William Robinson: The farmyards: 23 July 2013 - 08 June 2014

FOREWORD

It has now been four years since the official opening of the William Robinson Gallery at Old Government House, located at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Gardens Point campus, and we at QUT are very pleased to launch our sixth exhibition, William Robinson: The farmyards. Although mostly known for his landscape paintings, William Robinson's farmyard paintings are among his most loved works. The 'farmyard' period began in the early 1970s when the Robinsons moved to Birkdale, a semi-rural suburb in the bay area south east of Brisbane. During this time, an array of farm animals and family pets, including cows, goats, ducks and chickens, became enduring subjects of Robinson's paintings. William Robinson: The farmyards is the first comprehensive exhibition of this period. It celebrates the artist's whimsical take on his environment and explores a unique painting style and vision that has underpinned Robinson's practice for over four decades. The exhibition includes many artworks that have been recently acquired by QUT’s William Robinson Collection, including the exquisite Untitled 1985 pastel work, donated by QUT’s Associate Professor Glenn Thomas in memory of his wife Robin; Four cows 1979, one of the first painting experiments by Robinson in the oval cow-portrait format, acquired through the William Robinson Acquisition Fund; and the artist’s first Archibald Prize for Portraiture entry, William and Josephine 1982–83, donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program. With the opening of this new exhibition, QUT has also taken the opportunity to dedicate a gallery space to display the newly acquired Blue pools, Beechmont to Springbrook 2000. Acknowledged as one of the artist’s most important works, Blue pools is the most significant acquisition of a single artwork made by the University and is a major addition to our William Robinson Collection. We are excited that the public can now enjoy this extraordinary painting. Strategic developments in the Collection will be further showcased in the future as we work to develop a travelling exhibition of William Robinson’s work so that all Australians have the opportunity to appreciate one of the nation’s most celebrated and gifted artists. QUT is indebted to many people for their ongoing support, in particular, the private lenders and institutions that make works available for loan to the exhibition program, the generosity of individuals who support the gallery’s activities through donation and gifting of artworks, as well as those who make financial contributions to our collecting and program activities. Without this philanthropy, we would have been unable to achieve the successes that we have realised over the past few years, or be able to proceed with our ambitions for the future. We also especially thank the artist, his wife Shirley, and the Robinson family for their ongoing support, encouragement, openness and generosity, as well as the unfailing support of the University’s vision.

Tim Fairfax AM Chancellor Professor Peter Coaldrake AO Vice-Chancellor