Edward Cairns Officer (19 September 1871 – 7 July 1921) was an Australian artist and the inaugural president of the Australian Art Association.

Early life and education

Officer was born in 1871 at

Murray Downs Murray Downs is a locality in the Murray River Council, New South Wales, Australia. It is directly across the border from Swan Hill. Heritage listings The Murray River road bridge over the Murray River connects Swan Hill Road in Murray Downs ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, near

Swan Hill, Victoria Swan Hill is a List of cities in Australia, city in the northwest of Victoria, Australia on the Murray Valley Highway and on the south bank of the Murray River, downstream from the junction of the Loddon River, Victoria, Loddon River. At the , ...

. He was the third son of Suetonius Henry Officer and his wife Mary Lillias Rigg, a daughter of the Rev. Adam Cairns. His grandfather, Sir Robert Officer, was speaker of the

Tasmanian house of assembly The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Tasmanian Legislative Council, Legislative Council or Upper House. It sits in Parliament House, Hobart, Parliament Hou ...

for many years. Officer was educated at

Toorak College Toorak College is an independent, inter-denominational, boarding and day school for girls in grades 5–12 and for boys and girls from pre-school through grade four. The school is located on the Mornington Peninsula, above Port Phillip Bay in ...

and studied art under

Frederick McCubbin Frederick McCubbin (25 February 1855 – 20 December 1917) was an Australian artist, art teacher and prominent member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. Born and raised in Melbourne, Victoria, McCubb ...

at the

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

. From there, he went to Paris in 1895 and studied at Julien's.

Career

Officer exhibited at leading exhibitions in Paris and London, including the Paris Salons, and, in 1903, was the winner of the Wynne prize awarded by the national gallery, Sydney. In 1912, his painting, "The Woolshed", was purchased under the

Alfred Felton Alfred Felton (8 November 1831 – 8 January 1904) was an Australian entrepreneur, art collector and philanthropist. Biography Alfred Felton was born at Maldon, Essex, England, the fifth child of six sons and three daughters of William Felton, ...

bequest for the national gallery, Melbourne. Unable to enlist to serve in World War I, Officer organised the sale of 95 of his paintings netting £800 for the Red Cross Fund.

At a meeting on 30 August 1912 which founded the Australian Art Association at Melbourne, he was elected its president and held the position for the rest of his life. He was appointed a trustee of the public library, museums and national gallery of Victoria in 1916.

Death

He died at

Macedon, Victoria Macedon ( ) is a town at the foot of Mount Macedon in the Macedon Ranges, between Melbourne and Bendigo in central Victoria. It is administered by the Shire of Macedon Ranges. Macedon's urban population was 2,926 at the 2021 census, up from ...

, on 7 July 1921. He was survived by his wife Grace, the daughter of Sir Thomas Fitzgerald, whom he had married in 1908.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Officer, Edward Cairns 1871 births 1921 deaths Artists from New South Wales Wynne Prize winners 20th-century Australian painters 20th-century Australian male artists Australian male painters National Gallery of Victoria Art School alumni