ARTHUR STREETON

Mr and Mrs Arthur S. Baillieu, Melbourne
Joshua McClelland Print Room, Collins Street, Melbourne, circa 1945
Purchased by Mrs Una Fraser from the above, circa 1945
Fine Australian Paintings, Sotheby's, Melbourne, 22 August 1994, lot 24
Private collection, Melbourne; purchased from the above

The Exhibition of Mr Streeton 's Pictures, Victorian Artists' Society, Melbourne, March 1920, cat. 33
Exhibition of Australian Paintings, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, July 1925, cat. 36 as 'London (St Paul's)', lent by Mrs Arthur Baillieu

This work is presented in an ornate traditional style frame. This painting has not been lined but appears not to have the original stretcher. There is a significant area of crazing to the middle of the picture in the water area and up into the buildings to the left of St Pauls. There are several tack marks near the signature which are intrinsic to the work. UV inspection confirms no retouching.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Streeton spent much of 1918 in France, serving as an Australian Official War Artist.  Appointed Hon. Lieutenant, 2nd Division, A.I.F., in April that year, he painted the battlefields around St Gratien, Glisy, Heilly and Villers-Bretonneux from May to August.  He probably painted St Paul's and the River in the late summer or early autumn when he was back in London on leave.  With its cool gold and blue palette, expansive view and soft, hazy Whistlerian atmosphere, this paintined exemplifies the best of the artist's European work.

Streeton always felt a tremendous affection for London and its monuments; and great pride in his paintings of this 'centre of the Empire'.  He had already written to Roberts: 'I feel convinced that my work will contain a larger idea and quality than before - after seeing Constable, Turner, Watts and all the masters... I know more now and would touch it more poetically.'¹

St Paul's and the River was purchased from the artist, after his return to Melbourne in February 1920, by his old friend and patron Arthur Sydney Baillieu (who had previously acquired a major Venice painting by Streeton).  Streeton and his wife Nora quite frequently stayed with the Baillieu family at Sorrento in later years.

1.  Mary Eagle, The Oil Paintings of Arthur Streeton in the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, 1994, p. 123

We are most grateful to Oliver Streeton for his assistance in cataloguing this work.