Frederick McCubbin Lost 1886 Flashcards
(12 cards)
When and what was lost completed on?
Completed in 1886 on oil on canvas.
What is it known as?
Known as the earliest known painting on the subject of lost children and is often considered McCubbin’s first great painting.
What does Lost show?
Shows a painting of an innocent girl surrounded by rugged Australian trees, threatening to entrap her. McCubbin uses neutral colours such as brown and grey.
What are the five symbols/images?
The fate of the girl is left unclear. apron holding wild flowers dwarfed figure in dense bush background broken twig glimpse of blue-grey sky delicate composition of branches and grasses in foreground
What does the apron/wild flowers represent?
The apron she is wearing holds wild flowers, which indicates the probable cause of this situation.
What does the dwarfed figure represent?
The figure is dwarfed by the dense bush background suggesting she is out of place in this wild, natural setting.
What does the broken twig suggest?
a broken twig in the foreground may suggest a clue that a search party will use it to find and rescue her from the bush.
What does the glimpse of the blue-grey sky and delicate composition of branches and grasses indicate?
The glimpse of the blue-grey sky may also indicate how she is becoming trapped with no escape and the delicate composition of the branches and grasses on the foreground heightens the feeling of isolation.
What does lost reflect?
lost reflects how the theme of lost child was very popular during his time of painting in the late 19th century as it reflected the common white-Australian fear of the dangerousness of the Australian bush.
What was the artwork inspired by?
During the 1880s, there were frequent newspapers referenced to children lost in the bush and many people believe that this artwork was inspired by Clara Crosbie, who was missing for three weeks and was fortunately found alive after being lost in the bush near Lilydale.
Where was lost painted?
Lost was painted outside in Boxhill at an art camp. He followed the Heidelberg School art movement in which artists painted scene in the open of air of Australia, particularly in Melbourne and its surrounds.
What does lost reflect as final sentence of paragraph?
It reflects the artist’s world and perspective of Australian art in the artwork.
