Robert Kerr Henning Collection
Collection
This collection consists of works of art by Robert Kerr (Henning) as well as records and photographs from his field trips to outback Queensland and Australia to research the subject matter of his paintings. Included are photographs from outback road trips taken to in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. These images depict rural hotels, architecture and streetscapes of country areas as well as landscapes, stations, mining sites, stockmen and livestock. They also often focus on run down and dilapidated buildings and scenery. Most of these photographs were used in the studio as work tools and many are spattered with paint. The collection also includes acetate negatives, scrapbook of photographs, photograph albums, enlargements, travel notes and biographical information. The collection further includes reproductions of Robert Kerr Henning's art and some of his original pieces. This collection not only provides an important view into the work processes of a contemporary Queensland artist, it also serves as a fascinating and quite comprehensive photographic record of rural Queensland towns from the 1960s to the 1980s.
Robert Henning (1925-2003) was born in South Africa. He served with the S.A.A.F. and became a lieutenant pilot during the Second World War. After the war he trained as a surveyor in the gold mines in Johannesburg and later in Durban became involved in motorsport, becoming a top ten South African rally driver. In 1960 he moved to Australia and worked in the motor industry, before moving to Queensland in 1966 and began to invest more time in painting. He and his wife, Anne, opened an art gallery on the Gold Coast - The Art Display Centre - in April 1966. A self-taught painter, Henning painted under the name Robert Kerr, and became widely recognised for his depictions of outback life. The Hennings travelled extensively throughout rural Queensland and Australia from the late 1960s gathering subject matter for his art work, and in doing so, photographically documenting the towns, hotels, architecture, mine sites and people that they encountered. Back in his studio, these photographs provided him with the work tools for his works of art. He won many prizes for his art and had work commissioned by mining companies, pastoral companies and Australia Post.
In copyright.
Library Board of Queensland