Medallion
Maker & role
Thomas Woolner (b.1825, d.1892), Sculptor
Production date
1854
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Object detail
Title
James Macarthur
Production place
Collection
Measurements
Medallion, Diam: 22cm (Diam: 220mm); Frame & medallion, Diam: 33cm (Diam: 330mm)
Subject person
Signature & marks
- Inscribed lower centre: 'T. Woolner, Sc. / 1854'
- Clyde Bank label (printed & handwritten label) in centre of reverse: 'CLYDE BANK/ 43 LOWER FORT STREET,/ THE ROCKS, SYDNEY 2000/ TELEPHONE: (02) 9241 4776/ FACSIMILE: (02) 9251 4991' (printed). ‘Mis 8 / ThomAs WooLNER 1825-1892 / PORTRAIT MedALLioN / JAMES MACARTHUR, 1854’ (handwritten).
- Sotheby’s label (printed & handwritten) on lower right of reverse: ‘27186/1 OF 6’ (handwritten). ‘SOTHEBY’S / FOUNDED 1744’ (printed).
- Clyde Bank label (printed & handwritten label) in centre of reverse: 'CLYDE BANK/ 43 LOWER FORT STREET,/ THE ROCKS, SYDNEY 2000/ TELEPHONE: (02) 9241 4776/ FACSIMILE: (02) 9251 4991' (printed). ‘Mis 8 / ThomAs WooLNER 1825-1892 / PORTRAIT MedALLioN / JAMES MACARTHUR, 1854’ (handwritten).
- Sotheby’s label (printed & handwritten) on lower right of reverse: ‘27186/1 OF 6’ (handwritten). ‘SOTHEBY’S / FOUNDED 1744’ (printed).
Credit line
Gift, through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program, 2004
Caroline Simpson Collection, Museum of Sydney Collection, Museums of History New South Wales
Caroline Simpson Collection, Museum of Sydney Collection, Museums of History New South Wales
Caption
James Macarthur (1854)
Description
Bronze portrait medallion in bas relief of James Macarthur (1798-1867) by Thomas Woolner, 1854. During the mid nineteenth century the portrait medallion had heroic associations and was seen as a public, rather than a private art form. The ability to produce multiple casts, in different mediums, created a viable market in the colony for these images. Apart from private family ownership, these portraits were also sought after by colonists of ‘a nationalist persuasion’.
English sculptor Thomas Woolner (1825- 1892) trained in the studio of William Behnes, one of Britain’s eminent sculptors, before leaving England in 1852 to try his luck on the Victorian goldfields. After limited success he returned to his original profession seven months later. Early in 1854 Woolner moved to Sydney and, after receiving widespread acclaim for his portrait medallion of William Charles Wentworth, his work was much in demand by clients who were landowners, government officials, civil servants, professionals and merchants.
Landowner, pastoralist and politician James Macarthur was born at Elizabeth Farm, Parramatta, the fourth son of Elizabeth and John Macarthur. After completing his education in England in 1817, Macarthur spent a decade managing his personal and family’s estates, extending their pastoral holdings and consolidating their powerful economic and social position in the colony. Actively involved in politics for most of his life, Macarthur was elected a member of the NSW Legislative Assembly for the West Division of Canada (1856-1857) and a member of the Legislative Council (1866-1867). He also was a member of the first Senate of the University of Sydney.
Woolner’s portraits followed the traditions of Renaissance medallic sculpture which drew upon the form of the Roman medal but his work was noted for his accuracy in modelling realistic detail. The Australian casts were originally in plaster and no evidence has been found to indicate that the reliefs were ever locally cast in bronze. When Woolner returned to England in 1854, he took several of these plaster reliefs for casting in bronze. These Australian medallions drew attention to his merits as a portraitist and he continued to work successfully in this genre on both private and major public commissions. In 1874 he was elected to the Royal Academy and taught briefly as Professor of Sculpture between 1877-1879.
English sculptor Thomas Woolner (1825- 1892) trained in the studio of William Behnes, one of Britain’s eminent sculptors, before leaving England in 1852 to try his luck on the Victorian goldfields. After limited success he returned to his original profession seven months later. Early in 1854 Woolner moved to Sydney and, after receiving widespread acclaim for his portrait medallion of William Charles Wentworth, his work was much in demand by clients who were landowners, government officials, civil servants, professionals and merchants.
Landowner, pastoralist and politician James Macarthur was born at Elizabeth Farm, Parramatta, the fourth son of Elizabeth and John Macarthur. After completing his education in England in 1817, Macarthur spent a decade managing his personal and family’s estates, extending their pastoral holdings and consolidating their powerful economic and social position in the colony. Actively involved in politics for most of his life, Macarthur was elected a member of the NSW Legislative Assembly for the West Division of Canada (1856-1857) and a member of the Legislative Council (1866-1867). He also was a member of the first Senate of the University of Sydney.
Woolner’s portraits followed the traditions of Renaissance medallic sculpture which drew upon the form of the Roman medal but his work was noted for his accuracy in modelling realistic detail. The Australian casts were originally in plaster and no evidence has been found to indicate that the reliefs were ever locally cast in bronze. When Woolner returned to England in 1854, he took several of these plaster reliefs for casting in bronze. These Australian medallions drew attention to his merits as a portraitist and he continued to work successfully in this genre on both private and major public commissions. In 1874 he was elected to the Royal Academy and taught briefly as Professor of Sculpture between 1877-1879.
Accession number
MOS2005/12
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