Title
Sofala
(1947)
Artist
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Details
- Date
- (1947)
- Media category
- Painting
- Materials used
- oil on canvas on hardboard
- Dimensions
- 71.7 x 93.1 cm board; 91.2 x 112.2 x 6.5 cm frame
- Signature & date
Signed l.r. corner, brown oil "Russell Drysdale". Not dated.
- Credit
- Purchased 1952
- Location
- South Building, ground level, 20th-century galleries
- Accession number
- 8700
- Copyright
- © Estate of Russell Drysdale
- Wynne Prize
- Winner - 1947
- Artist information
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Russell Drysdale
Works in the collection
- Share
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About
'Sofala' is regarded as one of Russell Drysdale's finest paintings, representing the artist at the height of his powers. With its compelling evocation of atmosphere and ambience, the painting transcends literal description of a particular place to become an expression of the quintessential qualities of an inland Australian country town.
Drysdale first visited this former gold-mining settlement in August 1947 with fellow artist Donald Friend. He made a sketch and took photographs but, as was customary for him, completed the painting in his studio on returning to Sydney.
In 'Sofala', Drysdale pares down the reality of the subject to its barest essentials, achieving an intensified synthesis of visual and emotional impact. His modernist focus on the construction of mood in this work marked a radical departure from the prevailing traditions of Australian landscape painting.This painting won the Wynne Prize in 1947 and was acquired by the Gallery in 1952.
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Exhibition history
Shown in 20 exhibitions
1947 Exhibition, Athenaeum Gallery, Melbourne, 30 Sep 1947–11 Oct 1947
Christmas 1947, Macquarie Galleries, Sydney, 10 Dec 1947–24 Dec 1947
Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Competitions for 1947, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 23 Jan 1948–08 Mar 1948
Russell Drysdale (1950), The Leicester Galleries, London, 30 Nov 1950–23 Dec 1950
A retrospective exhibition of Australian painting, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 25 Sep 1953–25 Oct 1953
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), Winnipeg Art Gallery, Canada, Jul 1957–Sep 1957
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), London Public Library and Art Museum, Canada, Sep 1957–Oct 1957
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), Art Gallery of Hamilton, Ontario, Oct 1957–Nov 1957
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), The Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Canada, Nov 1957–Dec 1957
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ottawa, Dec 1957–Jan 1958
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Canada, Feb 1958–Mar 1958
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), The Art Gallery of Toronto, Toronto, Apr 1958 -
Contemporary Australian Painters (1957), The Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina College, Canada, May 1958 -
Russell Drysdale: a retrospective exhibition of paintings from 1937 to 1960, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 05 Oct 1960–06 Nov 1960
Russell Drysdale: A retrospective exhibition; paintings 1937-1960 (Queensland Art Gallery), Queensland Art Gallery, South Brisbane, 22 Apr 1961–28 May 1961
Russell Drysdale (Adelaide 1964), John Martin's Auditorium, , 04 Mar 1964–21 Mar 1964
The Australian Landscape 1802-1975, Cultural Palace of the Nationalities, Beijing, 02 Sep 1975–17 Sep 1975
The Australian Landscape 1802-1975, Kiangsu Art Gallery, China, 23 Sep 1975–07 Oct 1975
The Australian Landscape 1802-1975, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 14 Nov 1975–30 Nov 1975
Russell Drysdale: paintings 1940-72, S.H. Ervin Gallery, The Rocks, 14 Jun 1985–21 Jul 1985
Twentieth century Australian masterworks from the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Fred Williams Pilbara series from the collection of CRA Limited, Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum, , 04 Oct 1985–06 Nov 1985
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), S.H. Ervin Gallery, The Rocks, 19 Dec 1986–01 Feb 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery, Booragul, 06 Mar 1987–29 Mar 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Orange Regional Gallery, Orange, 10 Apr 1987–17 May 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Griffith Regional Art Gallery, , 03 Jun 1987–20 Jun 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Wagga Wagga Art Gallery, Australia, 01 Jul 1987–26 Jul 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Albury Regional Gallery, Albury, 07 Aug 1987–06 Sep 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Broken Hill City Art Gallery, Broken Hill, 18 Sep 1987–26 Oct 1987
The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition (1987), Tamworth City Gallery, Tamworth, 05 Nov 1987–13 Dec 1987
The Artists of Hill End, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 29 Jul 1995–17 Sep 1995
The Artists of Hill End, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, Bathurst, 06 Oct 1995–19 Nov 1995
The Artists of Hill End, New England Regional Art Museum, Armidale, 10 Feb 1996–31 Mar 1996
The Artists of Hill End, Broken Hill City Art Gallery, Broken Hill, 19 Apr 1996–26 May 1996
The Artists of Hill End, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, 07 Jun 1996–29 Jul 1996
Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, National Gallery of Victoria [St Kilda Road], Melbourne, 19 Dec 1997–09 Mar 1998
Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 27 Mar 1998–10 May 1998
Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Queensland Art Gallery, South Brisbane, 18 May 1998–28 Jun 1998
Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Museum and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory, Darwin, 20 Jul 1998–30 Aug 1998
Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart, 23 Sep 1998–15 Nov 1998
Southern Reflections: Ten contemporary Australian artists, Kulturhuset, Stockholm, , 13 Mar 1998–19 Apr 1998
Southern Reflections: Ten contemporary Australian artists, Konstmuseum, Arhus, Denmark, 01 Jul 1998–30 Aug 1998
Southern Reflections: Ten contemporary Australian artists, Museum Tamminiementie, Helsinki, Finland, 01 Sep 1998–30 Sep 1998
Southern Reflections: Ten contemporary Australian artists, Konsthallen, Gothenberg, , 02 Nov 1998–06 Dec 1998
Australian icons: twenty artists from the collection, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 04 Aug 2000–03 Dec 2000
Great collections (2009), Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown, 12 Dec 2008–18 Jan 2009
Great collections (2009), Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Art Centre, Murwillumbah, 06 Feb 2009–15 Mar 2009
Great collections (2009), Western Plains Cultural Centre, Dubbo, 03 Apr 2009–10 May 2009
Great collections (2009), Albury Regional Gallery, Albury, 29 May 2009–05 Jul 2009
Great collections (2009), Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, 24 Jul 2009–30 Aug 2009
Australian modern masterpieces from the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat, 05 Oct 2011–27 Nov 2011
Australian modern masterpieces from the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Newcastle Art Gallery, Newcastle, 10 Dec 2011–04 Mar 2012
20th-Century galleries, ground level (rehang), Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 20 Aug 2022–2023
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Bibliography
Referenced in 75 publications
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Len Annois (Editor), The Australian artist, East Melbourne, Autumn 1948, 45 (illus.).
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Art Gallery of New South Wales, Art Gallery of New South Wales picturebook, Sydney, 1972, 111 (colour illus.).
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Angela Bennie, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Hill End: preserving the painting ground', pg. 13-14, Sydney, 28 Jul 1995, 13.
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Helen Campbell, Look, 'Wynne Centenary', pg. 20-21, Heidelberg, Apr 1997, 20 (colour illus.).
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Helen Campbell, Australian art: in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, 'Out of Sydney: city and hinterlands', pg. 185-186, Sydney, 2000, 203 (colour illus.), 300.
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Helen Campbell, Wynne centenary 1897-1997: a selection of past winners from the Gallery's collection, Sydney, 1997, (colour illus.).
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Edmund Capon AM, OBE and Jan Meek (Editors), Portrait of a Gallery, 'Australian 20th Century Art', pg. 71-89, Sydney, 1984, 73, 75 (colour illus.).
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Gary Catalano, An intimate Australia: The landscape & recent Australian art, 'The figure of Russell Drysdale', pg. 12-29, Sydney, 1985, 20-21 (illus.), 27.
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Gary Catalano, The years of hope: Australian art and criticism 1959-1968, 'Internationalism', pg. 22-26, Melbourne, 1981, 26.
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Gary Catalano, Quadrant, ‘The figure of Russell Drysdale’, pg. 23-30, Australia, Apr 1982, 28.
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Michael Cook (Editor), Our Australia: poetry anthology: Bush ballads to modern visions, Seven Hills, 2002, front dust jacket (colour illus., detail), inside back flap dust jacket (colour illus.).
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Richard Cotter, Change and continuity; 20th Century Australian History, 'Post-war visions', South Yarra, 1998, 177 (colour illus.). source 4.75
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Alison Cowan, Reader's Digest Book of the Road, Sydney, 1999, 105 (colour illus.).
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Russell Drysdale, The paintings of Russell Drysdale: reproducing fifteen plates in colour with an essay by Joseph Burke, 'List of works and owners, 1951', pg.47-52, Sydney, 1951, 51.
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Geoffrey Dutton, Russell Drysdale, London, 1964, 132 (illus.), 187. plate no. 45
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Dinah Dysart, The Wynne prize: an Australian landscape tradition, 'The public and critical response to the Wynne prize', pg. 15-22, Sydney, 1986, cover (colour illus.), 15, 26.
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Lou Klepac, Russell Drysdale: paintings 1940-72, Sydney, 1985, 9. cat.no. 21
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Edwards and Shaw (Printer), Russell Drysdale: retrospective exhibition 1937 - 1960, Sydney, 1960. cat.no. 50
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Geoffrey Dutton, Famous Australian art series: Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Moorebank, 1989, 26, 27 (colour illus.).
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Anna Gray, Hendrik Kolenberg and Tim Bonyhady, Russell Drysdale, Perth, 1999, 8, 13.
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Kevin Gray and Susan Francis Gray, Elements of land law, New York, 2009, front cover (colour illus.).
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Melanie Guile, What is Australia?: The land, 'Seeing the land', pg. 22-25, Port Melbourne, 2009, 24 (colour illus.).
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Paul Haefliger., The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Christmas art show stimulating', Sydney, 10 Dec 1947. page number unknown
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Paul Haefliger, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Gallery's 1952 purchases', pg. 6, Sydney, 26 Mar 1953, 6.
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Paul Haefliger, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Exhibition reveals vitality in art', pg. 2, Sydney, 16 Nov 1956.
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Richard Haese, Rebels and precursors : the revolutionary years of Australian art, 'The new court painters', pg. 257-267, Ringwood, 1981, 264.
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Christopher Heathcote, Russell Drysdale: defining the modern Australian landscape, Kent Town, 2013, 82.
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Robert Hughes, The art of Australia, 'The stylists 1939-50', pg.169-196, Melbourne, 1970, 174,195-6, 324.
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Bruce James, Art Gallery of New South Wales handbook, 'Australian collection: painting and sculpture', pg. 102-181, Sydney, 1999, 152 (colour illus.).
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Lou Klepac, The life and work of Russell Drysdale, 'Hill end', pg. 87-98, Kensington, 1983, 42, 90-91, 105, 121, 136, 268 (colour illus.), 367. plate no. 82
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Lou Klepac, Russell Drysdale: the drawings, 'Russell Drysdale: The Rabbiters and Hill End', pg. 19-25, Sydney, 2012, 24.
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Elwyn Lynn., The Weekend Australian Magazine, 'Drysdale: the outback psyche revisited...', Sydney, 15 Jun 1985. page number unknown
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John MacDonald, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'On our selection: a moonlit mix', pg. 16-17, Sydney, 21 Feb 2009-22 Feb 2009, 17. Review of 'Great Collections' exhibition.
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John Macdonald, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Moments at the end of the world', pg 14-15, Sydney, 05 Aug 1995, 14.
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Susan McCulloch-Uehlin, The Weekend Australian, 'The lie of the land', pg. 16-19, Sydney, 20 Nov 1999-21 Nov 1999, 17.
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John McDonald, The Sydney Morning Herald, 'The past master', pg. 12, Sydney, 11 Apr 1998, 12.
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John McPhee, Great collections, Sydney, 2008, 99 (colour illus.).
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Joanna Mendelssohn., Bulletin, 'The artists of Hill End', Sydney, 1995, 14. page number unknown
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Tatlock Miller., Sun, '28 give Christmas art show', Sydney, 10 Dec 1947. page number unknown
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Joyce Morgan, The Australian, 'Gold in them thar Hill End works', pg. 14, Sydney, 28 Jul 1995, 14 (colour illus.).
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Margaret Olds, Australia through time, 'Australia 1947', pg. 330, Sydney, 1993, 330 (colour illus.).
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Barry Pearce and Patrick McCaughey, Twentieth century Australian masterworks from the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Fred Williams Pilbara Series, Tokyo, 1985, 35 (colour illus.). cat.no. 18
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Barry Pearce, Art Gallery of New South Wales handbook, 'Australian', pg. 13-35, Sydney, 1988, 26-27 (colour illus.).
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Margaret Plant, Russell Drysdale, 'Drysdale: affinities and critics', pg. 15-32, Clayton, 1987, 10 (illus.), 23. The illustration in this publication is a replica of what appeared in 'The Illustrated London News' article dated 16 December, 1950.
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John Douglas Pringle and Russell Drysdale, Russell Drysdale's Australia, Sydney, 1974, 7 (colour illus.).
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Gurcharn Rehill, General mathematics, South Yarra, 1999, 389 (illus.). Using geometry to analyse perspective in works of art.
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Zoë Ross (Editor), Eyewitness travel guides: Australia, 'Botanic gardens and the domain', pg. 100-111, London, 1998, 106 (colour illus.).
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Susanna Short., The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Focus on Drysdales at emotional auction', Sydney, 01 Jul 1981. page number unknown
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Susanna Short., The Sydney Morning Herald, ‘Richness in little-seen Drysdales’, Sydney, 21 Jun 1985. page number unknown
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Bernard Smith, Meanjin, 'Archibald, Wynne, Sulman art awards', pg. 28-39, Melbourne, Autumn 1948, 29.
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Bernard Smith, Australian painting 1788-1990, 'Realistic Expressionism and Post Impressionism, mainly in war-time Sydney', pg. 239-271, South Melbourne, 1991, 249, 250 (illus.), 559. fig.no. 144
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Bernard Smith, The critic as advocate: selected essays 1941-1988, 'Russell Drysdale 1948', pg. 97-107, Melbourne, 1989, 102.
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Geoffrey Smith, Russell Drysdale 1912-1981, Melbourne, 1997, 23, 102, 103 (colour illus.). cat.no. 35
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Treania Smith and Lucy Swanton, The Macquarie Galleries, 19 Bligh Street, Sydney invite you to an exhibition of paintings:, Sydney, Dec 1947. cat.no. 5
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William Splatt and Barbara Burton, A treasury of Australian painting, 'New visions in an ancient land', pg. 55-56, Australia, 1976, 55, 58 (colour illus.), 67. plate no. 42
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William Splatt and Barbara Burton, 100 masterpieces of Australian painting, Adelaide, 1973, 162, 163 (colour illus.). plate no. 78
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Kathie Sutherland, Brett Whiteley: A sensual lilne 1957-67, Victoria, 2010, 32.
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Edmund Capon AM, OBE, Elizabeth Cross and Barry Pearce, Southern reflections: 10 contemporary Australian artists, Sydney, 1998, 40 (colour illus.). fig.no. 13
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Wendy Symonds (Editor), Look, Heidelberg, Apr 1998, 3 (colour illus.), 15.
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Laurence Thomas., Contemporary Australian painters, 'Foreword', Ottawa, 1957, (illus.). cat.no. 27; fig.no. 4
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Laurie Thomas (Editor), 200 Years of Australian painting, 'Sofala; Sir Russell Drysdale', pg. 58, Rushcutters Bay, 1971, 58, 59 (colour illus.).
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Patrick White, Riders in the chariot, Australia, 1993, cover (colour illus.). detail
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Donald Williams, In our own image: the story of Australian art, 'Figurative versus abstract 1951-60s', Sydney, 1995, 141 (colour illus.).
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Gavin Wilson, The artists of Hill End: Education guide, 'The Hill End Grou, p 1947-56', pg. 2-5., Sydney, 1995, cover (colour illus.), 2 (illus.). fig.no. 1
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Gavin Wilson, The artists of Hill End, 'The emergence of vernacular Modernism', pg. 21-28, Sydney, 1995, 24, 36, 39 (colour illus.), 45, 93, 118. plate no. 16
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Russell Drysdale: first exhibition in England, London, 30 Nov 1950, 7. cat.no. 22
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author unknown, The Illustrated London News, 'Australia by an Australian artist: Russell Drysdale's first London show', pg. 1005, London, 16 Dec 1950, 1005 (illus.).
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Editor Unknown (Editor), The Sydney Morning Herald, ‘Archibald Prize goes to Melbourne artist Dargie again’, Sydney, 23 Jan 1948, 2,3 (illus.). Sub-heading: '“Herald” critic’s views'
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