Design and Art Australia Online

Illustrator, engraver, painter and historian, was born on 29 October 1847 at Godlington Manor, Oxfordshire, of an old Catholic family. His parents moved to France when George was six and his formative years were spent in Paris, being educated at private schools and the Jesuit College at Vaugirard. Both his mother and her second son, Alfred Collingridge, were artists and George followed suit, enrolling in the Academie des Beaux Arts at the age of sixteen, where he studied architecture under Viollet-le-Duc and landscape painting under Harpignies. However, his major talent was for wood engraving (at which he was said to be more finacially successful than his teacher [though who his teacher was remains unknown] before he had finished the course). His interest in landscape painting led him to Corot and to watching him work at Barbizon (Corot did not take pupils).

As a devout Catholic, George joined Alfred in Italy in 1867 to fight in the Papal Zouaves against Garibaldi. Alfred died from a wound he received in battle, while George took part in 17 engagements and emerged unscathed, with three medals. He was discharged in June 1869 and returned to Paris after wandering around Italy, only to flee to England with the outbreak of war. In London he worked plenty of work as a wood engraver on various illustrated newpapers, including the Graphic and the Illustrated London News . He returned to Paris in 1872, where he became a leading member of his profession, being chosen by Le Monde Illustré as one of three engravers to accompany the famous black-and-white artist Daniel Vierge to Madrid to record the marriage of the King of Spain in 1878. The following year he made an extensive sketching tour of Britain as far as the Orkneys.

Having sent some sketches out to the Illustrated Sydney News that were well received, in 1879 George joined his brother Arthur Collingridge in Sydney, where he worked as an artist-engraver on both the ISN and Town and Country Journal . He and Arthur were founding members of the Royal Art Society of NSW in 1880.

Melbourne International Exhibition 1880: NSW Court – Class 1 – Oil Paintings – no.4 Collingridge, A. & G., Ryde, Parramatta River – 1.Manly Beach from Shell Bay; 2.Wattles; 3.Sunset, Ryde; 4.Kissing Point, Parramatta; Class 5 – Engravings and Lithographs – no.66 Collingridge, A. & G., Ryde, Parramatta River – Engravings of NSW and other scenery.

Exhibited second annual exhibition of the Art Society of NSW in 1881: “[nos] 176, 177, and 183 show engravings by the Brothers Collingridge [Arthur and George] which are admirable in their delicate finish” ( Sydney Morning Herald 17 October 1881, 6).

Art Society of NSW Exhibition 1884: “Geo. Collingridge indulges his fancy in a curious picture of 'The Hawkesbury of the Future’ where on the banks of that fine river, are flowered parterres, pleasure grounds and palatial mansions – all, as yet, but images of the painter’s brain. A decade or two may prove them not all idle dreams” ( Bulletin 19 July 1884, 16; info. Edwina Deakin). “No.26 'The Hawkesbury of the Future’ by Geo. Collingridge, is a picture of an Australian Rhine, with castles and mansions on its banks and a fleet of craft upon its bosom. It is well drawn, but the colouring lacks depth and mellowness. Two smaller works by this artist representing the Berowra Creek at more eventide, are much superior to it” ( Sydney Morning Herald 15 July 1884, 4).

George Collingridge engraved Arthur Collingridge’s Berowra Creek (no.33 in Art Society’s 5th annual exhibition) as cover illustration of Illustrated Sydney News 2 August 1884).

Colonial and Indian Exhibition, London 1886: NSW Exhibits – no.3 Collingridge, George, Berowra via Dural, Hawkesbury River – 1.'Corner of a Lemon Orchard on the Lane Cove River, near Sydney’ (Oil Painting), price £21; 2.'Ferry Road, Hunter’s Hill, near Sydney, at the Dawn of Day’ (Water Colour), price £5.5s; 3.'El Pardo, near Madrid, Spain’ (Water Colour), price £3.3s; 4.'Gum Trees, Hunter’s Hill near Sydney’ (Water Colour), price £4.4s; 5.'Stoney Creek, Lane Cove River, near Sydney’ (Water Colour), price £5.5s; 6 'Sandstone Rock, Riverview, Lane Cove River, near Sydney’ (Water Colour), price £5.5s; 7 'Parramatta River, near Parramatta’ (Water Colour) price, £3.3s.

Art Society of NSW 7th annual exhibition 1886: “Mr G. Collingridge has two good views, one an 'Old Orchard on the Lane Cove River’ (292) and the other 'Berowra Creek from Capo di Monte’ (296)” ( Sydney Morning Herald 20 April 1886, 4).

Art Society Exhibition 1889: 'Mr George Collingridge contributes a like number [4 water colours], of which 157, “An Old Farm House on the Hawkesbury”, 138 “Lane Cove River”, and 87, “A Grey Day” bear the red card. They are all nice little pictures’ ( Sydney Mail 19 October 1889, 868).

Art Society Exhibition 1895: 'Mr George Collingridge is more than usually to the fore in his habitual style of work, the most prominent example of which is “Mangrove Creek, Hawkesbury River” (90), a view painted with excessive conscientiousness’ ( Bulletin 5 October 1895, 20).

George married Lucy Monica Makinson in 1882; they had two daughters and four sons. Early in the 1880s he took up a selection on Berowra Creek; Collingridge Point was named after him. Until the railway came through in the 1890s he commuted to Sydney by road via Ryde, rowing the five or so miles nearest his home. By 1895 he had settled at Hornsby where he built a sandstone cottage, Jave-la-Grande, on three acres of land in Hornsby Junction (sold to Murdo Murray in 1925, who bequeathed it to Hornsby Hospital in 1954: needing renovation in March 2002). About 10 of Collingridge’s paintings on the interior walls of the house were stolen pre-1981. He published Hornsby’s first newspaper, Progress , 'Devoted to the record of facts concerning the Growth, Progress and History of Australasia’ which was 'sent free to all parts of the civilised world … on receipt of One Shilling’s worth of any kind of Postage Stamps’. He also published Australian Art , reputedly Australia’s first magazine devoted solely to art.

After wood engraving was replaced by process and the income for engravers drastically declined George took to teaching, having been a professor at Albert-le-Grand. For ten years he taught at Sydney Technical College and at a dozen or so other Sydney schools and colleges over the years. He taught art at Barker College and was the first art teacher at Hornsby Technical College. He also held private classes in engraving at his Hornsby studio and he wrote several books, notably The Discovery of Australia (1895: republished 1982), and illustrated others, including the first Australian version of Alice in Wonderland (1922) – Alice in One Dear Land and Through the Joke in the Glass – privately published at Hornsby (consisting mainly of woodcuts and/or terrible puns).

He continued to draw, paint and engrave throughout his life; his last exhibition, opened by W.M. Hughes, was held in the Feminist Club Rooms in Sydney in 1926. He died on 1 June 1931.

Writers:

Staff Writer

Date written:

1996

Last updated:

2007