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New Arrivals and Diaspora
From Colonial Settlers in the 1800s, to recent arrivals; from expatriate artists to artists that grapple with identity, politics and place: these works from the National Gallery of Victoria explore one of the great themes of Australian Art, revolving around the migrant experience, distance, identity, race and nationhood.
Painting - John Glover, 'The River Nile, Van Diemen's Land, from Mr Glover's farm', 1837, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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A successful painter, teacher and art dealer, John Glover arrived in Australia from London in 1831.
Glover combined his interest in accurate depictions of the light, flora and fauna of Australia with idealised images of Aboriginal people that allude to the dramatic events of European settlement of Australia.
John GLOVER
born Great Britain 1767, died 1849
'The River Nile, Van Diemen's Land, from Mr Glover's farm', 1837
oil on canvas
76.4 x 114.6cm
Felton Bequest, 1956
3359-4
Painting - Tom Roberts, 'Coming South', 1886, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Coming South is a definitive image of the migrant experience, and can be seen to be Tom Roberts' first exploration of one of the great themes of Australian life.
Tom ROBERTS
born Great Britain 1856, died 1931
'Coming South', 1886
oil on canvas
63.5 x 52.2 cm
Gift of Colonel Aubrey H. L. Gibson in memory of John and Anne Gibson, settlers (1887), 1967
1738-5
Painting - Augustus Earle, 'Captain Richard Brooks', 1826-27, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Augustus Earle arrived in Hobart in 1825, moved to Sydney and came to be regarded as the leading artist in the colony.
Augustus EARLE
Great Britain 1793–1838 worked in Australia 1825–28
'Captain Richard Brooks', (1826–27)
oil on canvas
73.9 x 61.0 cm
Purchased, 1977
A33-1977
Painting - Augustus Earle, 'Mrs Richard Brooks', 1826-27, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Captain and Mrs Brooks were prominent settlers and pastoralists who, like many in their social milieu, commissioned Earle to paint their portraits.
Augustus EARLE
Great Britain 1793–1838
worked in Australia 1825–28
'Mrs Richard Brooks', (1826–27)
oil on canvas
74.1 x 61.5 cm
Purchased, 1977
A34-1977
Sculpture - Emil Todt, 'The Gold Diggers', 1854, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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The discovery of gold in Victoria in 1851 brought an enormous number of American, Asian and European migrants to Australia.
This moment is the foundation of Australia's extraordinary social diversity. Emil Todt arrived in Melbourne from Germany, and records the excitement and prosperity gold brought to Victoria.
Emil TODT
born Germany (c. 1810), arrived in Australia 1849, died 1900
'The Gold Diggers', 1854
plaster
38.8 x 23.9 x 15.6 cm
Gift of Mrs Leonard Terry, 1884
p.79.2-1
Decorative Object - Ernest Leviny, 'Standing Cup and Cover', 1859, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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This silver cup is one of Ernest Leviny's masterpieces. The cup presents an elaborate allegory of the prospering colony of Victoria.
The personification of Victoria presides over an Australian landscape with gumtrees, kangaroos and emus, figures representing commerce, agriculture, mining and the Aboriginal inhabitants of Victoria.
Ernest LEVINY
born Hungary 1818, arrived in Australia 1853, died 1905
'Standing Cup and Cover', (c. 1859)
silver, gold
(a-c) 48.4 x 15.9 x 15.1 cm (overall)
Felton Bequest, 1970
D9.a-c-1970
Painting - Marshall Claxton, 'An Emigrant's Thoughts of Home', 1859, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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The emigration of millions of British people in the 19th century to countries throughout the world inspired a genre of painting that focused on emotional impact of departure from home and arrival in a new land.
While not specifically about Australia, Marshall Claxton's image represents the more sentimental aspects of migration.
Marshall CLAXTON
Great Britain 1813–81
worked in Australia 1850–54
'An Emigrant's Thoughts of Home', 1859
oil on cardboard
60.7 x 47.0 cm
Presented by the National Gallery Women's Association, 1974
A8-1974
Painting - Louis Buvelot, 'Winter Morning near Heidelberg', 1866, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Before coming to Australia, Louis Buvelot has been associated with the Swiss followers of the Barbizon School, a group of painters who worked on the outskirts of Paris and drew inspiration from the half-settled, half-wild landscapes of the region.
Buvelot is regarded as the pioneer in Australia of outdoor painting, and inspired painters associated with the Heidelberg School.
Louis BUVELOT
born Switzerland 1814, arrived in Australia 1865, died 1888
'Winter Morning Near Heidelberg', 1866
oil on canvas
76.8 x 118.2 cm
Purchased, 1869
p.300.4-1
Painting - Eugene von Guerard, 'Mr Clark's Station, Deep Creek, near Keilor', 1867, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Views of country properties are a discrete category in Eugene von Guérard's work and were profitable commissions.
Walter Clark bought land near Keilor in about 1853 and began building his homestead a few years later on a dramatic site overlooking Deep Creek.
Eugene von GUÉRARD
born Austria 1811, died Great Britain 1901
'Mr Clark's Station, Deep Creek, near Keilor', 1867
oil on canvas
68.4 x 121.8 cm
Purchased with assistance of the National Gallery Society of Victoria and Mr and Mrs Solomon Lew, 1986
A2-1986
Painting - Robert Dowling, 1856-57, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Robert Dowling painted in Tasmania and Victoria for seven years before returning to Great Britain in 1857.
When he revisited Melbourne in 1884 for two years he had a well-established reputation and produced significant portrait commissions.
Robert DOWLING
Great Britain 1827–86
arrived in Australia 1834
worked in Great Britain 1857–84
'Tasmanian Aborigines', 1856–57
oil on canvas
63.6 x 118.6 cm
Purchased, 1949
2102-4
Painting - John Russell, 'Sea and Sky', 1902, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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John Russell was educated in Sydney, London and Paris. He lived most of his life at Belle-Île-en-Mer, a rugged and wind-swept island off the Atlantic coast of France, where he was visited by Claude Monet and Henri Matisse.
John RUSSELL
Australia 1858–1930
'Sea and Sky', 1902
(Mer et ciel)
oil on canvas
63.6 x 79.8 cm
Purchased with the assistance of a special grant from the Government of Victoria, 1979
A67-1980
Painting - Rupert Bunny, 'Endormies', c. 1904, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Born in St Kilda, Rupert Bunny lived in Paris from 1886 until his return to Melbourne in 1933.
His paintings of women engaged in leisurely pursuits were inspired by European masters and brought him greater success than any other Australian working abroad.
Rupert BUNNY
Australia 1864–1947
worked in Europe 1884–1933
'Endormies', c. 1904
oil on canvas
131.0 x 200.5 cm
Felton Bequest, 1911
549-2
Painting - Yvonne Audette, 'Il Miracolo', 1957-58, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Between 1955 and 1965, Yvonne Audette studied in Europe and America.
II miracolo reveals Audette's absorption of Italian and French modernist abstraction and was produced at the beginning of a period during which the artist exhibited widely in Europe.
Yvonne AUDETTE
born Australia 1930
'Il Miracolo', 1957-1958
oil on (composition board)
159.6 x 127.0 cm
Purchased through The Art Foundation of Victoria with the assistance of Coles Myer Ltd, Governor, 1991
Painting - Tom Roberts, 'Madame Pfund', 1887, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Elise Pfund arrived in Melbourne from Switzerland in 1863. She ran Oberwyl, an exclusive girls school in the Melbourne suburb of St Kilda, from 1867 to 1885.
Along with her husband, she was an important patron of artists associated with the Heidelberg School.
Tom ROBERTS
born Great Britain 1856, arrived in Australia 1869, died 1931
'Madame Pfund', 1887
oil on canvas on composition board
142.7 x 98.9 cm
Purchased, 1948
1830-4
Furniture - Robert Prenzel, 'Wardrobe from the Mathias Suite', 1906-07, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Despite his acclaim as a leading artist, Robert Prenzel's 'naturalisation' as an Australian citizen in 1897 did not save him from the effects of anti-German feeling during World War I.
In the very different social climate after the war, his Australian Art Nouveau furniture was less in demand, and he found himself deserted by many of his 'society' clients.
Robert PRENZEL
born Prussia 1866, died 1941
'Wardrobe from the Mathias suite', 1906-07
blackbean (Castanospermum australe) and other materials
222.9 x 233.0 x 59.7 cm
Purchased, 1972
D74.b-1972
Furniture - Schulim Krimper, 'Shallow Chest on Stand', c. 1948, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria
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Schulim Krimper arrived in Australia from Austria in 1939. After World War II there was an increased desire for well-designed furniture in a contemporary style that reflected modern living.
Krimper achieved for design a respect that was usually reserved for painters and sculptors.
"A man to whom I sell my furniture must be willing to wax it himself - no, his servants will not do; he must do it himself."
Schulim KRIMPER
born Romania 1893, died 1971
'Shallow Chest on Stand', c. 1948
Australian cedar (Toona ciliata), silver ash (Flindersia bourjotiana), myrtle (Nothofagus cunninghamii), copper, brass
91.5 x 196.2 x 49.0 cm
Purchased, 1948
1043-D4
Photograph - Anne Zahalka, 'The Bathers', 1989, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria and Anne Zahalka
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Artwork, other - Brook Andrew, 'Sexy and Dangerous', 1996, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria and Brook Andrew
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Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria and Brook Andrew
Brook Andrew's people are the Wiradjuri of New South Wales.
"Sexy and dangerous questions past and present modes of cultural representation, particular in stereotypical views of Aboriginality. The loose translation of the Chinese characters to `sexy and dangerous' refers also to concepts of `political correctness' and queer sexuality".
Brook Andrew
Wiradjuri born 1970
'Sexy and Dangerous', 1996
computer-generated colour transparency on transparent synthetic polymer resin
Painting - Jan Nelson, 'International Behaviour', 2000, National Gallery of Victoria
Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria and Jan Nelson
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Courtesy of National Gallery of Victoria and Jan Nelson
Jan Nelson describes her work as the "slippage between fact and fiction ... between the boat leaving its country of origin and its destination, between the audience and the art world or, as in my recent work, between another person's memories and my own."
Jan NELSON
born Australia 1955
'International Behaviour', 2000
oil on canvas
152.4 x 198.1 cm
Purchased through the NGV Foundation with the assistance of The Peter and Susan Rowland Endowment, Governor, 2001
Victorian Collections acknowledges the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
peoples as the first inhabitants of the nation and the traditional custodians of the lands
where we live, learn and work.