Violet Emma Vimpany (née Alomes, 15 April 1886 – 2 March 1979) was an Australian painter and
etcher
Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
, and in later life also a master
stonemason.
She was an active member of, and regular exhibitor with, the Art Society of Tasmania.
Her work is held in the permanent collection of the
Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
The Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) is a museum located in Hobart, Tasmania. The museum was established in 1846, by the Royal Society of Tasmania, the oldest Royal Society outside England.
The TMAG receives 400,000 visitors annually.
...
.
Early life and education
Vimpany was born in 1886 in
Forcett, Tasmania
Forcett is a mainly rural locality, with an urban area on the outskirts of neighbouring Lewisham. It is in the local government area of Sorell in the South-east region of Tasmania. The locality is about south-east of the town of Sorell. The ...
, one of eight children (four girls and four boys) of Walter Alomes and Emma Jane Parker. She studied art at Hobart Technical College in 1928 and 1931 to 1932, under the tutelage of Belgian-born Australian artist,
Lucien Dechaineux.
Career
During the 1930s Vimpany shared a studio at 76 Collins Street in Hobart with other women artists of the time, including
Edith Holmes,
Mildred Lovett,
Ethel Nicholls,
Florence Rodway, and
Dorothy Stoner. It is presumed that during this time Holmes painted the artwork ''Portrait of Violet Vimpany'' (Masterpiece Fine Art Gallery Hobart).
From 1936 to 1939, when in her fifties, Vimpany regularly traveled from Hobart to
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
to study with Scottish-born Australian artist and art teacher,
Max Meldrum
Duncan Max Meldrum (3 December 1875 – 6 June 1955) was a Scottish-born Australian artist and art teacher, best known as the founder of Australian tonalism, a representational painting style that became popular in Melbourne during the interwa ...
. Her work became highly regarded and was exhibited in the 1939 exhibition, International Women: Painter, Sculptors, Gravers, held at the Riverside Museum (now the
Master Building) in Manhattan, New York.
Vimpany was a council member of
The Art Society of Tasmania from 1936 to 1952, and exhibited with them for over forty years (1932–1975).
As a philanthropist and champion of women's rights, she was a member of the Hobart
Soroptimist
Soroptimist International (SI) is a global volunteer service organization for women with nearly 72,000 members in 121 countries worldwide. According to Soroptimist.org, their mission statement says that, "Soroptimist is a global volunteer organiza ...
Club (changing to the
Soroptimist
Soroptimist International (SI) is a global volunteer service organization for women with nearly 72,000 members in 121 countries worldwide. According to Soroptimist.org, their mission statement says that, "Soroptimist is a global volunteer organiza ...
International of Hobart in the 1970s) – an organisation which advocates for human rights, gender equality, and advancing the status of women.
Her husband died suddenly from a heart attack in 1945, and at the age of 60, she took over his stonemasonry business. Mastering the skills of the masonry trade,
she successfully ran the business for over twenty years. Selling the business in 1969, she retired definitively in 1973, and in that same year was named one of Tasmania's ‘Women of Achievement’.
In 2019, she was listed as one of 156 "Women who shaped Australian art".
She was honorary secretary of the National Council for Women from 1938 to 1940, elected president in 1945, and served as delegate for the NCW at UNRRA in 1945.
Violet Vimpany died on 2 March 1979, aged 92. She is buried at the Forcett Lewisham Cemetery in Tasmania.
Major exhibitions
* 1939 – ''International Women: Painter, Sculptors, Gravers'', Riverside Museum (now the
Master Building), New York
* 1932–1975 – various exhibitions with the Art Society of Tasmania
Personal life
She married Amos William Vimpany, the foremost
stonemason of
Hobart, and also a former student of Hobart Technical College. They had two daughters, Violet (‘Vi’) and Gwendolene (‘Gwen’).
References
External links
Image of A. Vimpany Monumental StonemasonDesign & Art Australia OnlineTasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vimpany, Violet
1886 births
1979 deaths
20th-century Australian artists
Australian etchers
Australian stonemasons
Burials in Tasmania