View of Watsons Bay, watercolour by John Campbell

P4/42

fonds

1895

Graphic Materials, Watercolours

9664545

1 watercolour - watercolour and gouache, on paper - 44 x 72 cm

John Campbell (1855-1924) was a scenic painter and decorator who migrated to Australia from Scotland in the early 1880s. By 1895 he is recorded as working in Sydney, and it is thought he may have lived in Parramatta whilst working in New South Wales. He travelled to or lived in Queensland for a time, and he was working in Brisbane in approximately 1889. By the early 1900s he had settled in Perth and is believed to have remained there until he died.
Reference: 'John Campbell'. Design and Art Australia Online. Accessed 14 July 2022

The painting was held in a private collection, Queensland; then by descent, private collection, Queensland (information supplied by vendor)

View looking eastward, probably from Bottle and Glass Point, across the water towards Laings Point and a protected cove, most probably Watsons Bay. A narrow sandy beach is visible, and hotels and villas can be seen scattered among the bushland. It is possible that the work may depict Rose Bay or Vaucluse but judging from the shape of the shoreline and the angle of the view Watsons Bay seems the more likely subject

Out of copyright:
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales

Title devised by cataloguer

Transferred from XV/223, 23 June 2023

Signed and dated lower right