The WAMA Project : The National Centre for Environmental Art
Painting, Marianne Wehl (1867 - 1926), Untitled (Hardenbergia violacea - Purple Sarsaparilla Creeper and Ultricularia dichotoma - Fairy's Apron), c1887 to 1924
... throughout SE Australia), and Fairies Aprons Utricularia dichotoma... throughout SE Australia), and Fairies Aprons Utricularia dichotoma ...
The artist: Marianne Louise Charlotte Amalie Wehl (19 Sept. 1867, Mt Gambier; 26 Oct. 1926, Melbourne), a flower painter who was active in South Australia and Victoria, and not to be confused with Marie Magdalene Wehl.
Connection with Baron von Mueller: Von Mueller’s younger sister, Clara married Doctor Eduard Wehl and they lived in South Australia. They had 14 children, 6 of whom collected and painted botanical studies – some now in the National Herbarium, Melbourne. A cousin of Doctor Wehl – Carl Wehl – married Sophia Caroline (née Gorte) and one of their daughters was Marianne Wehl. It is recorded that von Mueller visited the Wehls and D’Altons in Halls Gap (Henrietta D'Alton was also a painter of wildflowers), so it is hard to believe that there is no influence at least.
Von Mueller had over 1,400 collectors/artists working for him and 225 of them were women and children. Their work is housed in the National Herbarium, Melbourne. The donor believes that Marianne contributed to this work. There is no record of that, however, as only 169 of the artists have been identified, it may be a possibility.
Marianne was one of six children of Carl Jakob Wilhelm Wehl (1830–1899) and Sophia Caroline Wehl (née Gorte) (1843–1920). She never married. https://data.environment.sa.gov.au/Content/Publications/JABG34P001_Dowe.pdf
The plants: All of the plants painted by Marianne Wehl's in this donation were identified by Botanist Neil Marriott & Wendy Marriott, in July 2022.
Neil Marriott said that the quality and beauty of these botanical studies made it easy for them to identify all the plants. He suggested they may be some of the first paintings of Grampians wildflowers. This makes the paintings highly important scientifically and botanically. Visitors to WAMA will be able to compare them with today’s plants in the Endemic Garden. Neil marvelled that Marianne found the specimens, as some of them are endemic and found only in the highest parts of the Grampians (Mt Rosea, Mt William and Major Mitchell Plateau) and are listed as rare and endangered. Some of these same rare plants have now been propagated by the WAMA team and in winter 2022 were planted in WAMA's Endemic Garden.
Neil says "This one is a composite of Purple Sarsaparilla Creeper Hardenbergia violacea (common and widespread throughout SE Australia), and Fairies Aprons Utricularia dichotoma - reasonably common and widespread in SE Australia."
NB In some records she is called Marianna (as the donor calls her) and in others Marianne.
Wildflower art, Wildlife art, wildflowers, Marianne Wehl, Marianna Wehl, Flower painter, Botany, works on paper, von Mueller, Baron von Mueller, Henrietta D'Alton, WAMA, Wildlife Art Museum Australia, Wild Art Museum AustraliaGift of Barbara CricksPainting of purple pea flower and pink fan-shaped flower, intertwined & placed asymmetrically to left, trailing to right. On textured brown paper with mottled brown matt.Signed “M.W.” left of stems. Reverse side backed with stained brown paper shield-shape stamped centre top: “J.A. Reynolds. Decorator & Picture Framer, 28 Sturt St., Ballarat”. Hand-written right side (in black felt pen) “McLennan, 106 Bennett Rd. (5)”. wildflowers, flowers