John Mather

Early life, art education and exhibited works

John Mather was born in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, son of John Mather, a surveyor, and his wife Margaret, née Allan.

Mather spent his youth sketching and painting. He had access to the art collection of the Duke of Hamilton and was familiar with all the works. When about 15 years old he had his first art lessons with Thomas Fairbairn (1820-1884)

Mather studied at the Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts. He first exhibited there in 1871 with a water colour of old Highland cottages titled A Bit near Calgary Castle - Isle of Mull. From Glasgow, Mather went to Edinburgh, where he studied at the school of the National Gallery and "painted 'bits' of the old part of the city, which sold rapidly." There he exhibited works as painter in annual exhibitions of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1873.

In 1873 – 74, Mather went to Paris and remarked: "I saw the miles of pictures that are to be seen in Paris, and studied them as well as I could." After Paris he went to London, worked and painted as he had done in Edinburgh.

Subsequently, he went back to Scotland and continued at his art. There, whilst residing in Glasgow, he again exhibited at the Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts in 1876 and at the Royal Scottish Academy Edinburgh in 1877.

Mather's early exhibited works in Glasgow and Edinburgh include:

A Bit near Calgary Castle - Isle of Mull, watercolour, (exhibited 1871)

Arthur's Seat from Queens Park (exhibited 1873)

Burn Sketches (exhibited 1876), watercolour,

Waterfall, Covan Burn, Hamilton (exhibited 1877)

The influence of the Cadzow Forest circle of artists

John Mather's first painting was a scene in Cadzow Forest. His other known works of the Cadzow Forest, all predating his arrival in Melbourne, include:

Cadzow Forest (circa 1871-76) Water colour

Cadzow Forest and white cattle (Title unknown) 1876 Water colour

Cadzow Forest and white cattle (Title unknown) 1877 Oil

Cadzow Forest is an ancient woodland about 2 kilometres south-east of Hamilton. Famous for its centuries-old oaks and herd of white cattle. In the mid-19th century, the Cadzow Forest became a major destination for Scottish landscape painters, comparable to the Forest of Fontainebleau for the painters of the Barbizon School.

Thomas Fairbairn, Mather's first teacher, was an art teacher and prominent water colourist who moved to Hamilton in 1853, possibly to be near the oak tree forest of Cadzow. Fairbairn was celebrated as a literal reproducer of nature. He meticulously captured the textures of the ancient oaks, mosses, and woodland streams without romanticising or altering them. Fairbairn was widely regarded as a watercolourist, bringing a soft, precise touch to paintings of the forest landscape.

Other artists that painted in the Cadzow Forest included:

Samuel Bough (1822–1878),

Alexander Fraser the Younger (1827–1899), and

Horatio McCulloch (1805–1867).

In 1913 Mather remarked that he had recently built a studio named Cadzow in memory of the forest and his first painting.

Arrival and establishment in Melbourne

Emigrating to Melbourne in January 1878, John Mather listed his occupation as Painter using the nomenclature of the Royal Glasgow Institute and the Royal Scottish Academy at that time. Less than 12 months later, on 3 December 1878, John Mather was elected as an Associate of the Victorian Academy of Arts.

In April 1879 he exhibited 11 works at the Annual Exhibition of the Victorian Academy of Arts and was noted as a large exhibitor. He exhibited two oils, Yarra Flats and Evening on the Yarra, and nine watercolours, A Woodland Path Scotland; Sketch near Essendon; Spring-time Scotland; Sketch on Brighton Beach; Lagoon, Yarra Flats; On the Tamar, Tasmania; Old Cottage, Argyllshire Scotland; Old Huts, Isle of Mull, Scotland and A Grey Day, Glen Falloch, Scotland.

In 1879 he was described as a young artist under engagement to Messrs. Gillow and Co. the firm entrusted with the decoration of Mandeville Hall at Toorak, now known as Loreto Mandeville Hall. On 19 December 1879, Mather's tender of £4700 for the internal decorations of the Exhibition Buildings was accepted by the Building Committee of the International Exhibition after providing "other evidence of the possession of special ability."

Mather exhibited again in 1880 and 1881. On 27 October 1881 he was elected to the Council of the Victorian Academy of Arts. In April 1882 he exhibited a number of oil paintings and water colours at the annual exhibition of the Academy, Noted for his industriousness: "there are no less than 11 works bearing his name. Most of them are of rural or woodland scenery, rendered with much artistic feeling, whether in oil or water-colour." Later that year he exhibited another six works in the First Black and White Exhibition of the Academy.

He was married on 16 October 1882 to Miss Jessie Pines Best, a daughter of Captain James Best, a pilot of Hobson's Bay. Together they had one daughter and three sons; Margaret Playfair, John Allan, Louis Melville (died in infancy), and Leslie Frank Strand (died in 1919).

John Mather's 'plein air' work

John Mather was one of the early practitioners of painting en plein air in Victoria. Contemporary reports noted that since his arrival in Melbourne "Mr Mather has been travelling all through Victoria in the employment of his brush and pencil and has given to the public so many examples of his skill in depicting the most picturesque localities."

Mather had an early interest in the landscape around Heidelberg, demonstrated by Wattles at Heidelberg and Leaving off Work, Heidelberg Road, both exhibited with the Victorian Academy of Arts in 1881. He exhibited the following year, Near the Yarra, Heidelberg and Stubble Field, Heidelberg. Another example is a water colour of bushland and river, The Yarra at Heidelberg, signed and dated 1882.Between 1882 and 1885, Mather painted oil and watercolour landscapes around Sunbury and Riddell's Creek, displaying them at exhibitions of the Art Society of New South Wales, the Victorian Academy of Arts, the 1884 Ballarat Fine Art Exhibition, and in his studio at 93 Collins Street East.

In autumn 1885, he made two trips to the Upper Yarra valley, which was described as an artist’s paradise with richly varied and delightfully picturesque scenery. In April 1885, he displayed the results of his first trip to the Upper Yarra valley in his studio.

In 1885, Mather was also noted as amongst the artists travelling to Heidelberg, the first organised effort in Melbourne to form a group for landscape painting. The participants included Arthur Streeton, Walter Withers, John Longstaff, Fredrick McCubbin, E. Phillips Fox, Louis Abrahams, Jane Sutherland, Tudor St George Tucker, John Llewellyn Jones, Tom Humphrey (artist), and Fredrick Williams.

These Sunday painting excursions predated the artist's camps of Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton, Walter Withers, Frederick McCubbin, Charles Condor and others at Box Hill, Mentone, and Heidelberg, and elsewhere. As the camps grew in popularity, they became important gathering places for artists and visitors alike. John Mather is noted as being a member of the Eaglemont camp where he is also recorded as addressing a large gathering of eighty artists, students and their friends.

Around this time, Streeton, then about twenty-two, 'sketched' with Paterson and Mather, regarding himself as a student in their company. He later wrote: “We three painters met at Flinders Street Station, Melbourne … They were my seniors by about fifteen years, and it was kind of them to invite me to join in their painting trip to the ocean shore at Kilcunda.”

Career

In 1878, John Mather joined the Victorian Academy of Arts and in 1881 he was elected to its Council.

During this time Mather was also responsible for the decoration of the Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne. Mather’s design for the exhibition picture galleries reflected his artistic sensibility, using ceiling colours to avoid reflections and provide neutral lighting, along with wall tones to suit differing light conditions.

Later he joined the bohemian Buonarotti Club, camping with other members on plein-air painting expeditions, and served, with Frederick McCubbin, Louis Abrahams, Jane Sutherland, and Tom Roberts on the club's exhibition selection committee. As a painter, Mather was also involved in the bohemian Artists' Camps of Sydney.

In 1886, together with other professional artists, he was a founding member of the Australian Artists' Association, serving on the Executive Committee, as well its Exhibition Selection and Hanging Committees. The amalgamation of the Australian Artists' Association and Victorian Academy of Arts in 1888 subsequently established the Victorian Artists' Society, and he served as its president for twelve years in 1893–1900, 1906–1908 and 1911.

In 1892 he was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the Public Library, Museums and National Gallery of Victoria. Mather was a member of the Felton Bequest Committee from 1905 to 1916 and as trustee, strongly supported Australian art.

In 1912 along with Frederick McCubbin, Max Meldrum, Walter Withers, Mather formed the breakaway Australian Art Association.

Exhibition history

Throughout his career John Mather exhibited his works in Victoria as well other Australian states and overseas.

Prior to emigrating to Australia he exhibited at:

Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts in 1871 and 1876.

Royal Scottish Academy Edinburgh in 1873 and 1877.

In Victoria he exhibited in:

The Victorian Academy of Arts Annual Exhibitions from 1879 to 1887.

The Victorian Academy of Arts Black and White Exhibitions of 1882 and 1883.

Ballarat Fine Art Exhibition 1884.

The Australian Artists Association Exhibitions of 1886 and the Summer and Winter Exhibitions of 1887.

The Victorian Society of Artists Exhibitions of Spring 1888, Autumn 1888, Winter 1889, 1895, Autumn 1900, 1904, 1905 and 1909.

The Victorian Society of Artists Exhibition of Water Colour and Black and White Drawings 1890.

The Victorian Society of Artists Annual Exhibitions from 1890 to 1911, (other than in 1902 and 1903).

The Australian Art Association exhibitions from 1913 to 1916.

In the other Australian states, he exhibited in the:

Annual Exhibitions of the Royal Art Society of New South Wales from 1883 to 1888 as well as in 1892, 1893, 1895, 1899, and 1900.

John Mather's studio

Painting en plein air has been overemphasised and the role of studio work understated in Australian art history. Whilst periodically undertaking outdoor painting, many Australian artists maintained studios in the cities.

John Mather had a number of studios throughout his career and used them for his art, both painting and etching; as well as art lessons, exhibitions of his work and meetings with fellow artists.

Mather painted both en plein air and in his studio. His often very large water colours were painted indoors from sketches made in the field. A magic lantern slide of unknown date shows John Mather in his studio posed before a large partially complete watercolour. Likewise in 1898 he is noted as; "expanding his fascinating scrap, "Evening," into a water colour, "The Golden West," of large size and characteristic completeness."

As early as 1881 Mather had a studio at 95 Collins Street Melbourne, and by 1888, a studio at Healesville which he maintained until about 1894.

In March 1891, he opened a studio at the Austral Buildings Collins Street Melbourne giving classes for the study of oil and water-color painting. The morning classes were held from ten o'clock until one, and the afternoon from two until five. The studio was filled with landscape sketches and studies for the free use of his pupils.

Described in 1891; "The studio is large and well lit and attractively furnished, while it is not overladen with the heterogenous collection so dear to the heart of the average artist. Mr. Mather’s room is made to appear what it is - a place to work and study, and the number of sketches in oil and water color that adorn the walls, proclaim the busy life of the painter."

He also had studios at his various residences. His last studio at his South Yarra residence was described as a "large low room with polished floor contained a grand piano and a few art treasures and beautiful hangings. The artist's own pictures took up most of the wall space, and the dark polished floor was shining perfection. ... Mather’s own little grandson was sometimes an interested spectator when the artist was at work. Once the child asked 'Why is that cow white, grandpa?' In reply the artist explained the colour scheme of his picture it some length, concluding with the exact reason why, to complete the colour scheme, that cow in the foreground was white. To all of which the five-year-old child listened patiently, then contradicted him briefly with, 'Tis not. It's because it's full of milk'"

Students

John Mather is reported to have "had a wide celebrity as a teacher, and ... there are artists of repute in Melbourne now who commenced their careers in his Austral School in Collins Street." He gave lessons at his studio in the Austral Building and at his residences. His lessons included outdoor sketching excursions, often along the coast, where students used pencil, pen and ink and watercolor.

His students include:

Jessie Traill

Ida Rentoul Outhwaite

Jessie Laver Evans

Janet Cumbrae-Stewart

M. J. MacNally

Ellis Rowan

Miss Robertson

Lady Downer

Margaret Forrest or Lady Forrest

Lady Williams

David Davies

Alexander McClintock

Polly Hurry

Dora Wilson

Janie Wilkinson Whyte

James Fawcett of Fawcett and Ashworth

Arthur Jerome Salmon

Etchings

John Mather was among the earliest practitioners of etching in Victoria, producing his first known print, a portrait of Louis Abrahams, around 1886. The previous year John Mather, Tom Roberts and Louis Abrahams had begun teaching themselves etching techniques.

By the early 1890s Mather had produced a number of landscape etchings and was printing his own plates. By 1894 he had imported a professional printing press and equipment from London, strengthening the technical foundations of etching practice in Melbourne.

Mather first exhibited an etching, Bathing-place on the Watts, at the Victorian Artists’ Society Annual Exhibition in September 1895, where it was noted as; "conspicuous as the only bit of nude work in the collection."

Alongside his figurative and landscape prints, Mather produced numerous etchings of windswept tea-trees along Brighton Beach, before shifting after 1900 toward larger architectural and urban compositions.

In the late 1890s he was the only artist in Australia formally teaching etching, and in 1900 he was described as a master of the medium.

Mather was later associated with other notable etchers including John Shirlow, Victor Cobb and Lionel Lindsay. Shirlow was frequently described as the pioneer of Victorian etching, he himself disclaimed the title, pointing to the work of earlier practitioners including Mather.

Similarly Cobb stated, "John Mather ... commenced to etch in Victoria in the early eighties. To him, and no one else, belongs the credit as the first to pioneer of the art in Victoria. He imported an expensive press and equipment from London, conducted classes, and did much for the progress of the art, and was an enthusiastic exponent on the copper plate, up to the time of his death, a few years ago."

Death

John Mather died of diabetes at his home, Cadzow, South Yarra, Victoria on 18 February 1916; he was buried in the Cheltenham Pioneer Cemetery and lay in a grave with no memorial for more than 100 years.

Written just thirteen years after his death;

The war claimed his only son and his daughter who was well known in Melbourne music circles, lives now in the United States. It is as if "the place thereof knoweth him no more " But how can an artist ever be forgotten as long as human eyes are irresistibly drawn to the quiet beauty of his pictures on the wall?

In July 2023 a small plaque was placed on the grave simply stating:

Mr John Mather 1848 – 1916 The beauty of his Art endures.

The words, his Art endures, refers to his painting and etching but also the art he nurtured as a mentor, teacher and one of the founding fathers of art in Victoria.

The Mather collection

Following John Mather’s death, more than 130 works from his art collection were auctioned on 25 June 1919. Nearly 100 works of the 135 catalogued were sold, realising about £900.

Shortly after the auction, his widow Jessie Mather departed Melbourne for Europe, travelling via London and Nice before continuing to New York. While in Wakefield, Rhode Island, she became ill and died there in August 1920. Her 1920 will and probate indicate that she still retained almost £340 of furniture and paintings.

Works from Mather’s collection next reappeared in the 1960s. At that time, a large number of his works were in the possession of his daughter, Margaret Mather, who had emigrated to the United States in 1919 and ultimately settled in Florida in 1956. The collection contained more than 90 of her father's oils, watercolours, and etchings, including some of his most notable works.

Upon Margaret Mather's death in February 1960, her collection passed to her widower, George Bond. In 1967, Bond donated 27 works by Mather to the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida, in Margaret Mather's memory. These works were subsequently exhibited in June 1967. One work nominally titled Late Afternoon was later deaccessioned and is now in a private collection. In 2023, twenty-six oils and watercolours by Mather remained in the museum’s collection.

Following George Bond’s death in 1971, the remaining Mather collection formed part of his estate, and the executors offered it for sale to a friend and associate of George Bond residing in Florida. Over subsequent decades he made proposals to repatriate and exhibit the Mather collection in Australia, including the works held by the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, and some later additions. These efforts were ultimately unsuccessful. Following the death of the collection's last owner, the collection was auctioned and sold.

The Mather collection, together with additional works, was auctioned during 2021–23 in Florida. The paintings and etchings were dispersed throughout the United States, although some were returned to Australia by collectors. Several works returned to Melbourne, among them a large watercolour Brighton Beach (1896), which was acquired by a Melbourne-based collector and subsequently entered the collection of the Bayside City Council Gallery.

Legacy

In 1932, Mather was described as "a landscape painter of considerable reputation during his lifetime". He is regarded as a significant figure in the development of Australian plein air painting. Although widely respected during his lifetime, 13 years after his death his name had largely faded from memory, while his paintings continued to be held in public and private collections.

In 1919, several personal events affected his family. The death of his youngest son, the emigration of his daughter and grandson to the United States, and the illness and later death of his wife overseas meant that by 1920, apart from a son affected by mental illness, none of his immediate family remained in Melbourne. His extensive art collection was subsequently auctioned on 25 June 1919.

In the following decades, leading Australian art magazines of the early 20th century made no reference to Mather's work. Critics, historians, and curators focused narrowly on a few selected artists and images of Australian impressionism. The work of art historians of the 1930s, later transcribed in subsequent art histories, provided little information about his activities. Other than occasional individual works loaned or sold by private owners, there were few significant exhibitions of his work.

Similarly, many of the titles of his works have been forgotten, with nominal or generic titles sometimes applied at art auctions. Nevertheless, because Mather depicted scenes accurately as he observed them, it is often possible to identify the locations of his paintings using historical sources.

Mather's art, widely appreciated during his lifetime but largely forgotten in the decades after his death, has since been rediscovered.

Collections

Three of Mather's own paintings, Autumn in the Fitzroy Gardens in oil, and Morning, Lake Omeo and Wintry Weather, Yarra Glen, both watercolours, were purchased by the National Gallery of Victoria. His work is represented in the collections of the:

National Gallery of Australia (29 works)

National Library of New Zealand (7 works)

National Gallery of Victoria (11 works)

Art Gallery of New South Wales (8 works)

Art Gallery of Western Australia (3 works)

Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (1 work)

Queensland Art Gallery (1 work)

State Library of Victoria (5 works)

Geelong Art Gallery (8 works)

Ballarat Art Gallery (12 works)

Bendigo Art Gallery (2 works)

Castlemaine Art Museum (6 works)

Benalla Art Gallery (1 work)

Launceston Art Gallery

Newcastle Art Gallery (3 works)

Gippsland Art Gallery (2 works)

Latrobe Regional Gallery (4 works)

New England Regional Art Museum (2 works)

Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery

Notes and references

Notes

References