artists represented

Rupert Bunny
Stock Works
Extract
Biographical Notes
1864 Rupert Charles Wulsten Bunny was born on 29 September at St. Kilda, Melbourne, third son of Victorian Country Court Judge, Brice Bunny, and Marie Hedwig Dorothea Wulsten. Brice Bunny had come to Australia during the gold rushes in 1852. After six unsuccessful months on the Forest Creek diggings (Castlemaine), he resumed his practice as a barrister in Melbourne.
1870s Rupert Bunny was educated at Hutchins School, Hobert; in Germany, Switzerland, and at Alma Road Grammar School in St. Kilda.
1881 Although he wanted to become an actor, he was obliged through family pressure, to study civil engineering at the University of Melbourne. Through the influence of Alfred Felton, a family friend, Bunny abandoned university to study art, joining the National Gallery School of Design, Melbourne, under Oswald Rose Campbell. Fellow students included Frederick McCubbin, Julian Ashton and Emanuel Phillips Fox.
1882-1883 Studied in School of Painting under George Frederick Folingsby and received a "special mention" in students exhibition of 1883.
1884 To England where he studied at Calderon's art school in St. John's Wood, a preparatory school for the Royal Academy, London.
1886 Moved to Paris and studied under Jean Paul Laurens.
1887 Exhibited with the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolou7r, London: 1887-1888.
1888 Bunny began exhibiting at the Salon de la Société des Artistes Francais (Old Salon), Paris: 1888-90 and 1892-1900.
1890 Awarded a mention honorable in the Old Salon exhibition for the painting The Tritons, purchased by Alfred Felton and now in the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Bunny was the first Australian artist to gain this distinction. First exhibited at the Royal Academy, London: 1890-98, 1902-04, 1906-07 and 1910.
1891 Exhibited Sea Idlyll in the Royal Academy, which was purchased by Alfred Felton and presented to the National Gallery of Victoria in 1892. It was the first painting by Bunny to be acquired by an Australian art gallery.
1893 Bunny exhibited widely, in addition to the Old Salon in Paris and the Royal Academy in London. This included the Royal Society of British Artists, London's New Gallery and the Manchester Academy Autumn Exhibition. His Old Salon painting, The Pastoral  received much acclaim and was purchased by Baronne Vanffy, wife of the Prime Minister of Hungary. This painting is now in the Australian National Gallery, Canberra.
1894 Became a member of the Royal Society of British Artists.
1897 Began exhibiting in the Annual Exhbitions (later International Exhibitions) of the Carnegie Institude, Pittsburg: 1897, 1899, 1904-09, 1914, 1920 and 1924-25.
1898 First solo exhibition, of monotypes at the Fine Art Society's Galleries, London.
1900 Awarded a Bronze Medal for Burial of St. Catherine of Alexandria in the Exposition Universelle, Paris. This painting is now in the National Gallery of Victoria. Became a memeber of the American Art Association of Paris.
1901 Exhibited with the Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts (New Salon), Paris: 1901-14, 1919-26, 1929-32. Showed two paintings in the Victorian Gold Jubilee Exhibition 1851-1901, Bendigo. Awarded the gold medal for the best painting. His work overlooked by Bendigo Art Gallery.
1902 Married Jeanne Heloise Morel, a French beauty, former art student and model who appeared frequently in Bunny's paintings. Painted portrait of Nellie Melba, exhibited at the Royal Academy and Autumn Exhibition of Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool.
1903 One-man exhibition, Galerie Silberberg, Paris, included mythological paintings, landscapes and portraits. Exhibited in Salon d'Automne, Paris: 1903, 1905, 1909, 1913, 1919-25, 1927 and 1931.
1904 Bunny's Aprés le Bain purchased from the New Salon exhibition by the French Government for the Musee de Luxembourg, Paris. This was the highest honour French art could bestow upon a living artist. Bunny was the first Australian to receive this honour. Exhibited with Victorian Artists Socity, Melbourne: 1904, 1911, 1937, 1939, 1940 and 1942-44. Bequeathed an annuity of£100 by Alfred Felton, great benefactor of the National Gallery of Victoria, and friend of the Bunny family.
1905 Membre associe de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Sociétaire du Salon d'Automne. One-man show, Galerie Henry Graves, Paris, again showing mythological subjects, landscapes, portraits and figure compositions.
1906 Second painting purchased by French government for Luxembourg collection. Invited to exhibit in inaugural exhibition of Cercle des Arts, Union Artistique Internationale, Paris.
1911 Exhibition at Baillie Gallery, London, of 103 paintings including northern French landscapes, coastal scenes and figure compositions. Visited Australia, with his wife, after an absence of 27 years. Exhibitions at Athenaeum Gallery, Melbourne and Messrs. Lawson and Little, Sydney.
1912 Returned to Paris. Elected at sociétaire of Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts.
1914-1918 World War I. Most Salons and international exhibitions closed. From 1914 Bunny worked in the American Hospital, Paris, several paintings of the time recorded the harrowing scenes.
1917 Exhbition at Galeries Georges Petit, Paris of figure compositions and quiet, domestic scenes.
1921 Completed commission of 100 monotypes of mythological subjects for Galeries Georges Petit and held exhibition there.
1922 While retaining their Paris apartment, Bunny and his wife lived and worked in a recently acquired cottage at Les Landes, par Sué vres, Loir et Cher. His first landscapes of the south of France date from about 1919-1923 - Le Lavandou. St. Paul du Var, Bormes - Bunny making many sketching trips during the following years. Exhibition of mythological decorations at Galeries Georges Petit, Paris; and mixed exhibition at Fine Arts Socity's Gallery, Melbourne. A number of major early Salon paintings were included in Melbourne exhibition.
1923 Exhibition at Anthony Hordern Galleries, Sydney of same owrks shown in Melbourne the previous year.
1925 Exhibition at Anthony Hordern Galleries, Sydney; 61 paintings mainly landscapes of the south of France.
1926 Bunny visited Australia and exhibited at New Gallery, Melbourne; included many of the landscapes shown in Sydney the previous year. Painted at "Tintaldra" on the Upper Murray.
1927 Athenaeum Gallery, Melbourne exhibition of Australian and French landscapes and several portraits. Exhibited with Twenty Melbourne Painters, Melbourne: 1927-28, 1932, 1934-41. Returned to Paris in July.
1928 To Australia in April for exhibitions at Athenaeum Gallery, Melbourne, and Anthony Hordern Gallery, Sydney of earlier Salon paintings, religious subjects and portraits covering the previous twenty years. Returned to France with Australian painter, Robert Campbell.
1929 Exhibited mainly landscapes of the south of France at Galeries Georges Petit, Paris. Painted with Robert Campbell at Bandol.
1930 London exhibition at Twenty One Gallery. Painted landscapes with Robert Campbell at Sanary, Toulon and Bandol. Bunny's wife suffered a severe stroke.
1932 Returned to Australia with intention of establishing himself and then bringing his wife out to tsettle in Melbourne. Began an art school withJohn Monroe. One of Bunny's students was Arthur Lindsay, who later settled in Castlemaine. Painted series of Melbourne Botanical Gardens pictures.
1933 Exhibition of monotypes at Everyman's Library, Melbourne. Returned to France on death of his wife there in April, aged 61. Exhibition of mainly botanical gardens subjects, Australian landscapes and portraits at Athenaeum Gallery, Melbourne. Bunny returned to Melbourne and settled in a flat at 147 Toorak Road, South Yarra.
1934 Exhibited with Contemporary Art Group Melbourne; 1934-37.
1936 Exhibition at Hogan's Art Gallery, Melbourne, included early Brittany landscapes, later landscapes of the south of France, and important later mythological paintings. Moved to 43 Toorak Road, South Yarra.
1937 Exhibitions at Hogan's Art Gallery, Melbourne in April and September included many landscapes of the south of France and flower paintings.
1938 Became first Artist Vice-President of the newly established Contemporary Art Society, Melbourne. Included in 150 Years of Australian Art, Sydney. Exhibition with Hogan's Art Gallery, Melbourne, again included south of France landscapes.
1939 Exhibited in inaugural Contemporary Art Society exhibition, Melbourne. First one-man show with Macquarie Galleries, Sydney of mainly south of France landscapes.
1940 Exhibition at Macquarie Galleries, Sydney, of mythological paintings and south of France landscapes. Opened by the artists, Roland Wakelin.
1941 Early north and later south of France landscapes and monotypes exhibited at Macquarie Galleries, Sydney. Opened by the artist, Lloyd Rees.
1942 Exhibition at Macquarie Galleries, Sydney of landscapes, flower paintings and monotypes.
1943 Exhibition at Macquarie Galleries, Sydney of 25 works of south of France landscapes, flower paintings and monotypes.
1944 Macquarie Galleries, Sydney exhibition of 15 south of France landscapes and 3 flower paintings.
1945 Two separate but interrelated exhibitions at Macquarie Galleries, Sydney provide small retrospective view of Bunny's art: Landscape and Flower Paintings and Earlier Paintings. Exhibited with Melbourne Contemporary Artists included Russel Drysdale, Ola Cohn, George Bell, Jeffrey Smart and Alan Sumner.
1946 Retrospective exhibition at National Gallery of Victoria of 86 paintings, 6 "colour notes" and 2 drawings covering the period from about 1893 to 1940s. Organised by Daryl Lindsay. First such exhibition by this institution to honour a living Australian artist. Small exhibition at Macquarie Galleries.
1947 Rupert Bunny died on 25th May, aged 82.