During his visit to Australia and New Zealand, George French Angas completed 300 finely drawn watercolours, the basis for two magnificent volumes and a major exhibition in the heart of London.
His meticulous and sensitive portfolio transports us to the moment of his encounters with its peoples and landscapes.
—Exhibition curator Philip Jones
As the son of George Fife Angas, one of South Australia’s principal founders, George French Angas enjoyed a particular advantage. He was able to reach the frontiers of European expansion. Illustrating the Antipodes – both the book and the exhibition – traces his ‘journeys into the bush’, from his arrival in Adelaide in January 1844, aged just 21, to his return to England two years later.
The National Library's exhibition and accompanying book are the culmination of Philip Jones's decades-long research into the life and work of George French Angas.
The exhibition is presented in partnership with the South Australian Museum and is supported by the National Collecting Institutions Touring and Outreach Program, an Australian Government program aiming to improve access to the national collections for all Australians. The exhibition will travel to the South Australian Museum in 2022.
