Portrait of Kenneth Rowell

Painter and printmaker David Strachan studied at the Slade School of Fine Art in London, the Académie de la Grand Chaumière in Paris, and at George Bell’s school in Melbourne. Known for his starkly elegant landscapes, figurative works and still lifes, Strachan spent much of his working life in Europe, establishing a business in Paris that published etchings and lithographs by leading artists. Returning to Australia in 1960, he taught printmaking at East Sydney Technical College and won the Wynne Prize in 1961 and 1964. Strachan’s portrait of Kenneth Rowell AM (1920–1999) positions the sitter against a yellow background, bathed in golden light. An artist and theatre designer, Melbourne-born Rowell began designing backdrops and costumes during the early 1940s, earning his first professional commission in 1947. He moved to London in 1950, subsequently working between the United Kingdom and Australia over the next four decades on more than 140 ballet, opera and theatre productions. At the same time, he developed a considerable reputation as an artist, producing expressionist paintings, mixed media works and sculpture inspired by the Australian landscape.

Gift of Margaret Olley 2002. Transferred from the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
© Estate of David Strachan