Australian artist, sculptor, instructor and musician
Melville Haysom (1900-1968) was an Australian artist, sculptor, instructor and musician. He specialised in portrait, coastal and animal paintings[1] and alternated between impressionist and abstract styles. His work is held in galleries in Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane.
Early life
Melville Roy George Haysom was born in
Melbourne, Victoria on 17 August 1900. His parents, William and Christina Haysom[2] encouraged his studies of art and music.[3][4] He studied art at the
National Gallery School in Melbourne[5] in the style of the
Heidelberg School but was also influenced by the abstract styles then coming out of Europe. He became President of the Victorian Art Society in 1923.[citation needed]
Haysom moved to Queensland in 1929. He wrote art critiques for newspapers,[6] worked as a musician in the orchestra of the
Regent Theatre,[7] as well as pursuing his painting career. He received the
Godfrey Rivers Bequest Award in 1935 for his portrait of his wife.[8][9]
Haysom volunteered in the Australian Army during
World War II. Following this service he taught art at the
Brisbane Central Technical College (now QUT),[15] providing instruction to many ex-servicemen who took advantage of the scholarships on offer after the war.[16]
He and his wife encouraged the art community in Brisbane which regularly met at their home Merri Merri farm, in the foothills of
Mt Coot-tha at Chapel Hill.[17] He was a Fellow of the Australian Artists Society and a Life Member of the
Royal Queensland Art Society, in addition to being its president from 1952 to 1955.[18] Haysom was also involved in the Scouting movement of Brisbane.[19][20]
Personal life
Haysom married Yvonne Denis in Melbourne in 1925.[21] He died in Brisbane on 25 December 1968, and was survived by his wife, Yvonne and their son, Noel.[22] Selected papers relating to his career are held by the
University of Queensland Fryer Library and the
State Library of Queensland. An annual memorial scholarship was awarded in his name by the
Queensland Art Gallery[23] until Yvonne's death in 2016.[citation needed]
^(1971). A memorial exhibition of the painting of Melville Haysom : held at A.N.Z. Bank Building ... Brisbane from 2nd to 13th August, 1971. A.N.Z. Bank?,
^Haysom, Melville. & Rainbird, Stephen. & Ipswich City Council Art Gallery. (1987). Melville Haysom : a retrospective exhibition organized by the Ipswich City Council Art Gallery. [Ipswich, Qld.] : Ipswich City Council Art Gallery
Further reading
Dryden, Pat. (2022). Merri Merri - home of the twin arts : the story of Melville and Yvonne Haysom 1900-1990 / Pat Dryden. Pat Dryden.
ISBN9780646984476