artists

A beautiful story about Vida Lahey. By Susan Prior The highly acclaimed Australian artist, Frances Vida Lahey, born in 1882 (d. 1968), was the eldest child of David Lahey and Jane Jemima Walmsley, and one of 12 children, eight boys, and four girls. All four Lahey girls were encouraged by their parents to ‘look to the future’. Vida, who had spent some time in Melbourne at the National Gallery School under the tutelage of, among others Frederick McCubbin, became an artist earning her own income from her paintings and from teaching. In 1912, while the family was living at Greylands in Indooroopilly, she painted her classic Monday Morning, a laundry scene at the house. This painting truly launched her career, and it is now part of the Queensland Art Gallery’s permanent collection, having been donated by Brisbane poet Mme Emily Coungeau. Following this success she worked hard to encourage the arts in Queensland, sitting on a variety of art committees and organising balls, tableaux, and other fund-raising events. But then World War I intervened, and four of Vida’s brothers enlisted. As the oldest sibling, she had assumed the mantle of taking care of her younger siblings, and, in fact, there were 15 Lahey cousins involved in the war, so for Vida it probably seemed a logical and practical course to establish a base in England for when her boys were on leave or were sick so she could look after them. She set sail in 1916 aboard The Magnolia and stayed away for nearly five years. In England she was quickly swept up in the war effort doing volunteer work; it is believed that while she was there she was supported financially by the extended Lahey family. After the war Vida remained in Europe, studying art and traveling, returning to Australia to resume her career in 1921. Vida painted, judged, won awards and received much critical acclaim over her lifetime. She is one of Queensland’s best-loved artists. In 2010–2011, the Queensland Art Gallery held an exhibition of her work. The website page for the exhibition says this: Although floral still lifes were a popular genre throughout Australia at the time, Lahey's handling of brilliant colour was considered exceptional and her paintings were exhibited in southern states from the 1920s to wide acclaim. She continued to produce these delightful floral studies to the end of her career. Source: www.secretbrisbane.com.au/home/vida-lahey

Munch at kornhaug sanatorium, Lillehammer 1900

Artist Feature | Caroline Barker This International Women's Day, we share the work of ​Brisbane artist, Caroline Barker (1894–1988) known primarily for her portraits and still life. ​The work pictured here, 'Untitled (life class model)' was painted in the mid 1920s, after Caroline returned from Europe. ​ ​She shared a studio with Vida Lahey before establishing her own studio which "…was host to visitors from all parts of the globe. Brisbane was a very cosmopolitan city in those war years. The studio became affectionately known as Grand Central Station. It was frequently used for rehearsal of the performing arts. Life classes were held once a week. The studio was crowded with servicemen and women from England, Canada and America. It was a shilling each. Some artists had easels, many sat on the floor, and the war was forgotten for just a short time…" Archie Collins. ​ Caroline also taught art at several Brisbane girl's schools, including Somerville House where her students included Margaret Olley and Margaret Cilento. ​ Celebrate #IWD2020 and visit our current exhibition New Woman, recognising the lives of Brisbane women artists over the past 100 years. Closes March 15. ​ ​Image: Caroline Barker, Untitled (life class model), c1925, oil on canvas, photo: Carl Warner, gift of the artist, 1982, City of Brisbane Collection, Museum of Brisbane ​#EachforEqual Source: www.facebook.com/MuseumofBrisbane/posts/artist-feature-ca...