Bertram Mackennal
Daphne
Bronze
inscr. l.r. of base: B. MACKENNAL modelled in London. No foundry mark.
42.5
x 15.0
cm
SOLD
Exhibitions:
Exhibited: (various casts) Royal Academy London 1897, no. 2039 (handwritten note listing price as £30); The Fine Art Society, London (date unknown, information from Leonard Joel catalogue, Melbourne, 3 Nov 1993 lot 168A, illus. b/w p78, see below); Early Australian Sculpture, Ballarat Art Gallery, 1976-77, curated by Ron Radford; Spring exhibition, Joseph Brown Gallery, Melbourne 7 - 21 Oct 1974, no. 22 (illus. in cat.); Art Nouveau in Australia, Ballarat Fine Art Gallery 5 Feb - 4 Mar 1981, NGV 21 Mar - 20 Apr., 1981, QAG 19 May - 22 June, 1981, S.H. Ervin Gallery, Sydney, 17 Jul - 17 Aug., 1981 no. 66; Australian Art, colonial to modern, Deutscher Fine Art, Melbourne, 9 -25 Apr., 1986 no. 55 (illus. col. in cat.); Australian Sculpture 1890 - 1919, AGNSW 22 Jan - 22 Feb., 1987; The Great Australian Art exhibition 1788 - 1988, QAG 17 May - 17 July, AGWA 12 Aug - 25 Sept, AGNSW 21 Oct. - 27 Nov; TMAG 21 Dec 1988 - 5 Feb 1989, NGV 1 Mar - 30 Apr 1989, AGSA 23 May - 16 Jul. 1989; Mackennal by Deborah Edwards, AGNSW, 2007. Illus. p 41; Australian Symbolism – The Art of Dreams, Denise Mimmochi. AGNSW, 2012, P42 and p45].
There appear to be three known casts. Our cast is apparently the one listed in Mackennal by Deborah Edwards, AGNSW, 2007, as ‘private collection, UK’. It is an extremely rare early cast. Other known casts are apparently of a later date.
Literature:
References in which the work has been reproduced: 'The pictures of 1897' Pall Mall Pictures, London 1897 p80; Jeremy Cooper, Nineteenth century romantic bronzes, London, 1975 col. p143; Early Australian Sculpture, Ron Radford, Ballarat Art Gallery, 1976-77 illus b/w np; Art Nouveau in Australia, Sydney, Australian Gallery Directors Council, 1981 b/w p11; Selected works. Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, 1982 illus p116; Deborah Edwards, Australian sculpture 1890-1919, Sydney: AGNSW 1987 b/w n.p.; Daniel Thomas, (ed) Creating Australia: 200 years of art 1788 - 1988, Sydney, International Cultural Corp. of Aust. and Art Gallery Board of S.A., 1988, b/w p126-127; 'Australian Art Nouveau and Symbolism' by Clare Williamson, The Australian Antique Collector, Sir Bertrtam Mackennal, Daphne’, 1897, with Scheding Berry Fine Art, Sydney, April, 2014. 4 38th edition, Jul - Dec 1989 col. p77-9; Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 1990-91, p17; Lynne Seear and Julie Ewington, (ed) Brought to light: Australian art 1850 - 1965, QAG, Brisbane, 1998, col. p62; Mackennal by Deborah Edwards, AGNSW, 2007. Illus p 41; ‘Australian Symbolism – The Art of Dreams, Denise Mimmochi. AGNSW, 2012, P42. Other references: The Athenaeum, 10 July 1897 p73; South Australian Register, 7 May, 1897, [reference to Daphne being accepted for the Royal Academy exhibition].