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Mary Macqueen

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For the New Zealand social worker, born in Ballarat, see Mary McQueen.

Mary McCartney Macqueen (29 January 1912 – 15 September 1994) was an Australian artist who was known for her drawing, printmaking and mixed media works on paper. Her artistic style was expressive, gestural and experimental.[1][2]

Life, training and influences

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Macqueen was born Mary McCartney Ballantine, elder daughter of Mr and Mrs A. D. Ballantine,[3] in Carlton, Victoria, on 29 January 1912.[2] Inspired by her grandmother's drawings, and encouraged by her parents, she developed a love for drawing from early childhood.[4] Her primary and secondary schooling was at the Princes Hill State School, Mount Albert Central School and the Methodist Ladies College in Melbourne.[4] She studied commercial art for one year in 1927 at the Swinburne Technical College,[4][5] and took private drawing lessons with Catherine Hardess in 1928 at Hawthorn.[6]

In 1930, at the age of eighteen, she married (Thomas) Allan Macqueen or McQueen,[3] son of Rev. Finlay McQueen (died 18 November 1934),[7] a widowed accountant and fruit exporter with two sons, Frederick and Allan.[8] Over the ensuing ten years she did very little drawing and was instead occupied with raising those two and her own daughter and two sons, born between 1931 and 1935.[4] In 1939 Macqueen resumed her drawing and also began to experiment with watercolour painting.[4] In 1941 she returned to Swinburne Technical College to study with William Dargie for a term.[6] Her subject matter during this period consisted of everyday domestic scenes at her home, and the buildings, landscapes and people of Melbourne.[4] In March 1945 she held her first solo exhibition of watercolours at the Kozminsky Galleries in Melbourne.[6] In 1946 she attended drawing sessions with George Bell, who spoke to her about Cubism, Georges Braque and Rauol Dufy.[6] However, her intuitive drawing style was at odds with his highly structural approach and she ceased the lessons when her fourth child was born.[4]

Between 1956 and 1958 Macqueen attended printmaking classes at the Royal Melbourne Technical College, now RMIT University, where she developed a fascination for lithography.[6][4] To be able to print at home, she converted an old hand mangle into a press,[2] which she continued to use throughout her artistic career.[4] As her printmaking skills and experience increased she was asked to teach for one day a week at RMIT. This was later expanded to include instructing students in free drawing techniques. She taught at RMIT for more than a decade.[4][9]

In the 1960s, Macqueen began to focus on animals as the subject matter for her work.[4] She often visited the Melbourne Zoo to draw animals from life and was particularly fond of drawing giraffes.[4] After her husband died in September 1970 she embarked on several overseas trips, which included visits to England, Mexico, Kenya, Bangladesh, Canada and the United States.[4] Works from her travels were presented at Leveson Street Gallery. These travel experiences contributed to the 1980s being described by Macqueen as "the decade which was to become the most interesting and productive in my life".[4]

Mary Macqueen died at the age of 82 on 15 September 1994.[2]

Style and works

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Macqueen's artistic style was typically spontaneous, expressive and gestural. She specialised in line drawing, lithography and mixed media works on paper.[4] Her most successful line drawings efficiently distill the character and essential qualities of her subject matter, which included animals, landscapes and scenes of domestic life.[10] Throughout her career she sought to draw the perfect line.[1] Macqueen believed that "a good pure-line drawing takes every ounce of concentration and effort and is a rare achievement".[4]

In the 1970s, the discovery of handmade Nepalese paper in a Buddhist shop was a crucial moment for Macqueen, as it allowed her to explore drawing on the reverse of the paper to create soft translucent colours and delicate tonal washes.[11] A 1988 exhibition of paper works at the Powell Street Gallery, Melbourne consisted of ink, gouache and collage works on Nepalese paper, notably omitting her line drawings. Many of the works were based on scenes from countries she had visited, and they demonstrate the breadth of her experimentation with the medium.[11] Her work in the exhibition shows influences of Cubism and Fauvism.[11]

Accomplishments

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Awards

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Macqueen was the recipient of numerous prizes, including

Selected solo exhibitions

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The exact number of Macqueen's solo exhibitions is uncertain. Some sources cite "about 26"[12] and others "just under 30"[9]

Selected group exhibitions

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Represented

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Macqueen is represented in many major Australian art galleries such as the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Queensland Art Gallery and numerous regional Australian art galleries.[12] Numerous works are also held in the Cruthers Collection of Women's Art.[15]

Further reading

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See also

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Kenneth Macqueen (1897–1960), another Australian watercolorist, but not known to be related

References

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  1. ^ a b Charles, Nodrum (2010). "Mary Macqueen: selected works, drawings, watercolours, pastels, collages". Monash University. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d "Mary MacQueen". Art Gallery of New South Wales. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Family Notices". Table Talk. No. 3174. Victoria, Australia. 7 March 1929. p. 81. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Grimshaw, Patricia, ed. (1994). The Half-Open Door: Sixteen modern Australian women look at professional life and achievement. QAGOMA Research Library: Hale & Iremonger Pty Limited. p. 86. ISBN 0-86806-049-6.
  5. ^ "Mary MacQueen". National Gallery of Australia. 25 September 2019.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Biography of Mary MacQueen". Charles Nodrum Gallery. 25 September 2019.
  7. ^ "Obituary". The Dandenong Journal. Vol. 70, no. 47. Victoria, Australia. 22 November 1934. p. 5. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ "Family Notices". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 23, 942. Victoria, Australia. 2 May 1923. p. 14. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^ a b Macqueen, Mary. "Mary Macqueen". National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  10. ^ Macqueen, Mary (1986). The Drawings of Mary Macqueen. Lilydale Victoria 3140: Pioneer Design Studio. ISBN 0909674302.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  11. ^ a b c Mary Macqueen: paperworks, 1968-1988: a survey. Melbourne: Powell Street Gallery. 1988. p. 9.
  12. ^ a b c McCulloch, Susan (2006). the New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art. Carlton, Victoria: The Miegunyah press. p. 655. ISBN 052285317-X.
  13. ^ "Art Exhibition". The Age. No. 28041. Victoria, Australia. 6 March 1945. p. 3. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  14. ^ "Art Notes". The Age. No. 29060. Victoria, Australia. 16 June 1948. p. 2. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  15. ^ "Cruthers Collection of Women's Art: Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery: The University of Western Australia". www. lwgallery.uwa.edu.au. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
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