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Pictures

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Painting of chrysanthemums

Ellis Rowan, Chrysanthemums, ca. 1890, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138089294

Australian artist Ellis Rowan primarily worked in watercolour and gouache, and is best known for painting Australian native flowers. She caused a stir at the 1888–89 Centennial International Exhibition in Melbourne when her painting Chrysanthemums won First Order of Merit and Gold Medal. This similar painting, depicting the same type of flower, is a more recent addition to the Library's vast Rowan Collection, the bulk of which was acquired for the nation for £5,000 in 1923.

Pictures collection

Our rich and varied Pictures collection focuses on Australian people, places and events, from early European exploration of the South Pacific to contemporary events.

Information article
Photograph of employees at BHP steelworks viewed through a cast steel tilting frame of a slag post.

Frank Hurley, [BHP Steelworks, Newcastle, 1950, 2], 1950, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-159226742

“A symphony in stone that will long be remembered”: Around Australia with Frank Hurley

Learn about iconic photographer and film maker Frank Hurley and explore some of his photographs from around Australia.

Blog
Collection guide
Wilson Collection

Drawings, sketches, plans and photographs of Australian colonial architecture, ancient buildings from China and Greece, furnature designs and sketches for a proposed "ideal city" of Kurrajong.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Williamson Collection

The J.C. Williamson Ltd archives include a wide range of materials, such as business records, playscripts, libretti, music, programs, magazines, books, costume designs, and photographs. It also contains personal papers from Williamson's business partners, the Tait family and George Tallis.

Collection guide
Tokyo and environs road map

Tokyo and environs road map, 1953, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1584417804

Williams Collection

About 3200 books, pamphlets, serials, maps, newspapers and ephemera mainly related to Japan plus some works on China and Korea.

Collection guide
Watercolour of a bay with a sailboat in the foreground and a large white building in the background overlooking the bay

William Westall, Drawings, 1801, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138873713

Westall Collection

139 pencil drawings and watercolour paintings produced by Westall, all but 2 from the voyage of HMS Investigator (1801-03).  Capturing landscapes, coastal profiles, and Indigenous peoples, these works offer a vivid, accurate record of early Australian encounters. As one of the first professional artists to visit Australia, Westall’s collection is a significant historical and cultural treasure.

Collection guide
Woman looking a large colourful colourful illustration of two birds in a tree

Ellis Rowan, Rothschild's Bird-of-Paradise, or Rothschild's Astrapia (Astrapia rothschildi), Papua New Guinea, 1917, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138748166

Using the Pictures Collection

How to find and use items in the Pictures Collection.

Information article
Library services
Woman sitting on a stool looking thoughtful in front of a red banner with the words 'The Sell: Australian Advertising 1790s to 1990s'
The Sell: Australian Advertising 1790s to 1990s

Module

Examples of advertising and media drawn from the National Library of Australia’s exhibition The Sell: Australian Advertising 1790s to 1990s and looks at their influence over time.

Digital Classroom
pencil drawing a young male artist leaning over a canvas painting an active scene

William Strutt, Atelier Drolling, Paris, 184-, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-134769037

Strutt Collection

About 280 paintings and drawings by William Strutt dating from 1837-1900, produced in France, Australia, New Zealand, Africa and England, as well as 2 typescripts of stories by Strutt.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Sculthorpe Collection

Personal papers, manuscript scores, literary manuscripts, sound recordings and family photographs of Peter Sculthorpe, plus videos of films for which he wrote the music and television interviews.

Collection guide
Two colourful birds standing on branches eating fruit

Ellis Rowan, [Lorikeets (Geoffroyus heteroclitus)], 1917, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138740512

Rowan Collection

919 watercolours and gouaches of flowers and birds of Australia and Papua New Guinea painted 1870-1920, plus a small quantity of personal papers.

Collection guide
Drawing of a king parrot

George Raper, King parrot (Alisterus scapularis), 1788, nla.obj-150068793

Rights and the Pictures Collection

A summary of copyright and rights in the Pictures Collection.

Information article

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