The Drover's Wife

Last updated

The Drover's Wife
Drysdale The Drover's Wife 1945.JPG
Artist Russell Drysdale
Year 1945
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensions51.5 cm× 61.5 cm(20.3 in× 24.2 in)
Location National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

The Drover's Wife is an oil painting on canvas executed in 1945 by Australian artist Russell Drysdale. It depicts a flat, barren landscape with a woman in a plain dress in the foreground. The drover with his horses and wagon are in the background. [1] The painting has been described as "an allegory of the white Australian people's relationship with this ancient land." [1] Henry Lawson's 1892 short story "The Drover's Wife" is widely seen as an inspiration for the painting, although Drysdale denied that. [2]

The painting is now part of the collection of the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Gray, Anne. "The Drover's Wife". National Gallery of Australia. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
  2. "The Drover's Wife: Henry Lawson helps create our Mona Lisa" by Frank Moorhouse, The Australian , 27 October 2017