Lewis, Charles James (1830-92; English) Mill-race (1865) Oil on canvas, 61.6 x 102.0 cm Purchased, 1871 National Gallery of Victoria (p.303.1-1) This brooding landscape brings to mind some of the realist novels of the period by George Eliot and Thomas Hardy: is the figure by the river-bank merely melancholy, or contemplating ending it all? The artist,
Lee, Frederick (1798-1879; English) Ben Lawers Oil on board, 35.4 x 45.5 cm Presented by the artist, 1872 National Gallery of Victoria (p.303.9/1) Hoff quotes a label on the work as follows: “Ben Lawers, Argyllshire village from Tainvilt. This sketch was painted from nature in 4 hours; given to Society of Fine Arts by Fred.R.Lee
Lee, Frederick (1798-1879; English) River, Mill and Farm Oil on canvas, 112.4 x 183.0 cm Purchased, 1868 National Gallery of Victoria (p.303.1/1) This undated work was bought on the recommendation of the Commissioners of Fine Arts for Victoria. For the artist, elected to the Royal Academy in 1838, see linked entry. Refs. NGV 1875, p.43; NGV 1879,
Leader, Benjamin Williams (1831-1923; English) In the Fields 1863 Oil on canvas on wood panel, 70.0 x 105.2 cm Purchased, 1873 (advice of E.L.Montefiore) National Gallery of Victoria (p.304.5-1) This is a relatively early work by Leader, a prolific and successful landscape painter who spent much of his earlier life in his native Worcestershire. His
Layraud, Joseph Fortuné (1834-1912; French) Italian Brigands 1870 Oil on canvas, c. 366 x 640 cm Purchased, 1873 (advice of J.R.Herbert) Present location unknown [reproduction: engraving published in Melbourne, 1873] Despite humble origins, Layraud won the Prix de Rome in 1864 and then studied at the French Academy in Rome. This expansive depiction of Calabrian bandits
Law, David (1831-1901; Scottish) Ben Venue and Loch Vennacher, in the Highlands of Scotland Oil on canvas, c.71.3 x 124.5 cm Purchased, 1881; de-accessioned and sold at auction, 1950 Unidentified; present location unknown NGV 1894 quotes lines from Scott’s Lady of the Lake, mentioning “huge Ben Venue.” This canvas was de-accessioned in 1950. The NGV still
Lance, George (1802-64; English) Still Life 1830 Oil on canvas, 46.5 x 35.5 cm Purchased, 1883 National Gallery of Victoria (p.308.11-1) Wood describes Lance as one of “the two greatest exponents of still-life in the Victorian period,” the other being his pupil William Duffield. Lance specialized in meticulous, traditional still lives like this. NGV 1894 notes several
Koller, Wilhelm (Guillaume) (1829-84; Austrian/ Belgian) Parting from Betrothed (Le Départ du Fiancé) 1864 Oil on wood panel, 71.2 x 57.8 cm Purchased, 1864 (advice of Charles Eastlake) National Gallery of Victoria (p.300.17-1) One of the first paintings bought by the Commissioners of Fine Arts on Eastlake’s advice. Echoing historical romances of the period, it typifies
Koekkoek, Hermannus, the Younger (1836-1909; Dutch) Unlading Fishing Smacks, Coast of Normanby Oil on canvas, c. 48 x 78 cm Presented by Canon Bromby, 1889; returned to E.H.Bromby, 1926 Unidentified, present location unknown This work was bequeathed to the NGV in 1889 by Canon J.E.Bromby (1809-89), the first headmaster of Melbourne Grammar School (1857-74): see
Koekkoek, Hermannus, the Younger (1836-1909; Dutch) Land’s End Oil on canvas, c. 56 x 106.7 cm Presented by the artist, 1888; de-accessioned and sold at auction, 1950 Unidentified, present location unknown The present painting is recorded as on loan to the Ballarat Gallery in 1894, and then to the Neerim South Mechanics’ Institute in 1913-14; it
Kneller, Godfrey (1646-1723; German/British) Portrait of a Lady (c.1680) Oil on canvas, 59.5 x 49.0 cm (oval) Presented by Robert Litton, 1886 National Gallery of Victoria (p.311.7-1) This picture was first described, in the NGV’s annual report for 1886 and early catalogues, as the work of an unknown artist, and later listed as an anonymous 18th-century British
Kemp-Welch, Lucy (1869-1958; English) Horses Bathing in the Sea 1900 Oil on canvas, 152.9 x 306.5 cm Purchased, 1900 (advice of the Royal Academy) National Gallery of Victoria (93-2) This expansive (10-foot-wide), vividly realized image of soldiers with their steeds must have made a powerful impression in the NGV of the early 1900s. Painted in Dorset
Kemp, John (active 1876-80; Australian) Edward Henty 1880 Oil on canvas, 118 x 89 cm (sight) Gift of Mrs Edward Henty, 1880 State Library of Victoria (H141881) Henty (1810-78) was Victoria’s first settler, arriving in Portland from Tasmania in 1834, and running Merino sheep and cattle together with his brother Francis. This portrait was framed
Kemp, John (active 1876-80; Australian) John Pascoe Fawkner 1877 Oil on canvas, 120 x 90 cm (sight) Presented by subscribers, 1877 State Library of Victoria (H141882) This portrait of Fawkner (1792-1869), one of the founders of Melbourne, and a significant early donor to the art collection, was painted after his death, probably from a photograph, and
Kauffmann, Hugo (1844-1915; German) Card Players in a Country Inn 1872 Oil on wood panel, 25.2 x 33.5 cm Purchased, 1879 National Gallery of Victoria (p.307.3-1) This rustic tavern scene appears to be typical of the output of this Munich artist. The current NGV catalogue notes that it was purchased from Fletcher’s Gallery, Melbourne. Refs. 1879,
Johnson, Ernest Borough (1866-1949; English) A Salvation Army Shelter 1891 Oil on canvas, 61.6 x 97.0 cm Purchased, 1892 (advice of Hubert von Herkomer) National Gallery of Victoria (p.399.2-1) Johnson, a portraitist and genre painter, was an alumnus of Herkomer’s Hertfordshire art school, and painted several portraits of his teacher. According to the 1905 NGV catalogue,
Joanowitch, Paul (1859-1957; Serbian) The Traitor (1885-90) Oil on canvas, 100.4 x 150.5 cm Purchased, 1890 National Gallery of Victoria (p.318.1-1) The NGV’s online catalogue gives the nationality of the artist (also known as Jovanović, Joanovitch, Joanovits etc.) as “Austro-Hungarian,” indicating that he was born in Versecz, Serbia, and died in Vienna. He specialized in narrative
Jackson, John (1778-1831; English), attributed to Sir David Wilkie, c.1815 Oil on canvas, 76.4 x 63.5 cm Purchased 1877 (advice of Archibald Michie) National Gallery of Victoria (3063/1) Bought for a small sum, this work was regarded initially as a self-portrait by the noted Scottish painter David Wilkie (1785-1841), and was still catalogued as such in
Innocenti, Guglielmo (active in the second half of the 19th century; Italian) Italian Peasants Canvas, c.74 x 99 cm Purchased, 1870 (advice of Charles Summers) Unidentified; present location unknown Bought for the NGV on Summers’ advice, this work no longer appears to be in the NGV, although it was still in the collection in 1943.
Hunt, D.C. (?) (19th century?) Langley Dell Oil on canvas, 31.0 x 37.3 cm Gift of Robert Litton, 1889 National Gallery of Victoria (p.313.8-1) To date, no details have been found for the painter responsible for this landscape, listed in the NGV’s annual report for 1889 and the gallery’s current online catalogue as “D.C.Hunt” (but as
Hunt, Alfred William (1830-96; English) Moonrise, near Bamborough Castle Oil on canvas, c. 76.2 x 121.9 cm Purchased, 1873 (advice of J.R.Herbert) Unidentified; present location unknown In NGV 1894, this work was catalogued with an accompanying quote from Sir Walter Scott regarding “proud Bamborough,” and noted as then on loan to the Bendigo Art Gallery. It
Humphrey, Tom (1858-1922; Scottish/Australian) Under a Summer Sun 1895 Oil on canvas, 50.8 x 76.4 cm Purchased, 1895 (advice of Bernard Hall) National Gallery of Victoria (17-2) Humphrey, a lesser light in the “Heidelberg School” firmament, nevertheless produced several key examples of Australian Impressionism, notably On the way to school, acquired by the Warrnambool Art Gallery in
Hodgson, John Evan (1831-95; English) Arab Prisoners 1870 Oil on canvas, 94 x 185.7 cm Purchased, 1871 (advice of Alfred Thomson); de-accessioned after 1943 Present location unknown; last noted at auction in London, 2006 [photo: work as auctioned in London in 2006] This canvas, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1870, was listed as hanging
Hillemacher, Eugène-Ernest (1818-87; French) Psyche in the Underworld 1865 Oil on canvas, 117.0 x 90.0 cm Gift of Gustave Curcier, 1872 National Gallery of Victoria (p.306.6-1) Hillemacher, a French academician, was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honour in the year this work was painted and shown at the Paris Salon. Psyche is shown venturing
Herring, John Frederick, Junior (1820/21-1907; English) Horses and Pigs (c.1864) Oil on canvas, 36.5 x 61.5 cm Purchased, 1864 (advice of Charles Eastlake) National Gallery of Victoria (p.300.16-1) This barnyard scene, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1864, was among the first paintings bought for Melbourne, and was apparently a popular work during the collection’s early years.
Herkomer, Hubert von (1849-1914) Queen Victoria (1891) Oil on canvas, 239 x 148.6 cm. Purchased, 1892 National Gallery of Victoria (p.397.2-1) This classic image of Queen Victoria in her mature pomp is described in NGV 1894 as based on “Gilbert’s statue of the Queen erected in 1887 at Winchester.” In 1894, it presided over the
Hering, George Edwards (1805-79; English) Druidical monuments at dawn in the Isle of Arran 1871 Oil on canvas, 89.7 x 139.0 cm Purchased, 1872 (advice of J.R.Herbert) National Gallery of Victoria (p.303.5-1) Arran, in the Firth of Clyde, is well known for its Neolithic monuments; the standing stones depicted here form part of one of the groups on
Herdman, Robert (1829-88; Scottish) The Fern Gatherer – West Highands 1864 Oil on canvas, 70.2 x 60.0 cm Purchased by the Commisioners of Fine Arts for Victoria, 1864 (advice of Sir Charles Eastlake) National Gallery of Victoria (p.300.15-1) This typically Victorian painting, shown at the Royal Academy in London in 1864, was one of the first works
Herbert, John Rogers (1810-90; English) Moses bringing down the Tablets of the Law 1877 Oil on paper on canvas, 344.4 x 633.5 cm Purchased by commission, 1878 National Gallery of Victoria (p.306.4-1) This huge canvas (over 20 feet wide) is a replica of a mural painted by Herbert in the Houses of Parliament, London, 1858-64. T.S.R.Boase,
Heffner, Karl (1849-1925; German) A Flitting Gleam before the Storm (c.1880) Oil on canvas, 80.5 x 121.0 cm Purchased, 1884 National Gallery of Victoria (p.310.4-1) This was the first of Heffner’s moody landscapes to enter the Melbourne collection. The combination of reflections and distant light in this work brings to mind Australian painter William Charles