Edward William John Hopley
Born 1816, Kent, United Kingdom; died 1869, London
A primrose from England, c1855
oil on canvas
122.5cm x 159.2cm
Gift of Mr & Mrs Leonard V Lansell, 1964
Photographer: Ian Hill
Visual description:
This composition shows a crowded indoor scene with numerous figures gathered in a dimly lit room. The central focal point is a table with a small glass case containing a flower, the figures gathered around it. Light falls dramatically on this central point, receding into darker areas towards the edges of the composition. Everyone is dressed in historic clothing in muted brown, red, and ochre toned; many wear hats or head coverings. Several figures hold objects or gesture with raised arms. On the left there is an open window, also crowded with faces of people looking in and tall ship masts visible in the distance.
Curator’s insights:
When A Primrose from England was exhibited at the Royal Academy, London in 1855 it was accompanied by a catalogue note which described the inspiration for the work:
Dr Ward had announced to the Royal Institution that a primrose had been taken to Australia in a covered glass and when it arrived there in full bloom the sensation it excited as a reminiscence of the ‘fatherland’ was so great that it was necessary to protect it by a guard.
The painting is evocative of the feelings of homesickness and nostalgia experienced by colonial society, and exemplifies the colonial desire to transplant an English landscape onto the Australian continent. Of course, the primrose was and still is a common meadow flower in the United Kingdom, but rare and highly prized in the colonies at the time. In the Victorian era much store was placed in the symbolism or language of flowers. The primrose was associated with ‘young love’ and the message that ‘I can’t live without you’. This sentiment is likely to have been very well understood by the English audience for whom the painting was originally intended. The work was later purchased by Bendigo’s most famous gold mining magnate - George Lansell.