Lady with a Parasol 1893

Tom Roberts painted this enigmatic portrait in Australia, sometime around the turn of the twentieth century. The work’s loose brushstrokes and outdoor setting clearly signal an interest in French Impressionism, a hugely influential movement that shook up the established art institutions. But what does it mean to paint like the French, in Australia? The woman's crisp white dress and parasol point towards a wealthy, leisured class, at a time when Australia was still emerging as a nation. Was Roberts celebrating the elegance of colonial society, or critiquing its dependence on European models? He seems to leave the question open. To really understand this painting, we might investigate the art market in Australia at the time, or the availability of academic training for artists. What role did institutions play in shaping Australian art? And what did it mean to be "modern" in a place so far from Europe? These are just some of the questions a historian might ask.