Alexander Colquhoun (artist) facts for kids

Alexander Colquhoun (born February 15, 1862 – died February 14, 1941) was a talented artist from Scotland. He moved to Australia and became a well-known painter, illustrator, and art critic. He was known for his beautiful landscapes, portraits, and interior scenes.

Early Life and Art Training

Alexander Colquhoun's painting Divided Attention (1887).

Alexander Colquhoun was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1862. He was the youngest of his family. When he was 14 years old, he moved to Australia with his family in 1876. They settled in Moonee Ponds, a suburb of Melbourne.

Alexander started his art studies in Australia. From 1877 to 1879, he took drawing classes at the National Gallery of Victoria Art School in Melbourne. He then studied at the Bendigo School of Mines and Industries from 1880 to 1881. There, he won awards for his drawing skills. In 1881, he earned a special certificate that allowed him to teach drawing.

He returned to the National Gallery of Victoria Art School from 1882 to 1887. During this time, he painted a famous artwork called Divided Attention. This painting won a top prize at a student exhibition. It was highly praised and is now part of the collection at the Bendigo Art Gallery.

At the Gallery School, Alexander became lifelong friends with another artist, John Longstaff. He was also friends with Max Meldrum, whose ideas about color and light influenced his art. Alexander married Beatrix Colquhoun in 1892. She was also an impressionist painter and had studied art in Paris. They often showed their artwork together.

Exhibiting His Art

Alexander Colquhoun's painting of the Independent Church, Collins Street (1920-1926).

Alexander Colquhoun's painting of a building at Spring and Latrobe Streets, Melbourne (c.1930).

Interior (c. 1938) by Alexander Colquhoun.

Alexander Colquhoun started showing his paintings in 1887. He exhibited his landscapes, indoor scenes, and portraits with groups like the Victorian Artists Society. His work was also shown at the opening exhibition of the Castlemaine Art Museum in 1913.

He held his own art shows in galleries and his studio. He also regularly joined exhibitions with other art groups. These included the Yarra Sculptors' Society and the Twenty Melbourne Painters Society Inc. In the 1920s, Alexander had a studio in the Austral Building on Collins Street, Melbourne. From there, he painted a view of the Independent and Scots Churches.

Teaching Art

Alexander Colquhoun also shared his knowledge by teaching art. He ran his own private art school. Around 1910, he taught drawing at the Working Men's College, Melbourne. He also worked as an art teacher at Toorak Teachers College until 1930.

Writing About Art

Alexander Colquhoun was also a talented writer. He regularly wrote for and illustrated magazines like V.A.S. and Art in Australia. He worked as an art critic for the Melbourne Herald newspaper for eight years, from 1914 to 1922. He also wrote for the Christian Science Monitor for a year.

From 1926 until his death, his art reviews and articles about Melbourne artists appeared regularly in The Age newspaper. He also researched the early history of Australian art. He wrote books about famous artists like Frederick McCubbin (1919), Walter Withers, and W. B. McInnes (1920). He was also the editor of the Year Book of Victorian Art from 1922 to 1923.

Art Group Memberships

While he was a student, Alexander Colquhoun joined the Buonarotti Club. He was the secretary of the Victorian Artists Society from 1904 to 1914. He was also a founding member of the Australian Art Association. In 1936, he became a trustee of the National Gallery of Victoria. In 1937, he joined and exhibited with the Australian Academy of Art.

Exhibitions

• 1887: Student show at the National Gallery of Victoria: first general prize for Divided Attention
• 1912, July: The Victorian Artists' Society's Seventeenth Annual Exhibition: The Old Home, Warrandyte
• 1913, 18 August: Joint show by the Colquhoun couple, Besant Hall, Centreway Arcade Melbourne

Collections

• National Gallery of Victoria
• Castlemaine Art Museum
• Bendigo Art Gallery
• Art Gallery of South Australia

Gallery

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  Alexander Colquhoun (c.1922) Cafe Canton, Oil on canvas, 53.5 x 35.5 c , Castlemaine Art Museum, J.R. Hartley Bequest, 1961

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  Alexander Colquhoun (1930s) Derelict, Oil on canvas mounted on board, 35.5 x 40.5 cm, Castlemaine Art Museum. Purchased 1940

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  Alexander Colquhoun, (c.1920s) The River Oil on cardboard,25.5 x 31.0 cm Castlemaine Art Museum, purchased 1929

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  Alexander Colquhoun, Australia, 1862 1941, The Murray in flood, c.1920, Victoria, oil on canvas, 34.5 X 52.2 cm; Elizabeth and Tom Hunter Bequest 2009, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide.