Andree Johnston-Bell (1917-2007), pioneer publisher of articles on Australian antiques, was born in China of Belgian parents and educated in Belgium. After returning to China and living for a time in Shanghai, she moved to Bombay early in the war. There, she became the editor of the Onlooker, a monthly glossy magazine. In this capacity she moved in political and artistic circles, meeting Nehru, Gandhi and Tata. She married David Johnston-Bell, who was serving with Lord Mountbatten in Combined Operations; they became friends with the Langhammers, and collected works by the artists in the Progressive School. After moving to Australia in 1950 the Johnston-Bells bought a number of magazines, including The Australian Collector, which under Andree's editorship, and with a range of distinguished contributors, soon became something of a collector's item in itself. One of her triumphs was the publication of previously-unseen engravings of botanical specimens collected by Banks and Solander. Upon retirement, she worked as a volunteer at the State Library of New South Wales, translating 17th century French manuscripts.
