.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
S.T. Gill arrived in Adelaide from England in December 1839. In the new city, his watercolours endowed him with a reputation as the town's foremost artists, and his series depicting the growing city are prime examples of his talent. Gill depicts the new St. Peter's College, built in 1846, which is now in the centre of Adelaide. Only three other houses are visible; the rest of the land still used for grazing.
"It has been emphasized forcefully that S.T. Gill's South Australian paintings of the 1840s are by far the best works of his long Australian career. He is clearly the best of all the South Australian artists of the 1830s and 1840s. But his South Australian works are not well known, mainly because there are fewer of them and they rarely appear on the market." (R.Appleyard et.al., S.T. Gill, Adelaide, 1986, p.9).
This watercolour has never before been seen in public. Commissioned by the vendor's family, the painting has passed by descent through the same family for over 160 years.
"It has been emphasized forcefully that S.T. Gill's South Australian paintings of the 1840s are by far the best works of his long Australian career. He is clearly the best of all the South Australian artists of the 1830s and 1840s. But his South Australian works are not well known, mainly because there are fewer of them and they rarely appear on the market." (R.Appleyard et.al., S.T. Gill, Adelaide, 1986, p.9).
This watercolour has never before been seen in public. Commissioned by the vendor's family, the painting has passed by descent through the same family for over 160 years.