The Royal Society of Tasmania started an art collection at its inception in 1843. This collection was formed in an ad hoc manner by donation, then around 1900, with federation looming the society became concerned that Tasmania’s unique character, history and identity would be swallowed up and lost in the larger Australian identity. The society then set about assembling art, writings, maps, publications, records and other ephemera to construct a collection that would build a historical record of the early days of European settlement. Among the prominent artists of the era featured in the collection are; Louisa Anne Meredith, Simpkin de Wesselow, William Charles Piguenit, John Skinner Prout and Owen Stanley. This talk will investigate the well over 900 works of the art collection which are housed at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery.
To view Anita's slide presentation while listening to her talk, click here