Sculptors' Society Of Australia on:
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The Sculptors’ Society of Australia was formed in 1932 and ceased its activity with the onset of WW2, in 1939.
In 1932
History
In 1932 W. Leslie Bowles
William Leslie Bowles (26 February 1885 Alan McCuloch has 16 February – 21 February 1954), commonly referred to as Leslie Bowles or W. Leslie Bowles, was an Australian sculptor and medallist.
Education
Bowles was born to William Hixson Bow ...
met with Orlando Dutton
Orlando Henry Dutton (1 April 1894, Walsall – 7 August 1962, Melbourne) was an English-born Australian monumental, figurative and architectural sculptor.
Early life
Orlando Dutton (sometimes styled H. Orlando Dutton, and known as Harry) was ...
, Wallace Anderson, Ola Cohn, George Allen and Charles Oliver, proposing to form a Sculptors’ Society in the hope that commissions could be shared amongst the Society members. The Sculptors’ Society of Australia was duly instituted with Bowles, as Secretary, its only office bearer in a position he held through the life of the Society. The State Library of Victoria holds Ola Cohn’s unpublished manuscript ''Me in the making'' which documents the Society’s establishing meeting.
Sydney sculptors Paul Montford
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Paul Raphael Montford (1 November 1868 – 15 January 1938) was an English-born sculptor, also active in Australia; winner of the gold medal of the Royal Society of British Sculptors in 1934.Jenny Zimmer,Montford, Paul Raphael (1868–19 ...
and Raynor Hoff Raynor is an English surname which was first found in the historic county of Yorkshire and was brought to England after the Norman Conquest as Reyner. The name Reyner either derived from the Old Norse ''Ragnar'' meaning 'counsel' or the Gallo-Roman ...
, and Daphne Mayo of Brisbane, joined the Society and later the younger professional sculptors, Lyndon Dadswell and Stanley Hammond, also became members. In its next ten years until its demise because of the War, the Society promoted seven competitions for major public sculptures, of which Bowles won four, Hammond two and Anderson one; none of the other members being successful.
Commissions, exhibitions and awards
In April 1933 the first group exhibition of sculpture to be held in Melbourne was organised by members Dutton, Bowles, Anderson, Cohn, George Allen, and Oliver. Arthur Streeton enthusiastically welcomed the exhibition and expressed surprise that Australia, which had a clear atmosphere and a suitable climate to show sculpture to its best advantage, did not make more of it. An illustration of Dutton's plaster maquette of ''St. George
Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...
'' from the show was published in ''Art in Australia'' in December that year.
Members of the Society, were active from the mid-1930s in entering sculpture awards; the Melbourne City Council competition for sculpture to decorate the Fitzroy Gardens was won by Leslie Bowles. In December 1935, for the (Sir John) Monash Equestrian Memorial, entries by Montford, Dadswell, Dutton, Hoff, Anderson, Henry Harvey and A. de Bono were exhibited in Melbourne at the new Arts and Crafts Society gallery; the entry by winner, again being Bowles, was not exhibited.
In 1935, with rules set by the Society and auspiced by the Red Cross, another competition was won by Anderson for ''The Man With The Donkey'', installed at the Shrine of Remembrance, Melbourne.
References