Charles Blackman surrounded by flowers and a white rabbit

This portrait of Charles Blackman (1928-2018) by Jon Molvig (1923-70) alludes both to the friendship between Molvig and Blackman and to Blackman’s series of ‘Alice’ paintings in which he was immersed at the time — Blackman is depicted surrounded by flowers and accompanied by a white rabbit. Jon Molvig ‘Charles Blackman’ Molvig and Blackman established…

Lyrical Lines: Examining two Drawings by Charles Blackman

The preparation of artworks by Gallery Conservators for the exhibition ‘Lure of the Sun: Charles Blackman in Queensland‘ offered an opportunity to observe Blackman’s deliberate selection of certain materials and techniques to depict his subjects. This exhibition explores Blackman’s formative relationships with Queensland artists and writers that were pivotal in his development as one of Australia’s…

Charles Blackman’s ‘The Blue Alice’

In 1956, Barbara Blackman brought home a talking book machine and one of the first books the Blackmans ‘read’ was Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. This was Charles Blackman’s first encounter with the story and, importantly, it lacked any illustrations to impose on his imagination. Barbara came to stand for Alice herself. Her struggle…

Vale: Judy Cassab

The Gallery acknowledges the recent passing of Judy Cassab (15 August 1920 – 3 November 2015), one of Australia’s much loved and respected artists and best known for being the first woman to twice win the prestigious Archibald portrait prize. Judy Cassab was born in 1920 in Vienna of Hungarian parents. She studied in Budapest…

Vale: Ray Crooke AO

The Gallery acknowledges the passing of Ray Crooke AO (12 July 1922–5 December 2015), and we pause to reflect on his unique vision, particularly of the tropical north of Queensland, and celebrate his extraordinary contribution to Australian art. Crooke was a romantic-realist artist whose images emerged from an acute and highly sensitive observation of the…

Turning the pages of Charles Blackman’s sketchbook

Sketchbooks have long been used by artists to jot down ideas, contemplate on particular moments and note creative reflections. They are a personal record of inspirational imagery that may later be referred to when developing ideas and composition for other works. Charles Blackman’s Buderim Mt Sketchbook: Civilization versus Eden, dated 1984, affords us a behind-the-scenes glimpse…