Design and Art Australia Online

sculptor, jeweller, teacher and arts administrator, was born in Sydney on 6 November 1912 but received her initial art training in New Zealand (1926-28) under Julia Lynch. In the early 1930s she studied sculpture at East Sydney Technical College under Rayner Hoff and Lyndon Dadswell . In 1938 she became a foundation member of the Contemporary Art Society; the following year she was awarded her diploma in sculpture.

From 1939 to 1964 Aarons exhibited widely with many professional art societies in NSW and Victoria. In 1951 she became a foundation member of the Society of Sculptors and Associates, participated in radio programmes for the ABC and completed the playground sculpture for Phillip Park—apparently the first of its kind in Australia. In 1954 she commenced teaching sculpture at East Sydney but moved to Melbourne the following year, where she remained until moving to Canada in 1964.

In Melbourne, Aarons was a member of and adviser to the Education Department. She was instrumental in devising art curricula for Department of Education of Victoria & Tasmania, Head of Sculpture Department at Caulfield Technical College (now part of Monash University) training SAC students in sculpture & design, and instituted 'in-service training’ for teachers at summer school to upgrade art education knowledge. She belonged to the Art Teachers’ Association (vice-president in 1960-64), lectured and wrote on art education and acted as a teacher-demonstrator for the UNESCO conference at Canberra in 1963. That year some of her conceptual jewellery pieces were selected to represent Australia at the 1964 World Crafts Conference in New York, which she attended as an Australian delegate.

After touring Canada, Aarons attended a summer school at Columbia University, New York, as an observer, guest lecturer and artist in the print studio. Later that year she taught sculpture and design at the Central Technical School in Toronto. She has been artist in residence at five other international art schools in Canada and the United States. In 1965-71 she was allied arts editor for Architecture Canada , in which position she established a liaison office for artists and architects and published two catalogues of current information on artists for architects.

In 1966 Aarons completed a major commission for the Beth Emeth Synagogue at Downview, Toronto: a large series of stained-glass windows, two cast bronze Ark lights, the Ark doors and some furniture for the morning Chapel. Her large tapestry mural was added in 1969.

Aarons exhibited jewellery in the Canadian Pavilion at the 1967 Expo in Montreal. In 1969-72 she acted as a special consultant to the Art Gallery of Ontario and curated theme shows for regional galleries. In 1973 she received a senior Canada Council grant to curate the centenary show at the University of Ontario, 'Art for Architecture’ (1974). From 1976 until she resigned in 1984, she was both a founder and director of the Harborfront Art Gallery, Toronto. In 1983, as an Australian, she was awarded the Diplome d’Honneur by the Canadian Conference of the Arts. While living in Toronto, Aarons married fellow artist, Merton Chambers.

Aarons returned to Australia in 1985, to live in Queensland. She became an honorary consultant to Noosa Gallery and an honorary life member of the Gallery Society. In 1994 she was awarded the Order of Australia Medal. She was then writing a book on twentieth-century art in colonial countries from an artist’s perspective and preparing for a retrospective exhibition to be held at Sydney in 1995. Anita Aarons died in Brisbane on 3 January 2000.

Writers:

Veale, Sharon

Date written:

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Source of info:

Blin, Rene (29 February 2008) 'Information sourced from'.