From pressed seaweed, to wildflower painting, embroidery, to photography – botanical wonders have inspired and defined Western Australia. Hear from art historian, author, artist and curator Dr Dorothy Erickson in two events at the State Library of Western Australia.
Lecture: Professional women Artists in the Wildflower State by Dr Dorothy Erickson
Wednesday 23 August 2017 – 5:00-6:00 pm
Great Southern Room – State Library of Western Australia
Free. No bookings required
The first profession acceptable to be practiced by Middle Class women was as an Artist. They were the ‘Angels in the Studio’ at the time when gold was first being found in Western Australia. While a few Western Australian born were trained artists many others came in the wake of the gold rushes when Western Australia was the world’s El Dorado. A number were entranced by the unique wildflowers and made this the mainstay of their careers. This talk will focus on the professional women artists in Western Australia from 1890 to WWI with particular attention to the those who painted our unique botanical wonderland.
Floor Talk on Botanical Wonderland exhibition with Dr Dorothy Erickson
Friday 1 September 2017 – 1:00-1:30 pm
The Nook – State Library of Western Australia
Free. No bookings required.
Be inspired by the botanical wonders of Western Australia as Australian artist Dr Dorothy Erickson discusses some of the marvels on display in the exhibition.
Botanical Wonderland is a partnership between the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, the Western Australian Museum and the State Library of Western Australia. The exhibition is on display at the State Library until 24 September 2017.
Image: Acc 9131A/4: Lilian Wooster Greaves, pressed wildflower artwork, ‘Westralia’s Wonderful Wildflowers’, c1929