Historical information

Ludmilla Meilerts, Oil On Board, Botanical Gardens, Circa 1970
Ludmilla Meilerts (1908 - 1997), Botanical Gardens, Melbourne, an impressive work painted with bold brushstrokes and a vivid colourful palette which typifies the artists work.

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Born in Riga,Latvia in 1908 - After displaying an early talent for art she studied at The Latvian Academy Of Fine Arts graduating in 1940. Later that year she married Otto Meilerts, an Economist, and they moved to Stuttgart, Germany to avoid living under Soviet occupation and then emigrated to Australia in 1948 settling in Melbourne. She worked as a nurse's aid and in a clothing factory to fund the further development of her artistic career achieving considerable early success with her colourful work encompassing portraiture, florals and city and landscapes. She particularly like painting dockland scenes.



She was a member of The Victorian Artists Society (VAS) and The Melbourne Society Of Woman Painters And Sculptors.

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Major prizes include The Dunlop Prize in 1952, Gosford Art prize 1971, Camberwell 1973, VAS Purstitz Gold Medal 1982. She is represented in The State Galleries of Victoria, NSW, Tasmania and Western Australia as well as several regional Galleries.​

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Physical description

Still life of fruit and a jog. Painted in thick impasto paint, creating a very textured surface. Fruit is depicted in green, brown, apricot, pink and red. Background is abstract. Upper left background is brown, upper centre and right background is in shades of grey, blue and green, with some white. Brown wooden frame.

Inscriptions & markings

Front: L Meilerts 70 (lower right, black paint)