Barbara Hanrahan produced a body of work informed by British and American popular culture of the 1960s and 1970s, a period when she lived predominantly in London (between 1964 and 1977). The ideas conveyed here speak to sexual politics, ideals of beauty, and performance, as they relate to consumer, media and popular culture. Song lyrics and 1950s rock ‘n’ roll icons such as Buddy Holly feature in her work, which plays with the hero and sex symbol status of male rock stars in tandem with sexualised female groupies. In addition to music, Hanrahan was influenced by carnivals from her travel through Mexico and Spain, which saw the inclusion of domino masks (thin masks across the eyes) and mask-like faces in her work. She maintained a curiosity with 19th century circus as evident by imagery of performers such as acrobats, clowns, tightrope walkers, as well as stage-like curtains and arenas in her prints. Hanrahan was also informed by 1970s second wave feminism. She considers the performance of beauty and her compositions parody 1950s newsprint and early 1960s television commercials that promulgate time-consuming beauty routines and ideals for women - for the pleasure of men - to achieve love or social acceptance.
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Fat folk fade faster, 1985
Adelaide
etching, yellow and black inks on paper
50.8 x 35.5 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
No fat women in Canada now!, 1985
Adelaide
etching, black, red and yellow inks on paper
36.9 x 49.4 cm (plate), artist's proof
Gift of Jo Steele 1997
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 972G28
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Alec Bolton (printer)
Australia 1926 – 1996
Brindabella Press (publisher)
1972 – 1996 (organisation)
Beauty and beast, 1989, published 1990 for the portfolio Twelve linocuts: a suite of prints
Canberra
linocut, ink on cream paper
38.3 x 22.5 cm (image), ed 93/100
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 2978.011
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Beauty and bunyip, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
20 x 14.2 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Smile, 1987
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
55.8 x 37 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Box of beauty, 1976
London
lithograph, red, green and black inks on paper
61.6 x 46.3 cm (image), ed 5/8
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Men and women, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
65 x 44 cm (image), ed 17/24
Gift of Jo Steele 1998
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 981G9
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Beauty and wowsers, 1964
London
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, black, yellow and red inks on paper; linocut, red and green inks on paper
61.2 x 47.9 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The ant queen, 1985
Adelaide
etching, blue, yellow and pink inks on paper
61.8 x 45.4 cm (image), ed 6/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Beauty and Bob, 1964
London
lithograph, black and red inks on paper
63 x 51 cm (image), ed 1/6
Gift of Jo Steele 1996
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 962G10
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Untitled, c1980s
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
22 x 15 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Run rabbit run, 1978, printed 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
25.7 x 30.4 cm (plate), ed 23/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Little men, 1988
Melbourne
linocut, ink on paper
70.2 x 47.5 cm (image), ed 10/10
Gift of Jo Steele 1997
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 972G36
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
I love you pin-up, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
54.4 x 39.7 cm (image), ed 18/25
Gift of Jo Steele 1997
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 972G9
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Sweet dreams, 1964
London
etching with plate tone, black and red inks on paper
61 x 33 cm (image), ed 9/40
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Touch dancing, 1983
Adelaide
etching, aquatint with plate tone, ink on paper
40 x 41.5 cm (plate), ed 9/45
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Miss Meek, Valentino, the General, 1976
London
pen and gouache on paper
70.6 x 57.1 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Passion house, 1983
Adelaide
etching and drypoint with plate tone, blue ink on paper
33.5 x 31.5 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1983
Adelaide
gouache on grey paper
36.5 x 53.6 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Waiting room, 1975
London
screenprint, red, green and black inks on paper
42 x 62.6 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Spirit dancer, 1990
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
29.8 x 19.6 cm (plate), ed 4/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Performance, 1989
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
23.7 x 14.7 cm (plate), ed 6/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dear Miss Ethel Barringer, 1975
London
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
61 x 44 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The General gives up all for Mata Hari, 1976
London
lithograph, black, orange and yellow inks on paper
57 x 46 cm (image), artist's proof
Gift of Jo Steele 1996
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 962G42
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Rock me mama, 1983
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
35.3 x 25.5 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Homage to Buddy Holly, 1966
London
etching with plate tone, black, red and yellow inks on cream paper
61.8 x 47.2 cm (plate)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Moss-haired girl, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
63.3 x 33.1 cm (image), ed 10/11
Gift of Jonathan P. Steele
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 5769
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Vanishing lady, 1984
Adelaide
gouache on paper
53.6 x 36 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Acrobat, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
35.8 x 30 cm (image), ed 12/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Vanishing act, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured linocut, colour inks on cream paper
49.4 x 35 cm (image), ed 11/13
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Daisy Carnival blues, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
45 x 55.4 cm (image), ed 6/40
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Cabinet of curiosities, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, red and black inks on cream paper
46.1 x 34 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
The puppet-master, 1985-88
Adelaide
pastel, gouache and synthetic polymer paint on paper
71.6 x 53.4 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1985-88
Adelaide
gouache and pastel on paper
54.5 x 36.8 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The puppet-master, 1989
Melbourne
linocut, black, red and green inks on buff paper
62.2 x 42.5 cm (image, irreg.), ed 4/20
Private collection, Adelaide
Ongoing concerns in Barbara Hanrahan’s practice include social expectations for women relating to the institution of marriage and motherhood, as well as the interconnection of family members and cycles of generations. She explores these concepts through imagery that speaks to dreaming and fantasy, as well as memory and memorialisation, in both the private sphere of the mind and intimate domestic spaces of the home. In this way, iconography specific to the home and family feature in her work. Hanrahan’s ancestors and immediate family are often depicted, with a focus on her mother Ronda, father Bob (who died when the artist was one), and grandmother Iris Pearl who was key in raising the artist as a child. Cosy floral curtains, wallpaper, sensual chaise lounges and the awkward marital bed, as well as flourishes of cottage garden flowers and lively domestic animals (birds, cats, chickens and the artist’s childhood dog, Tinker) populate these compositions. Images of family members from different time periods are overlaid with the artist’s school photographs. Escapist mothers fly against a backdrop of 1960s pop songs, while Hanrahan’s grandmother - depicted as a young woman - fantasizes about future and past weddings. In these works the innocence and play of children under the warmth of the sun is rendered in contrast to the anxieties, daydreams and complexities of adulthood.
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1983
Adelaide
gouache and synthetic polymer paint on paper
76 x 56.7 cm (image & paper, irreg.)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
27.7 x 22.8 cm (image, irreg.)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Flying mother, 1976
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
59 x 48 cm (image), ed 19/27
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl with a doll, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
15 x 11 cm (plate), ed 13/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Untitled, early 1980s
etching, ink on paper
39 x 48 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Springtime mother, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
10 x 10 cm (plate), ed 21/60
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Generations, 1991
Melbourne
etching, black and yellow inks on paper
25.6 x 20.7 cm (plate), ed 5/20
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Baby doll, 1978
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
28 x 17.5 cm (image), ed 6/33
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Doll kewpie, 1983
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, colour inks on paper
50.3 x 32.8 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Birth, 1986
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
57.8 x 40.5 cm (image, irreg.), ed 16/25
Gift of Jonathan P. Steele
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 5768
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Small woman, 1983
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
22.9 x 20.7 cm (image, irreg.), ed 3/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dolly's one true love, 1984
Adelaide
etching and aquatint, colour inks on paper
60 x 42 cm (plate), ed 3/25
Gift of Jo Steele 1997
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 972G25
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Red shoes, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
54.9 x 40.8 cm (image), ed 7/15
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Bride, 1985
Adelaide
etching, colour inks on cream paper
56.4 x 45.4 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Alec Bolton (printer)
Australia 1926 – 1996
Brindabella Press (publisher)
1972 – 1996 (organisation)
Mother and child, 1989, published 1990 from the portfolio Twelve linocuts: a suite of prints
Canberra
linocut, ink on cream paper
41 x 30 cm (image), ed 93/100
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 2978.010
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Automatic man, 1968
London
pen, gouache and found collage on paper
65.5 x 52.6 cm (image, irreg.)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Heavenly twins, 1984
Adelaide
pencil and gouache on paper
49.5 x 29.5 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, c1978
London
hand-coloured screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
37.1 x 33.4 cm (image & paper), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Schoolgirl, 1968
London
pen, gouache and found collage on paper
76 x 42 cm (image, irreg.)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1971
London
pen, gouache, screenprint and collage on cream board
74.1 x 53.8 cm (image, irreg. & board)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Untitled, c1977
linocut, ink on paper
15.5 x 13.6 cm (image & paper)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Untitled, c1977
linocut, ink on paper
15.5 x 13.8 cm (image & paper)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Mother 1933, 1976
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
79 x 58.2 cm (image)
Gift of Jo Steele 1998
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 981G5
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Snapshot, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
75.4 x 53.8 cm (image), artist's proof
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 2830
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Snapshot, 1978
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
35.2 x 25.4 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Mother and father, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
71.5 x 49.5 cm (image), artist's proof
Gift of Jo Steele 1998
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 981G13
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Michael and me and the sun, 1964
London
etching, blue ink on paper
50.5 x 39.3 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Wedding night 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on buff paper
64.5 x 46.7 cm (image), ed 2/17
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 5770
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
My family, 1978
Adelaide
etching, ink on cream paper
56.1 x 40.5 cm (image, irreg.), ed 5/10
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Iris in her garden, c1982
London
hand-coloured etching, printed from 6 plates, colour inks on paper
42 x 40.5 cm (image, irreg.), ed 4/35
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 1847
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dog of darkness, 1978
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, colour inks on paper
35.5 x 25.3 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Reece, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
29.2 x 24.2 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Ancestors, 1984
Adelaide
pen and gouache on grey paper
29 x 23.5 cm (image)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Iris pearl dreams of a wedding, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on buff paper
71 x 51.7 cm (image, irreg.), ed 17/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Wedding dreams in the park, 1981
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
71.5 x 45.5 cm (image), ed 16/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Birdcage woman, 1960
Adelaide
etching, aquatint and drypoint, ink on paper
31.2 x 11 cm (plate)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G74
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dreamer, 1961-62, printed 1989
Melbourne
drypoint and aquatint, ink on paper
29.8 x 19.4 cm (plate), artist's proof
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G88
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Two girlfriends in a garden, 1975
London
etching, aquatint, soft-ground etching and foul-biting with plate tone, ink on cream paper
44.7 x 35.5 cm (image), ed 2/4
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dreaming woman, 1961-62, printed 1989
Melbourne
drypoint, ink on paper
21.5 x 14 cm (plate), artist's proof
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G89
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dream people, 1975, reprinted 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
51 x 43 cm (plate), ed 1/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The children, 1978
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, colour inks on cream paper
35.5 x 25.5 cm (plate), ed 19/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Children and the sun, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
15 x 8.7 cm (plate), ed 7/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Child, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on paper
13 x 7.6 cm (image), ed 45/80
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girls and birds, 1988
Adelaide
hand-coloured linocut, colour inks on cream paper
30 x 50 cm (image), ed 1/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Rose Street girls, 1988
Adelaide
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on cream paper
50.6 x 45.5 cm (image), ed 4/6
Private collection, Adelaide
An enduring love of the natural world, with a focus on the home garden, is evident in Barbara Hanrahan’s practice. She explores intimate and entangled relations between humans, plants and animals that speak of care for the environment and its inhabitants, as well as the fragility of life. Here, figures are depicted either holding or surrounded by domestic animals - pets, such as cats, dogs and chickens - while birds act as guardians and perch in nests of hair instead of tree branches. Insect fauna including honeybees, butterflies, and dragonflies swarm Earth mother-like characters that embrace and nurture the abundance of nature’s ecosystems. This rich interconnection provides a striking contrast to today’s rapidly declining populations of animal species and habitat loss as a result of anthropogenic climate change and agriculture. Other compositions depict naked women partially transformed into trees, moths and fish, or riding giant roosters, whereas children are situated within gardens that grow giant flora. Many works feature Hanrahan’s ubiquitous sunflower imagery, which reference the poem ‘Ah! Sun-flower’ by the English mystic, poet and artist William Blake (1757–1827). First published in his anthology Songs of experience (1794), the poem alludes to the weariness of mortality and the desire for ‘sweet’ timelessness in the afterlife. The fragility of existence is also conveyed through the metaphor of the ephemeral flower, where figures seem composed entirely of plant material: cottage garden blooms such as zinnia, poppies, star flowers and California fuchsia.
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl, cat, bird, 1989
Melbourne
wood engraving, ink on paper
12.9 x 7.6 cm (image), ed 61/80
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Boy and girl, 1987
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
73 x 54.5 cm (image, irreg.), artist's proof 2
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Dancing in the garden, 1989
Melbourne
relief etching, ink on paper
14.6 x 8.6 cm (image, irreg.), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl in a forest, 1983, printed 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
25.4 x 20.4 cm (plate), ed 2/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl with dogs, 1989
Melbourne
linocut, black and red inks on paper
62.5 x 36.5 cm (image, irreg.), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1985
Adelaide
pastel and synthetic polymer paint on paper
80 x 59 cm (image & paper)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl with a cat, 1988
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
71.5 x 51.1 cm (image, irreg.), ed 20/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Rooster, 1962
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
14.8 x 12.5 cm (image, irreg.)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G11
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Woman and bird, 1960
Adelaide
etching, aquatint and drypoint with plate tone on cream paper
22.5 x 20.5 cm (plate)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Animal, 1962
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
14.6 x 16.6 cm (image, irreg.)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G93
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Alec Bolton (printer)
Australia 1926 – 1996
Brindabella Press (publisher)
1972 – 1996 (organisation)
Rooster girls, 1989, published 1990 from the portfolio Twelve linocuts: a suite of prints
Canberra
linocut, ink on cream paper
43 x 31 cm (image), ed 93/100
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 2978.007
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Twin heads, 1960
Adelaide
drypoint with plate tone, ink on paper
15.5 x 11 cm (plate)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G83
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Moth, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
11 x 7.2 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Cat-woman, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
10.9 x 7.1 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Mermaid, 1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
11 x 7.2 cm (image), ed 6/22
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Alec Bolton (printer)
Australia 1926 – 1996
Brindabella Press (publisher)
1972 – 1996 (organisation)
Tiger lady, 1989, published 1990 from the portfolio Twelve linocuts: a suite of prints
Canberra
linocut, ink on cream paper
43 x 29.6 cm (image), ed 93/100
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 2978.005
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl with birds, 1988
Adelaide
hand-coloured linocut, colour inks on paper
60 x 43.6 cm (image), ed 6/12
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Cat lady, 1977
London
wood engraving, ink on paper
13 x 7.8 cm (image), ed 42/45
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Woman tree, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
12.3 x 5.6 cm (plate), ed 11/55
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Animals, 1962
Adelaide
linocut, black and orange inks on paper
37.5 x 12 cm (image, irreg.), ed 42/45
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G94
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Girl with birds, 1976
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
50 x 34 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Summertime girls, 1991
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
34.8 x 50.8 cm (plate), ed 5/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Girl with a bird on her head, 1960
Adelaide
linocut, ink on paper
37.6 x 26 cm (image)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Springtime, 1989
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
30.5 x 22.8 cm (plate), ed 7/60
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
His heart did hope, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on paper
12.6 x 7.7 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Misericordia!, 1982
London
wood engraving, ink on paper; screenprint, red ink on paper
24.7 x 12.5 cm (image, irreg.), ed 12/24
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Green singer, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on paper
13 x 7.7 cm (image), ed 3/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Tree of life, 1989
Melbourne
woodcut, ink on paper
38.9 x 29.5 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The orange tree, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on cream paper
6.2 x 7.6 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Rain garden, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
28.9 x 26.1 cm (image), ed 16/24
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Flora, 1970
London
pencil, gouache and clear varnish on board
56 x 36.2 cm (image)
Shirley Cameron Wilson Bequest Fund 2007
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 20072D5
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Conversation with flowers, 1974
London
etching with plate tone, ink on cream paper
49.3 x 37.2 cm (plate), ed 2/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1974
London
pen and gouache on cream paper
70.5 x 55 cm (image, irreg.)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Earth mother, 1975
London
etching with plate tone, red ink on paper
58.5 x 45.6 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Earth mother, 1982
London
etching with plate tone, red ink on paper
26.3 x 19.7 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The race, 1974
London
etching, ink on paper
40.1 x 20 cm (image), ed of 20
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Floral figure, 1974
London
linocut, ink on yellow paper
44.5 x 32 cm (image), ed 2/9
Gift of Philip and Barbara Fargher 2007
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 20075G38
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Botanical man, 1966
London
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
49.6 x 39.6 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Figures on a head, 1973
London
etching, aquatint and drypoint, ink on paper
49.8 x 33.1 cm (plate), ed 10/12
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Dolly, c1977
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
32 x 35.2 cm (image & paper), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The beloved, 1974
London
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
49.3 x 29 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Throughout her practice Barbara Hanrahan maintained a fascination with life, death and the world beyond. An ongoing motif, the ‘eye of God’ – an image of a giant eye – which her partner Jo Steele refers to as ‘the feeling of … God’, populates many of the artist’s compositions. Such works are often accompanied by celestial imagery including the sun, moon and stars and reflect Hanrahan’s enduring love of the written and visual works of English mystic, artist and poet William Blake (1757-1827), for whom the ‘eye’s of God’ were ‘Angels of the Divine Presence’. Blake utilised celestial bodies and natural entities symbolically throughout his career to explore the interconnected themes of earthly experience and eternal life. This inspired Hanrahan, who, with the resurgence of a cancer diagnosis in the late 1980s, produced a significant body of work that focused on angels. Angelic beings and other characters represented throughout her work, are at times marked with a sinuous motif between the eyes. This recurring spiritual iconography is comparable with the visual code, ‘WU’, utilised by the mystic and pioneering abstract artist Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) and which for Klint represents the ‘essence of all human spirit’. Another motif for Hanrahan is the recurrent depiction of homely curtains, which for the artist, acts as a portal to what Steele describes as the ‘mystery beyond death’.
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Sun and moon, 1989
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
50.5 x 36.1 cm (plate), ed 7/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Under the eye of God, 1975
Adelaide
etching, black, yellow and orange inks on paper; relief etching, orange ink on paper
62.8 x 45.5 cm (plate), artist's proof
Gift of Jo Steele 1996
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 962G37
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
The eye of God, 1974
London
hand-coloured linocut, colour inks on buff paper
51 x 38 cm (image), artist's proof
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 1846
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
The eye of God I, 1964
London
lithograph, ink on paper
76.5 x 48 cm (image)
Gift of Jo Steele 1996
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 962G13
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1988
Adelaide
gouache on board
76.9 x 51.4 cm (image & board)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Ah sunflower, 1962
Adelaide
llinocut, ink on paper
30.2 x 28 cm (image)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G92
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Moon girl, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
31.5 x 17 cm (plate), ed 13/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Women and the moon, 1989
Melbourne
linocut, red and black inks on paper
46.9 x 34.5 cm (image), ed 5/14
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Tyger! Tyger!, 1962
Adelaide
linocut, brown ink on paper
40.5 x 36.8 cm (image, irreg.)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G117
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The sun is up, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on cream paper
6.3 x 9.1 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Break of day, 1983
Adelaide
wood engraving, ink on cream paper
2.5 x 7.6 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Man in the Moon, 1982
London
screenprint, colour inks on cream paper
70 x 52 cm (image), artist's proof
Gift of Jonathan P. Steele
Flinders University Museum of Art, Adelaide 5767
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
To see a world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower, 1962
Adelaide
linocut, ink on cream paper
36.4 x 23.5 cm (image, irreg.)
Gift of Barbara Hanrahan 1990
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 905G115
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Boy and the moon, 1990
relief etching, ink on paper
24.5 x 17.8 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Girl and the moon, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, yellow, blue and black inks on paper
25.7 x 20.6 cm (plate), ed 4/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Angels in the garden, 1989
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
50.5 x 40.8 cm (image), ed 19/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Angels and children, 1989
Melbourne
relief etching, ink on paper
25.9 x 22.2 cm (image), ed 13/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Angel, 1975
London
etching, yellow and blue inks on cream paper
35.5 x 18.3 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Adam and Eve, 1977
London
wood engraving, ink on paper
23.8 x 15 cm (image), ed 17/35
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Eve, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
12.5 x 5.6 cm (image), ed 7/55
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Sweethearts of Jesus, 1989
Melbourne
etching, ink on paper
58.5 x 42.2 cm (plate), ed 5/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Memento mori, 1976
London
screenprint, colour inks on paper
60.4 x 42.4 cm (image), ed 6/23
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1989
Melbourne
pencil, gouache and synthetic polymer paint on paper
73.6 x 54.5 cm (image & paper)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Under the earth, 1974
London
lithograph, black, pink and orange inks on paper
55.5 x 50.5 cm (image)
Gift of Jo Steele 1998
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide 981G1
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Untitled, 1983
Adelaide
gouache on paper
76.5 x 57.2 cm (image & paper)
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Meeting with a snake, 1990
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, colour inks on paper
24.5 x 18.2 cm (plate), ed 2/20
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The angel, 1989-90
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on paper
34.8 x 22 cm (plate), ed 3/30
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
There is from great eternity..., 1989
Melbourne
etching, ink on cream paper
50 x 33.7 cm (image), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Angels and children, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching, colour inks on cream paper
25.5 x 22 cm (plate), ed 3/25
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Tell me! Tell me!, 1989
Melbourne
etching with plate tone, ink on paper
30.7 x 22.8 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Small angel, 1989
Melbourne
relief etching, ink on paper
15.2 x 8.8 cm (plate), ed 6/50
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
Wistful angel, 1989
Melbourne
hand-coloured etching with plate tone, colour inks on paper
9.9 x 4 cm (plate), artist's proof
Private collection, Adelaide
Barbara Hanrahan
Australia 1939 – 1991
Jonathan P Steele (collaborating printer)
Australia 1939 –
The angel, 1991
Melbourne
linocut, ink on paper
68.5 x 48.5 cm (image), ed 2/20
Private collection, Adelaide
Flinders University Museum of Art
Flinders University I Sturt Road I Bedford Park SA 5042
Located ground floor Social Sciences North building, Humanities Road adjacent carpark 5
Telephone | +61 (08) 8201 2695
Email | museum@flinders.edu.au
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