 |
 |
 |
A new exhibition entitled Bright and Beautiful – creatures great and small opened Wednesday 1 August 2007, at the Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts, State Library of Tasmania.This exhibition features fascinating and beautiful illustrations of the natural world, principally focussing on 19th Century work from French navigator Dumont d’Urville’s intrepid voyages to the South Seas and Englishman John Gould’s well-known images of Australian birds and mammals. The works in the exhibition are superb examples of both the art of scientific illustration and the craft of lithography. These images are hand-coloured, with particular attention given to plumage, skin and the treatment of the eyes, using glazes of albumen and other techniques which give an uncanny and highly artistic life and energy to the scientific work. The fine detail and particular attention to facial features give an air of the creatures as having human characteristics. Bright and Beautiful – creatures great and small moves its focus from the voyages of d’Urville towards Australian and then specifically Tasmanian fauna as subjects of the illustrators’ art. The broader Australian view is represented by artists in the tradition of John Gould, such as Harriet Scott and Helena Forde. The naturalist John Gray, whose contribution to Australian zoology is considered by many to be second only to Gould’s, is also represented. Finally, in recent works by three contemporary Tasmanian photographers, Ricky Eaves, Peter Dombrovskis and Dave Watts, the viewer engages directly with rare moments of high emotional appeal. This exhibition will appeal to lovers of fine art or natural history, and to anyone who appreciates the special beauty of historical art, especially the art of scientific drawing and lithography. |
|
