association with two well known authors.Book - 84 pages including card covers, full colour printing on gloss paper, perfect bound.melbourne, tramways, trams, history, randal wilson, dale budd

A four motor bogie drop centre combination tram of the Melbourne W2 class. Body built by the James Moore and Co. of South Melbourne as a W2 class tram. Delivered to the MMTB Preston Workshops where the electrical and mechanical equipment was fitted. Issued to traffic 18/4/1928. Allocated to Essendon Depot. The tram was part of the Transporting Art project suggested by the artist Clifton Pugh (1924-1990) in Jan. 1978 to the Lord Mayor of Melbourne Cr. Irvin Rockman. The concept was enthusiastically supported by Victorian Premier Rupert Hamer. Clifton Pugh's tram was the second tram to appear. Described by the artist as "The apostle birds in flight, as if the tram has run into a group of them and they're flying along the sides. Then I found the route was to be through Collingwood and Hawthorn football territory and one cannot be one-eyed in that worlds, there are a magpie and a hawk on each side." The tram was retained by the State and stored until 2015 when it was transported to the Museum's Offsite store. Formal ownership was transferred to the Museum during 2019. Conservation planning for the tram's return to service and the restoration of the artwork is underway. 1986 - withdrawn from service following a minor accident and stored. In 2015 tram relocated to the Museum's offsite store and during 2019 transferred to ownership of the Museum. See btm.org.au/trams/504.html for further detail. Photos - i1 - Ray Marsh 1978 i2 - Alastair Reither - 3/6/2015 showing the damaged side. i3 - Clifton Pugh on board his tram. Photo from the Diners Club Signature Magazine April/May 1982, from an article titled Moving Masterpieces. Photo courtesy of the Melbourne Tram Museum. See Destination Citytrams, w2 class, transporting art, tram 504

Book, 80 pages, gloss art paper, in black ink with a yellow card cover in green ink, centre stapled, titled "The Bendigo Tramways" Details history of Bendigo tramways, its tramcars and the involvement of the various operators. Has maps and photographs. Written by Keith Kings and published by the Victorian Division of the Australian Railway Historical Society and others at the time of the closure of the Bendigo system. Has details of the various organisations that published the book on the rear cover. Cover, index page, maps and rollingstock lists have been scanned see jpg images i1 to i7 For book itself see pdf images i1 to i4 326.1 - ditto - purchased by W.A. Doubleday for BTM ex Scottsbluff, NE, USA 8/2003. Added 27/09/03. See Reg Item 4242 for other copies of this book which has pencil annotations.trams, tramways, bendigo, battery trams, steam trams, history

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.