Australia [Bondi]
Artist
Percival Trompf
(Australian, 1902 - 1964)
Publisher
Troedel & Cooper Pty Ltd
Datec 1935
Object number00008652
NamePoster
MediumColour lithograph on paper
DimensionsOverall: 1 x 648 mm, 1.75 kg
Copyright© Percy Trompf Artistic Trust
ClassificationsPosters and postcards
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionThis travel poster by Percy Trompf was produced by the Australian National Travel Association to promote international travel to Australia in the 1930s. The coloured lithographic image is of a lively beach scene on a summer's day at Bondi Beach in Sydney, the most famous beach in Australia.
Beaches were popular subjects for poster artists whose mission was to tempt international travellers to visit this far-away country. Artists working for the Australian National Travel Association commonly used scenes of popular iconic beaches to promote travel.
HistoryAustralian beaches were promoted as a cornerstone of Australian life along with the outback and helped to establish notions of Australian identity. Bondi Beach is one of Australia's most iconic and famous beaches and is used in all forms of advertising to represent and promote Australian culture.
The Australian National Travel Association (ANTA) was formed in 1929 to promote Australia as a tourist destination around the world through advertising. It was funded by shipping companies, railway departments and government tourist bureaus.
Posters were the main promotional medium for the ANTA, which developed extensive networks overseas with representatives in England, the United States, New Zealand, Canada, India, China, Japan and France.
Percival Trompf (1902-1981) is one of the best known Australian poster artists and was commissioned to produce posters for ANTA. Trompf was born in Victoria and attended Ballarat School of Mines and Industries; he opened a studio and designed thousands of advertising posters for such prominent Australian companies as Bryant & May Pty Ltd, Palmolive Co Ltd and the travel magazine 'Walkabout'. This poster is one of his most recognisable beach posters designed by Trompf for ANTA.
SignificanceThis highly recognisable poster is a vivid symbol of an era when Australia undertook an aggressive campaign of promotion - with the beach being one of the major attractions. It represents the work of Percival Trompf, one of the Australia's best known poster artists. Trompf's travel poster has become a popular and recognised image of Bondi Beach in the 1930s and illustrates the leisure wear and beach fashions of the day.
