Documents

Lot 4878    Session 17 (11.30am Friday)    Documents

Estimate $2,500
Bid at live.noble.com.au

NORMAN LINDSAY LETTER, under Perspex in timber frame (25.5x44.5cm), sent from Springwood, NSW to Ronald Holloway, together with envelope addressed to Ronald Holloway, University College, Auckland, New Zealand (this crossed out and replaced with c/o Display Studio, Cadbury Fry Hudson Ltd, Dunedin), written at top left edge of the envelope in pencil by Robert Holloway is the following, 'Reply to a letter suggesting Rupert Brook's line "Christ has died and Pan is risen" as a subject for a picture. 14.iv.30 R.H.', envelope postmarked at Springwood, N.S.W. 5JE30 and again at Auckland, 1JL30.1 AM. Very fine and rare.

Norman Lindsay was one of Australia's most famous artists and an acclaimed author, one of his earliest stories being the children's classic, The Magic Pudding. Several of his books were adapted as movies or for television. During WWI Lindsay produced many propaganda and recruiting posters and cartoons for the Australian government. He was an editorial cartoonist on the staff of the Sydney Bulletin and many of his cartoons were of a political nature. He was also an etcher, sculptor and scale modeller. Norman Lindsay died in 1969 and is buried at Springwood Cemetery, in Sydney's Blue Mountains, not far from his former home at Faulconbridge which is now the Norman Lindsay Gallery and Museum.

In his above letter, Norman Lindsay is obviously replying to a suggestion by Hollway, as noted by Holloway on the envelope sent to him, and in part writes, 'If it suggests a picture I'll see what happens.' In paragraph two he writes, 'My last work for the Fanfrolico was Aristophane's 'Parliament of Women.' Fanfrolico was the publisher of this work and Norman Lindsay was the illustrator for the book when it was translated into English in 1929 with the illustrations featuring his famous nude images.

Lindsay also makes mention of his novel 'Redheap', published in England in 1930 but was banned in Australia for 28 years. It is now regarded as a great literary classic. It was made into a TV series of the same name by the ABC in 1972. Lindsay writes, 'I have a warm feeling in N.Z at present, as it is the only spot in Australian waters that has accepted 'Red heap.' (his spelling) This place has banned the book and dumped it back in the publishers hands. With thirty years experience of the Australian wowser I am still able to pump up a mild astonishment at his capacity in pure imbecility.'

Ronald Holloway, to whom Lindsay was writing this letter, was an English born Master Printer, operating his own printing business in New Zealand. He figures in a large number of Auckland-based literary biographies. After he died his requiem was held at St Patrick's Cathedral in Auckland on 4 November 2003.