Sydney Harbour Foreshores at Sunset. Panel 4. Vaucluse to Garden Island
Artist
Muriel Binney
(Australian, 1873 - 1949)
Date1907
Object number00008637
NameFrieze
MediumWatercolour paint on paper mounted on linen.
DimensionsOverall: 500 x 5419 mm, 5 mm
ClassificationsArt
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Jeremy Grover in memory of Doris Frost and Dick Binney, conserved with the assistance of the Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation
DescriptionThis painting is one panel of a 20 metre panoramic frieze of Sydney Harbour foreshores at sunset painted by Muriel Binney for the First Australian Exhibition of Women's Work, held in Melbourne in 1907. The complete panorama was then selected for display in the Australian Pavilion at the Franco-British Exhibition in London in 1908 where it was awarded a silver medal. This particular section of the painting depicts Vaucluse Bay, Rose Bay, Double Bay, Rushcutter's Bay, Potts Point and Garden Island.HistoryPainted as an architectural mural to be displayed in the home, the watercolour is a 360 degree panorama capturing the stillness and gentle light of the Harbour at dusk. Muriel Binney's emphasis is on the boats, the water and the landscape around the Harbour, rather than the sprawling settlement beyond. Working boats and barges are shown, variously silhouetted and highlighted by the setting sun.SignificanceThe frieze is a rare document of Sydney Harbour in the first half of the 20th century depicting a variety of working and leisure craft indicative of the time. The focus is on the harbour life of boats and navigational markers rather than the landforms or buildings that surround it. Although painted for an exhibition of womens work, the frieze stands alone as an exceptional example of the aesthetic and technical skill Binney had in an era when maritime painting and panoramas were genres traditionlly dominated by men.
Parent (child)/Child (parent)
NMC Associated/NMC Associated