NAB TAPESTRY

Last week I had some business to attend to at the bank, but fortuitously I did not go to my usual branch, visiting instead the National Australia Bank branch at 330 Collins Street, in the city. On view in Foyer at the top of stairs, one can see a splendid tapestry adorning the long wall of the stairwell.

It is "Early Days in the Goldfields" of Albert Tucker (1982), a huge work, 5 metres x 2.4 metres. The weavers are Iain Young, Pamela Joyce, Leonie Bessant and Sue Carstairs.

In this tapestry, distinguished Australian artist Albert Tucker (1914 - 1999) evokes a sense of the hard working cobbers in the Australian gold fields during the gold rush of the 1800s.

Tucker’s interest in German Expressionism is apparent in the design, both in his experimental use of space and form, and in his choice of subject, the work-weary souls toiling away at their fortunes, and. This tapestry, translated from a small oil painting, has charmingly figurative elements, while also capturing Tucker’s vigorous, painterly brush strokes.

This post is part of the Mural Monday meme,

and also part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme.